Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Skills of Some Nigerian Primary and Secondary Schools Teachers

Abstract

Background/Aim of Study: Training of primary and secondary schools teachers on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) has received the support of the international community for the purposes of increasing potential bystander CPR providers for out-of –hospital cardiac arrests and teaching of the school children the same, but the situation is different in Nigeria. This study aimed at assessing the CPR skills of a group of Nigerian teachers. Study Design: Cohort experimental study. Place and Duration of the Study: Department of Human Kinetics and Health Education, Faculty of Education, University of Port Harcourt in September 2016. Methodology: A group of Nigerian primary and secondary schools teachers who came for further education at the University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria had their pre-training and post-training CPR skills assessed by a certified CPR instructor. The training was based on the American Heart Association (AHA) conventional CPR teaching standard and a modified AHA CPR Skills Evaluation Guide was used in the data collation. Results: Although the pre-training CPR skills of the teachers were very poor, they significantly improved after the training (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Nigerian primary and secondary schools teachers could serve as potential bystander CPR providers, as well as instructors to the children and the public, if well exposed as in advanced parts of the world.