Demand for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and bleeding control skills training in an urban region: a feasibility review of a community engagement effort.

Abstract

In this community engagement feasibility review, we evaluate the infrastructure warranted to implement bystander CPR and bleeding control skills training to diverse social organizations in an urban region over an 9-month period. Further, we review the necessary variables to sustain such an effort, for both the health system as well as the partnering communities. The intervention, brought forth with partnering communities through community health workers or other community brokers, for this community engagement feasibility study is the execution of teaching CPR skills and bleeding-control skills to various social networks in an urban region. The intervention focused on a changeable behavior, specifically on community members' abilities to execute life-saving interventions. The goal is to meet the intended behavior outcome under ideal circumstances, which are training of the aforementioned skills in respective community settings over a 120-min teaching session. Over an 9-month period, we were able to implement CPR training at 5 communities reaching 136 community members. These trainings were implemented in regions that have the highest homicide rates (mean of 0.86 ± 0.14 homicides per 1,000 persons; Maryland as a state averages 0.12). Implementation of CPR and bleeding control training in diverse community settings in an urban region was feasible and cost-efficient over a 9-month period. Further, utilizing community liaisons, such as community health workers, was critical to its success.