Objectives The purpose of this study was to identify the knowledge, performance confidence, and educational needs of early childhood education students regarding first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and to provide basic data necessary for developing educational programs at universities. Methods This study investigated the knowledge, performance confidence, importance, and current level of awareness of first aid and CPR among all students of the Department of Early Childhood Education at G University. The collected data were analyzed using the SPSS WIN 22.0 program to determine the educational need priority through the mean, standard deviation, t-test, Borich formula, and Locus for Focus model. Results The subjects' knowledge level of first aid and CPR was 62.8% correct, and their average performance confidence was 3.19, their average importance recognition was 4.68, and their average current level recognition was 3.14. Students with educational institution internship and first aid training experience had higher scores on knowledge and perceived importance, but there were no general characteristics that significantly differed in performance confidence. There was a need for education for all 15 emergency care items, and the results of the educational need priority check using the Borich formula and Locus for Focus model showed that the highest priority included head injury, response when discovering a person in cardiac arrest, chest compressions and artificial respiration, and AED operation, while the next highest priority included sprains, fractures, dislocations, tooth fractures, and choke. Conclusions Early childhood education students must achieve first aid and CPR competency upon graduation, so it is necessary to develop an educational program that includes practical training for the first aid items identified as having high priority in this study.
Read full abstract