Addressing Gaps in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Education: Training Middle School Students in Hands‐Only Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND Training middle school students to perform hands‐only cardiopulmonary resuscitation (HOCPR) is a potential method to increase overall rates of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). We aimed to examine the feasibility of teaching this population CPR using teacher‐implemented education sessions guided by American Heart Association (AHA) training kits and resources. METHODS We conducted a national HOCPR training campaign in middle schools during the 2014‐2015 school year. Participating schools utilized AHA CPR training kits to train seventh and eighth grade students. We assessed pretest/posttest knowledge and comfort in performing HOCPR. RESULTS We recruited 1131 schools and trained approximately 334,610 students in HOCPR. The average pretest score on knowledge questions was 50% and the average posttest score was 84%. Most students (76%) felt comfortable performing HOCPR after the education session. Overall, 98% of teachers said they would continue to implement CPR training in the future. CONCLUSIONS Large‐scale, teacher‐implemented CPR education sessions in the middle school setting are a successful approach to increase middle school student's knowledge and comfort in performing HOCPR and to increase overall bystander CPR rates.