Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Knowledge Among High School Students After Basic Life Support Training. Results from the “Kids Save Lives” project in the Canary Islands, Spain AHA Conference Repository

American Heart Association

Final ID: Sun1307

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Knowledge Among High School Students After Basic Life Support Training. Results from the “Kids Save Lives” project in the Canary Islands, Spain

Abstract Body: Background
Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) remains a leading global cause of mortality. Early recognition and initiation of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by bystanders significantly improves survival. Training school-aged populations in basic life support (BLS) is a key public health strategy to increase CPR rates and reduce time to intervention.
Methods
A cross-sectional survey was conducted nine months after a standardized BLS training among high school students (N > 5,046) in the Canary Islands. Students completed an anonymous questionnaire assessing recognition of cardiac arrest, emergency activation, and AED knowledge. Responses were compared across sex, age groups (14–16, 16–18, >18 years), and prior participation in the project. The “kids save lives” project started in 2020 having trained approximately 30,000 children at the time of the survey.
Results
The survey results revealed several key findings about high school students' knowledge. Firstly, only 25.1% of students correctly identified the definition of cardiac arrest (unconscious and not breathing). 91.6%, accurately remembered the European emergency number (112), indicating solid retention of critical information for activating emergency services. Regarding awareness of automated external defibrillator (AED) use, 39.5% of students reported knowing the location of the nearest AED.
When analyzing differences between subgroups, females were older (p = 0.001) and they remembered the emergency phone number better than men (p = 0,045). In contrast, older students (over 18 years) answered the pulse is needed for cardiac arrest recognition (41,3%), in contrast with the youngest group (15-17 year-old), being these statistically significant differences (p = 0.016). Also, the youngest group did know where the closest AED was located compared to the other groups (51.21%; 32.41%; 29.34%, p = 0,001). The students who participated in the project also had better recognition of the closest AED (52,8% vs 42,78%, p 0,001). Finally, a non-significant trend toward better recognition of cardiac arrest was observed in students who had previously participated in the project.
Conclusion
High school students retained core CPR concepts nine months post-training, with over 90% remembering the emergency number. However, fewer than 30% correctly identified the signs of cardiac arrest. These findings support the need for annual refreshers to reinforce critical recognition skills and improve future bystander CPR rates.

Jorge-perez, Pablo ( Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Canarias - Servicio Canario de la Salud , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Spain )
Martin-cabeza, Marta ( Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Canarias - Servicio Canario de la Salud , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Spain )
Lobato-gonzalez, Jose Francisco ( Consejeria Sanidad , Las Palmas , Las Palmas Gran Canaria , Spain )
Gomez Martinez, Vctor ( Servicio Canario de la Salud , Las Palmas , Las Palmas Gran Canaria , Spain )
Melo-rodriguez, Irene ( Consejeria Educacion , Las Palmas , Spain )
Jorge, Ana ( Centro Salud La Cuest , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Spain )
Gomez-gonzalez, Alejandro ( Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Canarias - Servicio Canario de la Salud , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Spain )
Castro-martin, Jorge Joaquín ( Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Canarias - Servicio Canario de la Salud , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Spain )
Quijada-fumero, Alejandro ( Hospital Universitario Nuestra Se?ora de Candelaria , Santa Cruz de Tenerife , Spain )

Author Disclosures:

Pablo Jorge-Perez: