Abstract Body: Introduction:
Prior research has shown that females are less likely to receive CPR in an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Yet, many community CPR trainings do not use breasted manikins. We assessed 3 domains of community participants’ perceptions of performing bystander CPR: comfort, confidence, and willingness, 6 months after they completed a training with traditional and breasted manikins.

Methods:
In a crossover pilot study, participants were consented during a CPR training event for teachers at an urban public school. They were randomized to initial training using a traditional or breasted manikin. Participants then switched manikins and re-practiced CPR. An in-person survey was obtained post-training. Six months later, participants were emailed another survey to reassess their technical knowledge, comfort, confidence, and willingness to perform CPR in an emergent situation. Chi square and fisher’s exact tests were used to assess bivariate associations.

Results:
Of 114 total study participants, 79 participants (69%) completed the 6-month follow-up survey. Using a Likert scale (1-5, 1 being least comfortable and 5 being most comfortable), 61% reported a 5 (feeling very comfortable) and 30% a 4 (feeling fairly comfortable) performing CPR using traditional manikins while 22% reported a 5 and 60% a 4 using breasted manikins, showing reduced comfort for breasted manikins. There was also more neutrality or only somewhat comfort reported with breasted vs traditional manikins (17% vs 9%, respectively). 77% of participants reported that training on both the traditional manikin and the female-breasted manikin impacted their confidence in performing CPR. 81% of participants reported that training on a breasted manikin increased their comfort level for doing CPR on a real-life female in OHCA. 42% of participants reported a 5 (being very willing) and 49% a 4 (being fairly willing) to perform CPR irrespective of gender in a real-life OHCA.

Conclusion:
Our pilot study with a 6-month follow-up highlights a reduced comfort level in performing CPR using breasted vs traditional manikins. Yet, majority of participants reported increased comfort performing CPR in a real-life OHCA with a female after practicing on a breasted manikin Overall, there is high willingness to perform CPR on both male and female victims.