Immediate care training in Ireland, 2002-2013: a potential link between high uptake rates and effect

Area of Science:

• Emergency Medicine
• General Practice Training

Background:

• General Practitioners (GPs) play a role in community cardiac arrest resuscitation.
• Immediate Care training aims to enhance skills for critical events.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the uptake of Immediate Care training among General Practitioners (GPs) in Ireland over a 12-year period (2002-2013).
• To explore the relationship between training participation and clinical effectiveness in cardiac arrest care.

Main Methods:

• Data collation on Immediate Care courses and attendances from 2002 to 2013.
• Analysis of participant demographics, focusing on GPs and GP registrars.
• Calculation of annual participation rates and total attendance days.

Main Results:

• 244 courses were conducted with 4247 attendances by 2069 individuals, predominantly GPs (1648, 92.1% of doctors).
• GPs accounted for 3585 attendance days (84.4% of total).
• An average of 219 GPs/GP registrars attended training annually between 2006-2013, representing approximately 8% of Irish GPs.

Conclusions:

• Significant GP engagement in Immediate Care training was observed over the study period.
• Consistent annual participation suggests sustained interest and potential for improved outcomes.
• Further research is warranted to confirm the link between this training and enhanced cardiac arrest resuscitation success rates.