Cardiopulmonary resuscitation prescription program: a pilot randomized comparator trial

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Emergency Medicine
• Cardiovascular Disease Prevention

Background:

• The American Heart Association aims to increase public CPR proficiency.
• The efficacy of prescribing CPR training to patients is not well-established.
• This study investigated patient adherence to CPR learning recommendations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if patients with or at risk for heart disease and their families are more likely to follow advice to purchase a CPR Anytime™ kit or enroll in a CPR class.
• To compare the effectiveness of two CPR training prescription methods.

Main Methods:

• A prospective randomized pilot study involved 162 CPR-naïve participants aged over 44.
• Participants were recruited from emergency, primary care, and cardiology settings.
• One group received a prescription for a CPR Anytime™ kit; the other was prescribed a CPR class.

Main Results:

• Approximately 15% of participants purchased the CPR kit, while 0% took a CPR class.
• Patients were significantly more likely to purchase a CPR kit than to attend a class (p=0.0004).
• Adherence varied by recruitment site, with higher purchase rates in primary care settings.

Conclusions:

• Prescriptive advice can motivate patients to purchase CPR Anytime™ kits.
• Patients are unlikely to adhere to prescribed advice for attending CPR classes.
• CPR kits represent a viable option for increasing CPR training adherence in cardiac patients.