Improvement in Confidence Levels for the Management of Paediatric Cardiac Arrests in Medical Students Following a Training Course

BACKGROUND: Newly qualified doctors lack competency in handling a cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The ability to recall CPR fundamentals have been shown to be inadequate. Of greater concern is that medical students over - estimate their ability to deliver such aid in a real - world setting. As most medical students are only taught adult BLS they are often unskilled and/or unhelpful in managing paediatric specific emergencies. This fact is supported by the poor outcomes demonstrated in delivering successful Paediatric Basic Life Support (PBLS). OBJECTIVES: Our aim was to evaluate the baseline confidence levels of medical students in dealing with a paediatric cardiac arrest (PCA) and the improvement seen following a PBLS training course. METHODS: A prospective study was conducted on 51 medical students who attended an established one - day PBLS and first aid course at one UK medical school. Participants were requested to complete a questionnaire directly prior to and after the course. RESULTS: Following the delivery of the training, the cohort reported a statistically significant (P < 0.05) increase in mean confidence with PCA from 2.2/10 (2.2 out of 10) to 7.5/10. A pre - training mean confidence score of 2.6/10 was observed for Year 4 and 5 students who are close to graduating. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings clearly demonstrate very poor confidence among medical students with PCA at all stages of their training. We would strongly advocate the inclusion of a PBLS component in medical school curriculums so that future doctors are adequately prepared to deliver PBLS with confidence.