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European Heart Journal 1999 20(7):535-540; doi:10.1053/euhj.1998.1334
Copyright © 1999 by the European Society of Cardiology.
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Influence of ambulance crew’s length of experience on the outcome of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest

L.H. Sooa,f1, D. Graya, T. Youngb, A. Skeneb and J.R. Hamptona

a Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, University Hospital, Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham
b British Heart Foundation Cardiovascular Statistics Unit, Department of Mathematics, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, U.K.

revised September 28, 1998; accepted September 30, 1998

Abstract

Aims To investigate whether an ambulance crew’s length of experience affected the outcome of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

Methods and Results This was a population-based, retrospective observational study of attempted resuscitations in 1547 consecutive arrests of cardiac aetiology by Nottinghamshire Emergency Ambulance Service crew. One thousand and seventy-one patients were managed by either a paramedic or a technician crew, without assistance from other trained individuals at the scene of arrest. Overall, the chances of a patient surviving to be discharged from hospital alive did not appear to be affected by the paramedic’s length of experience (among survivors, 18 months experience vs non-survivors 16 months experience, P=0·347) but there appears to be a trend in the effect of a technician’s length of experience on survival (among survivors, 60 months experience vs non-survivors 28 months experience, P=0·075). However, when a technician had 4 years of experience or more and a paramedic 1 year’s experience, survival rates did improve. Logistic regression analysis, adjusted for factors known to influence outcome, revealed that chances of survival increased once technicians had over 4 years of experience after qualification (odds ratio 2·71, 95% CI 1·17 to 6·32, P=0·02) and paramedics after just 1 year of experience (odds ratio 2·68, 95% CI 1·05 to 6·82, P=0·04).

Conclusions Survival from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest varies with the type of ambulance crew and length of experience after qualification. Experience in the field seems important as paramedics achieve better survival rates after just 1 year’s experience, while technicians need to have more than 4 years’ experience to improve survival.

Key Words: Cardiac arrest, paramedics, technicians, experience

f1 Correspondence : Dr L. H. Soo, Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Queens Medical Centre, University Hospital, Nottingham NG7 2UH, U.K.

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