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Evaluating the retention of skills in postgraduate physician students following a theoretical-practical course in Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support

Background:  For every minute CPR is delayed, the probability of survival decreases by up to 10%. For this reason, guidelines recommend routine CPR training for health care providers to improve their performance and patient results. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the retention capacity of postgraduate students of Critical Areas of the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador following a theoretical-practical course in Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS). Methods: A total of 140 students were recruited and divided into three groups according to studied subject: Emergency Medicine and Disasters, Anesthesiology, and Critical Medicine. A theoretical-practical course was carried out, and theoretical and practical skills were assessed immediately and subsequently one month after ACLS training. For statistical analysis, measures of central tendency, one-way ANOVA, T-test and ANCOVA were used. Results: Scores for the immediate theoretical exam were 58.6% immediately after the intervention vs 40% 30 days after the intervention; in the immediate practical exam this was 77% vs 35.7%, respectively. No statistically significant difference was found between the three groups for the initial practical examination; however, for the evaluation 30 days after training a significant difference was found between Anesthesiology and the other two postgraduate studies. Conclusions: Knowledge and practical skills in ACLS of postgraduate physicians of Critical Areas deteriorate 30 days after training, especially in practical skills compared with theoretical knowledge. The results of this research indicate that it is necessary to carry out update courses more frequently, in order to keep knowledge and skills at a level that guarantees adequate care to the patient to reduce potential risk of death or disability.