(P099) ACCEPTABILITY AND EFFECTIVENESS OF A NOVEL, VIDEO-BASED CPR AND AED EDUCATION PROGRAM IN ONTARIO SCHOOLS

Background: Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is a tragic event, carrying a huge emotional burden on families and the community. Early cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and defibrillation are critical for a favorable outcome. There is a large body of scientific evidence supporting CPR and AED training in school age children through various different methods. However, few studies have used gamified, video-based training to teach students. The aim of this national project was to assess the acceptability and effectiveness of a brief, video-based educational program, developed by the Heart and Stroke Foundation to teach both elementary and secondary students hands-only CPR and AED use within a classroom setting.

METHODS AND RESULTS: This is a national project involving three Canadian Provinces (AB, ON, NS). Here we present preliminary data from Ontario only. We measured the acceptability and effectiveness of training through a pre/post survey that evaluated students’ self-confidence in recognizing SCA, calling for help, and providing bystander CPR, including the use of an AED. CPR performance was measured by using Little Anne QCPR manikins that collected data on the efficacy of CPR (depth, rate, CPR fraction, etc.) throughout the training session. Results are stratified by student cohort (elementary—grades 4-8, and secondary—grades 9-12). We report descriptive statistics and a t-test for measured differences.
A total of 725 students from six Ontario schools were trained between October to December 2023. The average age for elementary students (n=354) was 11.4 ± 1.32 years, with 48% being male and 56% with previous CPR training. The average age for secondary students (n=371) was 15.7 ± 1.18, with 58% being male and 44% with previous CPR training. Overall, both groups thought the training was easy (88%), fun (79%), the correct duration (59%) and would recommend it to their friends (86%). All elements of the survey improved post training for both elementary and secondary students, including the self-confidence to recognize and assist in cases of SCA (p=0.008 for both cohorts). (Figure 1). Secondary students were significantly better at providing effective compressions versus elementary for most CPR measures (Table 2).

Conclusion: Preliminary data suggest that a brief, video-based educational program, is acceptable to students and effective at teaching school-age children to perform CPR and use an AED. While both elementary and secondary students achieved acceptable CPR performance, secondary students performed higher quality CPR than their elementary counterparts.