CARDIOPULMONARY RESUSCITATION - KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE & PRACTICES IN OSUN STATE, NIGERIA

Background: Cardiopulmonary arrest is not an uncommon event in the medical practice with the causes ranging from reversible to irreversible causes. Therefore the skill in the performance of effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation is an essential part of successful medical practice. In some developed countries the CPR Training programmes were mandatory for all health care givers and even for non medical workers. However in the setting of ours, the situation is not so as most heath workers go for CPR Training programmes by wish except in some few centres were it is mandatory.

Aim & objectives: To assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices of medical practitioners in relation to cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation.

Setting: The study was carried out among medical practitioners in Osun State, Southwest Nigeria.

Methods: The study was conducted through a survey of medical practitioners in Osun state during an annual general meeting using a self administered questionnaire.

Results: The response rate was 65% with 65 out of 100 physicians returning the completed questionnaire. Only 40% of respondents had attended a basic and an advanced life support training programme while 30% knew how to operate an automated external defribellator (AED), seventy percent knew the meaning of AED. Most of the respondents that had attended a basic and an advanced life support programme were residents (80%) while 16% were consultants and the remaining 4% were general practitioners. More males (67%) among the respondents that knew how to operate an AED and majority (56%) were in the age range of 30-40years. Eighty two percent of the respondents would prefer to do a chest compression only resuscitation of which 44% were.

Conclusion: Most of the medical practitioners in Osun State were not knowledgeable about cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation . The few with the knowledge were from the tertiary institutions. There is therefore the need for the creation of more awareness among medical practitioners, especially among those outside tertiary health facilities.