Characterizing barriers to CPR training attainment using Twitter.

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Social Media Analysis
• Cardiovascular Health Education

Background:

• Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training rates in the U.S. are low, with barriers to participation poorly understood.
• Social media offers a platform for large-scale data capture on public experiences with CPR training.
• Previous studies have used Twitter for cardiovascular health behaviors, but not specifically for public perception of CPR training.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize tweet content and sentiment regarding CPR training.
• To identify barriers to CPR training attainment using social media data.
• To understand public perception of CPR training through Twitter data analysis.

Main Methods:

• Extracted 8,419 tweets from Pennsylvania (2011-2015) containing the keyword 'CPR'.
• Coded a random subset of 1,000 tweets using grounded theory to analyze subtopics and sentiment (positive/negative).
• Employed descriptive statistics and a chi-squared test to compare sentiment and identify training barriers.

Main Results:

• CPR training was the most frequent topic (16%) in the analyzed tweets.
• Within the coded subset, 18% discussed CPR training experiences, with negative experiences comprising the majority (53%).
• Key barriers identified included training time, location, curriculum, and duration, contributing to negative perceptions.

Conclusions:

• CPR training is a prominent theme in social media discussions, often associated with negative sentiment and barriers.
• Social media platforms like Twitter are valuable tools for identifying public barriers to CPR training.
• Findings can inform future CPR education strategies to improve training accessibility and attainment.