Teaching ACLS stroke objectives to prehospital providers: a case-based approach

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Emergency Medical Services
• Neurology

Background:

• Stroke knowledge among prehospital care providers is crucial for timely and effective treatment.
• Traditional educational methods may not always achieve optimal knowledge retention.
• Assessing the impact of different instructors on educational outcomes is important for refining training programs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of a case-based educational module in enhancing prehospital care providers' stroke knowledge.
• To compare the short-term and long-term knowledge gains when the module is delivered by a physician versus an ACLS instructor.

Main Methods:

• Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel received a stroke module with case-based scenarios.
• Participants were tested before and after the module using a 25-question test.
• Follow-up testing was conducted 6-7 months later to assess long-term knowledge retention.

Main Results:

• Overall test scores improved by 32% immediately after the module and 18% at six months (p < 0.001 for both).
• No significant difference in pretest scores was observed between groups led by physicians or ACLS instructors.
• There were no significant differences in short-term (p = 0.36) or long-term (p = 0.074) knowledge improvements between the two instructional groups.

Conclusions:

• A case-based approach is an effective method for educating EMS personnel about stroke.
• Physicians and ACLS instructors can achieve comparable educational benefits when delivering this stroke module.
• This educational strategy offers a flexible and effective way to improve stroke care knowledge in prehospital settings.