Community based cardiopulmonary resuscitation training through places of worship can help overcome potential barriers and inequalities in high-risk and ethnic minority groups
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Authors
Syed L.
Ahmed Z.
Muhammed A.
Yin Y.L.
Hawkes C.
Ali B.
Khanji, M. Y.
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2025
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BackgroundDisparities exist in the delivery of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (BCPR) within and between countries. Areas of greater social deprivation and ethnic minority populations have higher out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) incidence but lower BCPR rates.The British Islamic Medical Association (BIMA) Lifesavers programme teaches CPR, recovery position, and choking management skills to the general public at mosques, for free. We aimed to assess the perceived barriers to learning CPR and whether there were any sex differences exist in participants' confidence in deploying these skills.MethodsA post training event survey was distributed to participants which included demographics and a 5-point Likert scale to determine participant confidence levels pre and post training, which was stratified by sex. Thematic analysis was performed on free text responses concerning perceived barriers to learning CPR and other basic life support (BLS) skills.ResultsPost-event survey was completed by 709 participants (55% females) with >90% from ethnic minority backgrounds. Compared to males, females had a lower confidence level pre-event (2.2 vs 2.5, p=0.003) but demonstrated a greater increase post-session with no sex differences post-event. Lack of accessibility to courses was the most common perceived barrier to learning CPR with other barriers including lack of knowledge and low confidence.ConclusionsThe BIMA Lifesavers programme offers free and accessible CPR and other BLS training through mosques, particularly in areas of higher deprivation and ethnic minority groups. Confidence in using BLS skills increased in both sexes but more so amongst females, who had lower pre-training confidence. Perceived barriers to training include course accessibility but this can be overcome with increased training provision for the public including through places of worship. Copyright © 2025, The Authors. All rights reserved.
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