Promoting an Emergency Action Plan for Sudden Cardiac Arrest in Youth Sports During a Pandemic

Introduction: Pandemic-related restrictions increased the risk of delayed emergency response of bystanders to sudden cardiac arrest among youth athletes. Education and SCA emergency preparedness, implemented by nurse leaders and adapted to environmental changes, can greatly reduce the risks associated with an SCA episode. Method: A nurse-led, quality improvement pilot project was implemented in a recreational youth soccer league. The project included the implementation of an emergency action plan (EAP; with or without the pandemic and social-distancing restrictions) for bystanders responding to SCA. Results: Participants showed significant improvement in knowledge and perceptions of SCA and emergency response (p < .001). Willingness to initiate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) improved (p = .127), and fear to engage in EAP decreased (p = .119) following an educational intervention on SCA. Discussion: Nurse-led SCA education and implementation of youth league EAP successfully demonstrated safety in SCA preparedness and best practice recommendations for youth sports from the Interassociation Task Force.

Automated summary

Pandemic-related restrictions increase the risk of delayed emergency response to sudden cardiac arrest among youth athletes. Nurse-led education and implementation of emergency action plans in youth leagues can greatly reduce these risks.