COMPARISON OF CARDIOPULMONARY-RESUSCITATION TRAINING METHODS FOR PARENTS OF INFANTS AT HIGH-RISK FOR CARDIOPULMONARY ARREST

Study objectives: To compare three different methods of teaching CPR t o parents of infants at high risk for sudden cardiopulmonary arrest an d to identify characteristics that predict difficulty in learning CPR. Methods: We conducted a prospective, multicenter clinical trial of 48 0 parents and other infant caretakers. Subjects were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 CPR training protocols: an instructor-taught CPR class, an instructor-taught CPR class followed by a social support intervention, or a self-training video module. CPR proficiency was evaluated with t he use of a CPR skills checklist. Results: Of 480 subjects, 301 (63%) were able to demonstrate successful CPR after training. Univariate ana lysis revealed that unsuccessful learners were likely to be less educa ted, to have lower incomes, to never have attended a previous CPR clas s, and to have better psychosocial adjustment to their infant's illnes s, compared with successful learners. The proportion of successful lea rners was significantly higher in the 2 instructor-taught classes than in the self-training video class. Multiple logistic regression analys is was used to develop a predictive profile to describe unsuccessful l earners. The following characteristics independently predicted unsucce ssful learners: CPR learned in the self-training video group, fewer ye ars of education, and better psychosocial adjustment. Conclusion: Most parents of infants at high risk for sudden death can demonstrate succ essful CPR skills at the completion of 1 class. However, a significant minority will require extra attention to be successful. Self-training video instruction may not be an adequate substitute for instructor-ta ught CPR.