HRS position statement: Changing the tide in CPR and AED education for students in the United States.

Key Takeaways

• 1
  Timely bystander CPR and AED use are the most critical determinants of survival in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
• 2
  Current 1-time or didactic-only instruction in high schools does not reliably produce durable skills or confidence to act.
• 3
  Evidence-based CPR and AED education must include hands-on initial training and frequent longitudinal refresher courses.
• 4
  Technology-enabled and student-led approaches should be integrated to improve training engagement and emergency response.
• 5
  Major demographic, socioeconomic, and geographic disparities in bystander CPR and AED use must be addressed through equitable resource allocation, targeted public training, and dedicated funding.
• 6
  National-level registries and robust data collection are needed to evaluate training effectiveness and track out-of-hospital cardiac arrest outcomes.