Developing competency of nursing students in cardiopulmonary resuscitation using Resuscitation Quality Improvement technology.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the outcomes of training nursing students in CPR skills using the Resuscitation Quality Improvement (RQI) program. METHODS: Nursing students (n=2,193) in 12 schools across the United States participated in this study. Students performed compressions and bag-masked ventilation on adult and infant manikins using the RQI simulation station without and then with feedback on their performance. RESULTS: With real-time, objective feedback from the RQI simulation station, students' performance of CPR skills improved, and they retained their skills over time. CONCLUSIONS: The RQI program and methodology of feedback is effective for training nursing students to be competent in CPR skills, essential for safe patient care. Nursing and other healthcare professions programs should consider adopting the RQI program for students to develop competency in CPR.

Maintenance of CPR skills among nursing students trained using Resuscitation Quality Improvement® program.

Background: The Resuscitation Quality Improvement® (RQI) program is a competency-based approach that provides low dose, high frequency cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills training. Limited research has evaluated its effectiveness with nursing students who need to be prepared to respond to cardiopulmonary emergencies despite their student status and to be competent in CPR as they transition into practice. Objective: The objective of this multisite longitudinal study was to examine the maintenance of adult and infant compressions and ventilation skills by nursing students at 3 and 6 months following practice with real-time feedback using the RQI® program. Methods: The effectiveness of brief practice of CPR skills at the RQI® simulation station on the maintenance of skills was analyzed with 238 nursing students from six universities across the United States. Participants completed three practice sessions, at baseline (month 0), 3 months, and 6 months. At baseline, they performed compressions and ventilation with a bag-valve mask on adult and infant manikins without feedback (pretest), followed immediately by a session integrating real-time, objective feedback (both audio and visual) on their performance. CPR practice on the manikins with feedback on performance was then repeated every 3 months. Results: Practicing CPR skills at the RQI® simulation station every 3 months with real-time feedback enabled participants to maintain their compression and ventilation skills and improve them from baseline (month 0) to 6 months. There was no loss of skills among these participants. Median scores on the first attempt to compress and ventilate stayed above the minimum 75 % overall score that learners must achieve to be considered an adequate performance. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that brief practice of CPR skills at the RQI® simulation station every 3 months with real-time feedback was highly effective for maintaining students' competence in compressions and ventilation. Once the RQI® program is set up in a school, students could practice on their own as needed to maintain their skills.