Impact of a Postcrash First Aid Educational Program on Knowledge, Perceived Skills Confidence, and Skills Utilization Among Traffic Police Officers: A Single-Arm Before-After Intervention Study

Abstract

Background An overwhelming proportion of road traffic deaths and injuries in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) occur in prehospital environments. Lay first responders such as police officers play an important role in providing initial assistance to victims of road traffic injuries either alone or in collaboration with others. The present study evaluated a postcrash first aid (PFA) educational program developed for police officers in Tanzania. Method A 16-hour PFA educational program was conducted in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, for 135 police officers. Participants completed training surveys before, immediately and six months after the training (before, N = 135; immediately after, N = 135; after six months, N = 102). The primary outcome measures were PFA knowledge, perceived skills confidence, and skills utilization. Parametric and nonparametric tests were used to analyse changes in outcome. Results The mean PFA knowledge score increased from 44.73% before training ( SD = 20.70) to 72.92% six months after training ( SD = 18.12), p ˂ .001, N = 102. The mean PFA perceived skills confidence score (measured on a 1–5 Likert scale) increased from 1.96 before training ( SD = 0.74) to 3.78 six months after training ( SD = 0.70), p ˂ .001, N = 102. Following training, application of the recovery position skill ( n = 42, 46%) and application of the bleeding control skill ( n = 45, 49%) were reported by nearly half of the responding officers. Less than a quarter of officers reported applying head and neck immobilization skills ( n = 20, 22%) following training. Conclusion A PFA educational program has shown to improve police officers’ knowledge and perceived skills confidence on provision of first aid. However qualitative research need to be conducted to shed more light regarding reasons for low utilization of trained first aid skills during follow-up.

Prehospital Emergency Care: A Cross-Sectional Survey of First-Aid Preparedness Among Layperson First Responders in Northern Uganda

“… 36 In Tanzania, 135 police officers were assessed on their basic knowledge of post-crash FA, and the study found a low level of knowledge, with a mean score of 44.7%, but this improved to 72.9% after training, which was maintained with high confidence even after 6 months. 31 Our finding also confirms the findings of research carried out in other continents, for example in India, where major barriers to giving FA were a lack of knowledge and skills, “not knowing what to do”, and fear of legal implications. 12 The lack of skills and knowledge as a barrier could be tackled by scaling up FA training.…”

Emergency care accessibility for road accidents victims: a review

“…30 Police officers, fire fighters, and drivers are potential to be trained to give first aid, 23 as some studies had also demonstrated the efficacy of first aid training. 31,32 Acceptability reflects how emergency care and professional norms can fulfill needs from different culture and social norms. 15 In Kenya, victims were more likely to be treated faster if they dressed nicely and have financial support, indicating the issue of professional norms by health providers.…”