Developing a behavioural intervention to increase lay-people's intentions to initiate CPR in the event of Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest (OHCA)

Out of hospital cardiac arrest is common and carries an extremely high mortality rate with only 8% of people who experience cardiac arrest surviving to hospital discharge. Early cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is essential to survival but most lay-people do not attempt it. Data suggest that only around 35% of those trained in CPR attempt it when confronted by a cardiac arrest.

Further to preparatory systematic review work funded by a CSO grant, and in collaboration with colleagues from the Resuscitation Research Group, University of Edinburgh, we are applying to MRC PHIND call to seek funding to utilise behavioural science to develop a text-messaging behaviour-change intervention that will augment current CPR training and increase people's confidence and willingness to attempt CPR should it be required.