The availability and accessibility of basic paediatric resuscitation equipment in primary healthcare centres: cause for concern?

Background: Paediatric emergencies in primary healthcare centres are serious events that occur more commonly than envisaged. However, at present, these centres appear to lack the training and equipment to manage common paediatric emergencies.

Aim: To determine the availability and accessibility of basic resuscitation equipment in primary healthcare centres.

Methods: A questionnaire survey of 27 primary healthcare centres within the Nottingham City region determined the availability and accessibility of basic paediatric resuscitation equipment and algorithms.

Results: No practice had all 21 basic resuscitation items, with 59% of practices having < or =10 of these items. Only 11% of practices had all seven basic airway and breathing resuscitation items, with 52% of practices having < or =4 items. No practice had all eight basic items for circulation management, with 82% of practices having < or =4 of these items. Only two practices had all six basic drug items, with 85% of practices having < or =3 of these items. Only 26% of practices had algorithms for paediatric basic life support and common emergencies, and only 30% of practices kept their resuscitation equipment together. In the last 5 y, less than a fifth of general practitioners were trained in paediatric resuscitation.

Conclusion: Primary healthcare centres appear to lack the training and equipment to manage common paediatric emergencies. We recommend standardization of equipment and algorithms, training and assessment of key personnel, and critical incident reporting within primary healthcare centres.