Levels of cardiac knowledge and cardiopulmonary resuscitation training among older people in Queensland

Abstract

Objectives: The current study was conducted to determine
levels of cardiac knowledge and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training in older people in Queensland, Australia.----------

Methods: A telephone survey of 4490 Queensland adults
examined respondents’ knowledge of coronary heart disease
(CHD) risk factors, knowledge of heart attack symptoms,
knowledge of the local emergency telephone number, as well as respondents’ rates and recency of training in CPR.----------

Results: Older participants, aged 60 years and over, were
approximately one and a half times more likely than the
30–39 year-old reference group to have limited knowledge of
heart disease risk factors (OR = 1.53), and low knowledge of
heart attack symptoms (OR = 1.60). Knowledge of the local
emergency telephone number also decreased with age. Older
participants had significantly lower rates of training in CPR, with almost three quarters (71.7%) reporting that they had never been trained. Older people who had completed CPR
training were significantly less likely to have done so recently.----------

Conclusions: Cardiac knowledge levels and CPR training
rates in older Queensland persons were lower than those
found in the younger population.