Practice on fake emergencies with feedback may lift CPR test scores a bit

The study

1. 01

   Who took part

   527 medical students who took a basic life support course in 2024. 264 had the usual teaching and 263 had the new teaching. 388 students answered the questionnaires. The paper doesn't say how students were put into groups.

2. 02

   What they did

   Both groups had four sessions. The new group first practised CPR on dummies. Then they worked through fake emergencies on a lifelike patient dummy run by a computer. They got feedback from other students, talked it through after, and then tried new, harder cases. The usual group heard the theory and watched a demo. Then they practised on dummies in small groups with a teacher's help.

3. 03

   What happened

   Hands-on test scores were slightly higher in the new group: about 89 points against 87. Only the new group answered the survey on how much they liked the course. They rated it highly, but there's nothing to compare it with. Some of the paper's numbers don't add up.

What the study found

1. HelpedGoals

   Students who practised fake emergencies with feedback did a bit better on the CPR test than those shown a demo.

   • Rule: Get feedback on your progresstested
   • Rule: Practise with a groupused

   Trial, groups not picked at random of 527 medical students learning CPR · vs a demo, then guided practice on dummies · behaviour was recorded · ⚠ numbers unreliable

2. No comparisonOther outcomes

   After the course, students who practised on fake emergencies rated it highly. No other group answered this survey.

   • Rule: Get feedback on your progressused

   Trial, groups not picked at random of 527 medical students learning CPR · no comparison group · behaviour was recorded · ⚠ numbers unreliable

Source