Unconsciousness
Conditions
Keywords
unconsciousness, dispatcher-assistance, children, video-guidance
Brief summary
Sudden cardiac arrest is a major public health issue, and EMS dispatchers play a key role in improving outcomes through telephone-assisted CPR (T-CPR). With current technology, video-assisted CPR (V-CPR) via smartphones allows for visual feedback and more precise guidance. While V-CPR has shown promise, studies have mostly focused on adult CPR performance in controlled settings. Research involving children and non-CPR first aid scenarios is scarce. Our study addresses this gap by evaluating video-assisted guidance during a simulated unconsciousness situation performed by children, exploring its feasibility and broader applicability.
Detailed description
Sudden cardiac arrest is a major public health concern and remains one of the leading causes of death in industrialized countries. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) dispatchers play a crucial role in recognizing cardiac arrest and guiding lay responders through telephone-assisted CPR (T-CPR), which has been shown to improve survival outcomes. With current technologies, real-time video communication via a bystander's smartphone has become feasible, enabling video-assisted CPR (V-CPR), which allows dispatchers to provide visual feedback and more tailored guidance. Although several studies have investigated the effectiveness of V-CPR-mainly in terms of chest compression quality and time to first compression-these have primarily focused on adult participants and controlled settings. Research involving children as lay responders is limited, and video-assisted first aid has been scarcely evaluated in pediatric populations. Moreover, existing studies concentrate predominantly on CPR, while other essential first aid scenarios, such as the management of unconscious victims, remain underexplored. To address these gaps, our study examined the effectiveness of video-assisted guidance during a simulated unconsciousness scenario performed by children, aiming to assess both the feasibility and potential benefits of extending video-assisted firs aid approaches beyond cardiac arrest.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALFirst Aid Training Combined With Video-Assisted Guidance
Participants received a 45-minute structured first aid training session on unconscious victim management, followed by a 15-minute video-guidance instruction. During simulation, children received real-time video guidance from a dispatcher via smartphone.
BEHAVIORALVideo-Assisted Guidance Without Prior Training
Participants received a 15-minute instruction on video-assisted guidance use, without prior first aid training. During simulation, real-time video guidance was provided by a dispatcher via smartphone to assist with first aid tasks.
Sponsors
University of Pecs
Study design
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
OTHER
Masking
TRIPLE (Subject, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Masking description
The dispatcher, assessors, actor, and children were informed about their specific tasks according to their group allocation but were blinded to the study design and intended outcomes.
Intervention model description
Children were allocated in pairs to one of three parallel intervention arms: Training combined with video-guided assistance, Video-guided assistance only, or No intervention (control). Each pair participated in only one intervention condition without crossover. Parallel assignment allowed for comparison of outcomes between intervention strategies and the control group. Video guidance was provided live by a trained dispatcher during simulation scenarios.
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
6 Years to 8 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* healthy children aged 6 to 8 years (first grade of primary school)
Exclusion criteria
* children with known physical, cognitive, or communication impairments that could interfere with participation in simulated first aid tasks * technical issue during data collection
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Correctness of treatment of an unconscious patient (based on a checklist). | During post-analysis of the video-records (within 1 week after data collection) | Number of correct first aid steps performed and task completion success (based on the checklist containing all the relevant steps of the treatment). |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Time | During procedure. | Time to task completion |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Helping attitude of the children (based on willingness to help). | During procedure. | Observable willingness to help (approach and engagement behavior during the simulated procedure). The proportion of children who dared to approach the victim and initiate care in the simulated scenario was measured. Based on this, participants were classified into positive and negative attitude groups. |
Countries
Hungary
Outcome results
None listed