Emergency reflex action drill for traumatic cardiac arrest in a simulated pre-hospital setting; a one-group pre-post intervention study.

Background: Emergency Reflex Action Drills (ERADs) are meant to decrease stress-associated cognitive demand in high urgency situations. The aim of this study was to develop and test an ERAD for witnessed traumatic cardiac arrest (TCA), an event in which potentially reversible causes need to be systematically addressed and treated in a short period of time. We hypothesize that this ERAD (the TCA-Drill) helps ground Emergency Medical Services (EMS) nurses in overcoming performance decline during this specific high-pressure situation.