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2024 Scholars' Research Symposium Abstract: ACLS Instructor Course to Enhance Medical Students' Resuscitation
1University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine.
Introduction:
Physicians are expected to be competent in the management of cardiovascular emergencies. Despite the demand, there is a lack of research regarding how to better provide training for medical students to address cardiovascular emergencies. The authors of this project hypothesize that medical students participating in the Advanced Cardiac Life Support Instructors (ACLS-I) program will improve their emergency management and clinical teaching competencies and confidence.
Methods:
At the beginning of Pillar 2 (MS2) and after completion of ACLS training and certification, 16 medical students were accepted into the ACLS-I course. During Pillar 2 (MS2- MS3) participants completed the ACLS Instructor training course, obtained ACLS Instructor certification status, and taught at least 2 ACLS classes under supervision of the experienced ACLS instructors. At the end of Pillar 2 (MS3), 5 student-instructors and 58 noninstructors took a multiple-choice question (MCQ) quiz enhanced with the level of assurance rubric. Obtained data were analyzed to investigate ACLS instructors' competency in ACLS/non-ACLS knowledge compared to their peers. Students' performances were also assessed for correlation between knowledge accuracy and confidence in selected answers on the quiz. Additionally, the project investigated if course participants were more confident to participate in ACLS codes as providers and teach ACLS to healthcare students or providers using the 5-point Likert scale.
Results:
There was significant evidence (p less than 0.05) to suggest that ACLS-I students had a greater or equal mean raw score, were more competent in ACLS-I factual questions, and felt more comfortable teaching medical professionals and healthcare students how to manage cardiopulmonary emergencies and ACLS codes. There was not sufficient evidence (p greater than 0.05) to suggest that ACLS-I students were more competent in ACLS-I conceptual questions, more confident in their answers (correct and incorrect), and more confident in performing as a provider or team-leader in ACLS codes and cardiopulmonary emergencies.
Conclusions:
Completing an ACLS instructor course and participating as an ACLS instructor throughout medical school increases a medical student's factual ACLS knowledge and confidence in teaching ACLS codes compared to their peers. It does not increase accuracy and confidence of conceptual knowledge of cardiovascular emergencies.
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