The immediate effect of deliberate practice and real-time feedback on high-quality CPR training in intern doctors, acute care providers, and lay rescuers

Abstract

The quality of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is the main determinant of survival in cardiac arrest, so high-quality CPR (HQ-CPR) from bystanders is essential. The best instructional model for HQ-CPR performed by bystanders remains under investigation, and an instructional model’s effect on various learner types is unknown. This study examined the immediate effect of a brief, blended instructional design that combines deliberate practice (DP) with real-time feedback (RTF) on the booster training of intern doctors (IDs) and acute care providers (ACPs) as well as on the skills acquisition training of lay rescuers (LRs). This cohort crossover study was conducted in a university-affiliated hospital in January 2020. Just-in-time training on HQ-CPR that featured a popular song was provided to IDs (n = 24), ACPs (n = 29), LRs (n = 25); groups performed one-minute cardiac compressions twice, without RTF and with verbal coaching, followed by debriefing, and then with only RTF. The impact of RTF on depth, rate, compression quality (CQ), and recoil was assessed. RTF significantly improved depth, rate, CQ, and recoil (p < 0.001). Among the LRs, the depth was 0.2 millimeters below the lower cutoff. Without RTF, the previously trained IDs and ACPs tended to perform inadequately faster and deeper compressions, while the untrained LRs performed slower, shallow compressions. DP combined with RTF yielded a significant immediate effect on the HQ-CPR training outcomes of all learner types.