BMJ 1995;310:1266 (13 May)

Letters

In future, cardiac arrest teams may require current evidence of their skills

EDITOR,--We agree with P F S Prior-Willeard and J David that resuscitation skills fall short of satisfactory standards, even in those who are members of cardiac arrest teams.1 A recently completed audit of cardiac arrest procedures at our hospital showed that the guidelines issued by the European Resuscitation Council in 19922 were unavailable at 25 of 77 (32% (95% confidence interval 22% to 44%)) cardiac arrest calls. Furthermore, these guidelines were followed in only 55 of 68 (81% (70% to 89%)) cardiac arrests for which they were applicable. We also found that early management of the airway in cardiac arrests was ineffective in 38 of 76 cases (50% (38% to 62%)).

The anaesthetic department in our hospital is leading the way in resuscitation training and is shortly to require each of its members formally to demonstrate proficiency in basic life support. In North America the possession of a certificate confirming . . . [Full text of this article]


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