Resuscitation for Medical Disciplines (RMD): Multi-site model for peer led BLS certification in Higher Education Institutions: Accepted as: oral presentation in parallel session paper no. 061

RMD (Resuscitation for Medical Disciplines) is a scheme for training and certifying undergraduate healthcare students in Basic Life Support (BLS) delivering European Resuscitation Council (ERC) BLS Provider and Instructor courses. Run since 1995 as an internal only scheme at the University of Birmingham College of Medical & Dental Sciences (1-3), in 2017 the RMD scheme was expanded to a second site at Bristol Medical School. The scheme not only offers high quality basic life support training, but builds a community of practice within an institution between staff and students as an educational teaching, learning and research-based initiative. The opportunity for students to gain qualifications as BLS providers and Instructors within the first two years of study is of benefit not only to the institution, but to the community and the individual.
Methods: The proposal for second site implementation was planned with the ERC to run as a pilot project with their oversight. An experienced group (3 postgraduate & 7 undergraduate members) formed the RMD Bristol organising committee with 40 healthcare student instructors, selected for their prior experience in basic life support training. The first RMD Bristol instructor training weekend, delivered by RMD Birmingham faculty, ran in Autumn 2017; this repeated in 2018. Six BLS provider courses ran during the pilot period between 2017-2019.
Results: Nearly 600 undergraduate students were successfully ERC qualified at Bristol during the pilot: 525 BLS Providers and 60 BLS Instructors. Student instructors gained opportunities to teach, manage, assess and train others, aligned with GMC professional development learning outcomes. Increased confidence in skills was seen in students over and above that with the previous BLS training model, which offered minimal contact time and no opportunity to gain qualifications. Thematic analysis of feedback data shows the scheme is well received by the students, citing excellent instruction, value in gaining life saving skills and also the opportunity to meet their peers from higher years. 
Discussion:The original RMD Birmingham scheme is recognised and supported by the ERC. The success of the pilot at RMD Bristol confirms proof of concept that this model for large-scale, affordable, student peer-led BLS courses can be transferred to another higher education institution. Learning from the pilot project reported to the ERC and Resuscitation Council RC(UK), includes details of the high-quality delivery of training, governance and oversight of a new faculty, and outreach support of programme development. The model disrupts the usual format of BLS training in standard undergraduate medical school delivery, which is often only minimal exposure to these skills until much later in the course. The RC(UK) is currently considering recommending the RMD model for training and certification of undergraduate healthcare allied students across the UK. At the current time two further universities are already investigating the model for implementation at their institutions.
Acknowledgements: Thanks go to all faculty across RMD Birmingham and RMD Bristol teams
References:1. Perkins G et al. Basic Life support training for health care students. Resuscitation 41 (1999) 19-23.2. Perkins G et al. Peer-led resuscitation training for healthcare students: a randomised controlled study. Intensive Care Med (2002) 28. 698-700. 3. Harvey P et al. Peer-led training and assessment in basic life support for healthcare students: Synthesis of literature review and fifteen years practical experience. Resuscitation 83 (2012) 894– 899.