Abstract
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) education in European schools is recommended to increase the low or moderate rate of non-professional bystander CPR. The analysis of research focusing on success and problems with CPR education in schools is therefore useful for a broader realization. The aim of this review is to discuss quantitative and qualitative studies with respect to evidence on the implementation progress of CPR education in primary or secondary schools. Studies were retrieved from PubMed database (n=940) resulting in n=141 eligible articles with n=20 meeting specific inclusion criteria. The reviewed evidence reveals heterogeneous results. Teachers’ perceived competency, CPR instructor training and funding as well as class time for CPR programs was predominantly limited, whereas the effect of legal obligation was interpreted differently. However, implementation barriers encompassed in this review emerged across different national education systems, but in general systematic and sufficient approaches seem to need further political support.
Key words: cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR); barriers; implementation; review; schools