Impact of training in Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) in the professional career and work environment.

Lunia Sofia Lima Azevedo,Antônio Pazin Filho,Lucas Gaspar Ribeiro,André Schmidt

doi:10.1590/1413-81232018233.13762016

Lunia Sofia Lima Azevedo, Antônio Pazin Filho + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/1413-81232018233.13762016

Copy DOI

Abstract

We sought to evaluate the impact of Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) training in the professional career and work environment of physicians who took the course in a single center certified by the American Heart Association (AHA). Of the 4631 students (since 1999 to 2009), 2776 were located, 657 letters were returned, with 388 excluded from the analysis for being returned lacking addressees. The final study population was composed of 269 participants allocated in 3 groups (< 3 years, 3-5 and > 5years). Longer training was associated with older age, male gender, having undergone residency training, private office, greater earnings and longer time since graduation and a lower chance to participate in providing care for a cardiac arrest. Regarding personal change, no modification was detected according to time since taking the course. The only change in the work environment was the purchase of an automated external defibrillator (AED) by those who had taken the course more than 5 years ago. In multivariable analysis, however, the implementation of an AED was not independently associated with this group, which showed a lower chance to take a new ACLS course. ACLS courses should emphasize also how physicians could reinforce the survival chain through environmental changes.

Highlights

Despite all the efforts of the last few decades, there still is no precise estimate of the incidence of cardiac arrest or its survival rate
This complicates the assessment of the impact of Basic and Advanced Life Support courses proposed by institutions such as the American Heart Association (AHA) as strategies aiming at strengthening the survival chain
C - Impact of the Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) Course on your work environment After you took the course, did you improve your work environment as indicated below: 1) Purchase of an automated external defibrillator (AED) or defibrillator ( )yes ( )no 2) Purchase of materials such as bag masks, gurneys or oxygen devices? ( )yes ( )no 3) Reform of visiting rooms? ( )yes ( )no After you took the ACLS course did you encourage: 4) The training of the team with which you work or of your specialty colleagues? ( )yes ( )no 5) The placement of AEDs in public spaces ( )yes ( )no the no answer was sent back we considered it a loss

Summary

Introduction

Despite all the efforts of the last few decades, there still is no precise estimate of the incidence of cardiac arrest or its survival rate. Multiple factors are responsible for this situation, including the reduced incidence of coronary disease – directly correlated to cardiac arrest – but one of the major contributing factors is the lack of a well-structured database that would permit trend evaluation[1]. This complicates the assessment of the impact of Basic and Advanced Life Support courses proposed by institutions such as the American Heart Association (AHA) as strategies aiming at strengthening the survival chain. All of these efforts may not be strengthening the survival chain in a uniform manner and the question of retention becomes a fundamental point regarding the maintenance of the conquests[5,8,9,10]

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion