Bystanders’ cardiopulmonary resuscitation involvement in the treatment of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest events and educational status regarding basic life support measures and automated external defibrillator usage among residents in Canton Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Aim To investigate bystanders’ CPR involvement in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) events, their current knowledge regarding OHCA and BLS measures, their willingness to learn BLS measures with the usage of AEDs, as well as current practices. Methods This cross-sectional study included: data regarding all OHCA events treated at the Emergency Medical Service of Canton Sarajevo between January 2015 and December 2019, and an online anonymous questionnaire that examined knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding basic life support (BLS) and automated external defibrillators (AEDs). Results A total of 328 (24.0 %) of 1362 OHCA events achieved the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). OHCA incidence was 62/100.000 inhabitants per year. Male gender (p=0.043) and younger age (p<0.001) were significantly associated with obtaining ROSC. Only 44 (3.2%) OHCA events were assisted by bystanders, who were mostly medical professionals 38 (86.4%), followed by close family members 6 (13.6%). There was no report of AED usage. BLS and AED knowledge test score was in the range 12.0-89.8% with generally poor knowledge. Our residents agreed that BLS measurements are essential, 1604 (86.7 %) and that BLS should be a part of their curriculum, 1678 (90.7 %). Conclusion The prevalence of OHCA events in Bosnia and Herzegovina is similar to the region; ROSC among OHCA events was lower than European average, but among highest in the region. There was an extremely low rate of bystander engagement and no AEDs usage. Governmental institutions and health agencies should intervene to increase population knowledge thus increasing OHCA survival rate

How to measure the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on quality of life: COV19-QoL – the development, reliability and validity of a new scale

Objective: The primary objective of this paper is to present a short measure of perceptions on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on quality of life, along with analysis of its reliability and validity in non-clinical and clinical samples. Methods: The scale was named The COV19 – Impact on Quality of Life (COV19-QoL) and it consists of six items presented in the form of a 5-point Likert scale. The items (i.e. statements) cover main areas of quality of life with regard to mental health. The scale was administered to 1346 participants from the general population in Croatia (the non-clinical sample) and 201 patients with severe mental illness recruited from four European countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia), constituting the clinical sample. The clinical sample was part of the randomised controlled trial IMPULSE funded by the European Commission. Data on age and gender were collected for both samples, along with psychiatric diagnoses collected for the clinical sample.Results: Main findings included a high internal consistency of the scale and a moderate to strong positive correlation among participants’ scores on different items. Principal component analysis yielded one latent component. The correlation between participants’ age and their results on COV19-QoL was negligible. Participants’ perceived quality of life was the most impacted domain, whereas mental health, personal safety and levels of depression were the least impacted domains by the pandemic.Discussion: The COV19-QoL is a reliable and valid scale which can be used to explore the impact of COVID-19 on quality of life. The scale can be successfully used by researchers and clinicians interested in the impact of the pandemic on people experiencing various pre- existing mental health issues (e.g. anxiety, mood and personality disorders) as well as those without such issues