Incorporating Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Training into a Cardiac Rehabilitation Program: A Feasibility Study

Abstract

Aim: Targeting cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training to high-risk cardiac populations has long been advocated, but is an area in need of research evidence. We investigated the feasibility of providing CPR training in a cardiac rehabilitation program to cardiac patients and their family members. Methods: A prospective before and after study design was used. CPR training was delivered using video self-instruction (VSI) CPR training kits, facilitated by a cardiac nurse. Data was collected pre-training, post-training and at one month. Results: Cardiac patient participation rates in CPR classes were high (n = 56, 72.7% of eligible patients) with a further 27 family members attending training. Patients were predominantly male (60.2%), family members were predominantly female (81.5%), both with a mean age of 65 years. Confidence to perform CPR and willingness to use CPR skills significantly increased post-training (both p < 0.001). Skills assessed post-training demonstrated a mean compression rate of 112 beats per minute and a mean depth of 48 millimetres. Training reach was doubled as participants shared the VSI kit with a further 87 people. Training received positive feedback from participants and cardiac rehabilitation staff strongly agreed or agreed that CPR training was an appropriate addition to their program. Conclusion: We demonstrated that cardiac rehabilitation is an effective and feasible environment to provide CPR training. Using VSI CPR training kits enabled further training reach to the target population. Future large scale studies are now needed to assess whether this training is suitable in different types of cardiac rehabilitation programs.