An audit of basic life support skills amongst general practitioner principals: is there a need for regular training?

Objective: to determine what proportion of general practitioner (GP) princi pals in Herefordshire health authority are able to perform basic life suppo rt according to current guidelines. Design: prospective cohort study. Setti ng: Herefordshire Health Authority area. Subjects: 53 general practitioner (GP) principals, based in 18 surgeries. Main outcome measures: basic life s upport (BLS) skills were assessed using the 1997 UK Resuscitation Council g uidelines in checklist form as a process criterion. An assessments of each doctor was made before and after teaching of BLS skills. Results: 50% of GP principals (n = 53) in Herefordshire Health Authority took part in the aud it. Of these 90.6% (48) were unable to perform BLS according to current gui delines on initial appraisal. After a practical teaching session 98% were c ompetent in BLS skills. Conclusion: without regular teaching, BLS skills am ongst GPs are likely to fall below an acceptable standard. Even short teach ing periods can produce significant improvement in skills. (C) 2000 Elsevie r Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.