Recent research has shown that there is a gender gap in the survival rates of cardiac arrest. A study by St John Ambulance has highlighted that women are less likely to receive life-saving CPR from bystanders because of concerns about inappropriate touching. There is evidence to show that having anatomically accurate CPR dummies could help with this issue.
Current Training Limitations
The majority of dummies currently used in CPR training are male and they have flat chests and broad shoulders. The statistics show that only 68% of women receive bystander CPR compared to 73% of men, a difference that is equivalent to thousands of preventable deaths. The reluctance to perform CPR on women comes from cultural taboos and a discomfort in society about the female body. Nearly a quarter of Britons who were surveyed admitted that they would hesitate to perform CPR on a woman in public, with one-third of men saying that they had worries of being accused of inappropriate touching. This hesitation also reflects a pattern of discrimination in medicine where the health and needs of women are often overlooked or undervalued.
Impact on Survival Rates
Research conducted between 2003 and 2013 showed that over 8,200 women in England and Wales might have survived heart attacks if they had received the same level of treatment as men. If CPR dummies with female anatomical features were introduced, it could help address this difference by helping to familiarise people with the reality of performing CPR on women. Emergency first aid training courses are the best way to train people to perform CPR. Firms such as https://www.tidaltraining.co.uk/emergency-first-aid-training-courses offer a range of first aid courses.
Moving Forward
The solution to this issue goes beyond just redesigning the CPR equipment. Training is needed to address gender specific cardiac symptoms and cultural and discriminatory issues. Healthcare providers and first aid organisations need to work to challenge these biases, because that can contribute to these unwelcome outcomes. Making these changes could help make sure that women receive the same life-saving interventions as men, and it could end up saving many more lives.