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Background: Bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) more than doubles the chance of surviving an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Recent data have shown considerable regional variation in bystander CPR rates across the Australian state of Victoria. This study aims to determine whether there is associated regional variation in rates of CPR training and willingness to perform CPR in these communities., Methods and Results: We categorized each Victorian postcode as either a low or high bystander CPR region using data on adult, bystander-witnessed, out-of-hospital cardiac arrests of presumed cardiac etiology (n=7175) from the Victorian Ambulance Cardiac Arrest Registry. We then surveyed adult Victorians (n=404) and compared CPR training data of the respondents from low and high bystander CPR regions. Of the 404 adults surveyed, 223 (55%) resided in regions with low bystander CPR. Compared with respondents from high bystander CPR regions, respondents residing in regions with low bystander CPR had lower rates of CPR training (62% versus 75%, P =0.009) and lower self-ratings for their overall knowledge of CPR (76% versus 84%, P =0.04). There were no differences between the regions in their reasons for not having undergone CPR training or in their willingness to perform CPR. Rates of survival for bystander-witnessed, out-of-hospital cardiac arrests were significantly lower in low bystander CPR regions (15.7% versus 17.0%, P <0.001)., Conclusions: This study found lower rates of CPR training and lower survival in regions with lower rates of bystander CPR in Victoria, Australia. Targeting these regions with CPR training programs may improve bystander CPR rates and out-of-hospital cardiac arrest outcomes., (© 2017 The Authors. Published on behalf of the American Heart Association, Inc., by Wiley.)

Background: The aim of this study was to examine the awareness of a recent mass media campaign, and its influence on knowledge and prehospital times, in a cohort of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients admitted to an Australian hospital., Methods and Results: We conducted 199 semistructured interviews with consecutive ACS patients who were aged 35 to 75 years, competent to provide consent, and English speaking. Questions addressed the factors known to predict prehospital delay, awareness of the campaign, and whether it increased knowledge and influenced actions. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the association between campaign awareness and a 1-hour delay in deciding to seek medical attention (patient delay) and a 2-hour delay in presenting to hospital (prehospital delay). The median age was 62 years (IQR=53 to 68 years), and 68% (n=136) were male. Awareness of the campaign was reported by 127 (64%) patients, with most of these patients stating the campaign (1) increased their understanding of what is a heart attack (63%), (2) increased their awareness of the signs and symptoms of heart attack (68%), and (3) influenced their actions in response to symptoms (43%). After adjustment for other predictors, awareness of the campaign was significantly associated with patient delay time of ≤1 hour (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=2.25, 95% CI: 1.03 to 4.91, P=0.04) and prehospital delay time ≤2 hours (AOR=3.11, 95% CI: 1.36 to 7.08, P=0.007)., Conclusions: Our study showed reasonably high awareness of the warning signs campaign, which was significantly associated with shorter prehospital decision-making and faster presentation to hospital., (© 2015 The Authors. Published on behalf of the American Heart Association, Inc., by Wiley Blackwell.)