Post-resuscitation care among emergency healthcare personnel: a cross-sectional evaluation of knowledge and clinical practices.

Authors

Behçet Varışlı, İbrahim Uysal, Fatma Çakmak, Taygun Baykal, Hamit Çelik

Published in

Frontiers in medicine. Volume 13. Pages 1875436. Epub Sep 04, 2026.

Abstract

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) care is a complex and dynamic process with a significant impact on mortality and morbidity. This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge levels and approaches of healthcare personnel providing emergency medical services regarding post-resuscitation care.
This descriptive, cross-sectional study included 318 healthcare personnel working in emergency departments and emergency ambulances, recruited using purposive sampling. The data collection tool was developed based on the post-resuscitation care guidelines of the European Resuscitation Council (ERC), and its content validity was evaluated. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests, and analysis of variance (ANOVA), and effect sizes were calculated.
Participants provided advanced life support to a mean of 4.90 ± 0.29 cardiac arrest cases per month (8.65 ± 0.76 in the emergency department and 3.27 ± 0.16 in emergency medical services). Patients who achieved return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) were transported to the emergency department in a mean of 20.35 ± 0.93 min and subsequently transferred from the emergency department to the intensive care unit in 95.26 ± 11.73 min. The mean post-CPR knowledge score was 50.08 ± 13.78 out of 100, indicating important knowledge gaps in essential post-resuscitation care practices. Emergency department personnel had significantly higher knowledge scores than EMS personnel (56.86 ± 13.84 vs. 46.87 ± 12.56; t = 6.401, p < .001). The lowest correct response rates were observed for seizure management after CPR and target blood glucose levels after cardiac arrest. Knowledge scores decreased with increasing time since the last in-service training and with increasing years of professional experience.
Professional role, clinical experience, and the recency of training appear to influence post-resuscitation care knowledge. These findings support restructuring in-service education toward repeated, practice-based assessments rather than predominantly theoretical instruction. Regular refresher training and practical educational strategies may improve knowledge retention and its translation into clinical practice.

PMID:
42761042
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 19 Sep 2026.

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