Enhancing Equity in Schoolchildren's Basic Life Support Education in Brazil Through Serious Games: Cohort Study

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Pediatric Resuscitation
• Educational Technology

Background:

• Out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCAs) often occur in homes, with children as potential first responders.
• Basic life support (BLS) training is recommended for children, but global disparities hinder implementation, especially in low-resource settings.
• Younger children face physical limitations impacting their ability to perform effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare CPR performance between public and private school students after a game-based BLS intervention.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of a serious game (Kids Save Hearts) in improving BLS knowledge across different socioeconomic backgrounds.

Main Methods:

• An observational cohort study involved 336 students (aged 7-17) from public and private schools in Brazil.
• Participants received video-based CPR training followed by gamified training using the Children Save Hearts serious game.
• CPR quality was assessed using Quality of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (QCPR) scores, with anthropometric and socioeconomic data collected.

Main Results:

• Older students (11-17 years) demonstrated significantly better compression depth and QCPR scores than younger students (7-10 years).
• While private school students had higher grip strength, school type did not significantly impact CPR quality.
• The serious game intervention universally improved BLS knowledge and skills, irrespective of age or socioeconomic status.

Conclusions:

• Age and physical development are key determinants of CPR quality, outweighing socioeconomic factors.
• Game-based BLS interventions are effective and equitable training tools, improving knowledge and skills across diverse student populations.
• Findings support the scalability of gamified BLS programs in resource-limited settings for enhanced public health outcomes.