Ambulance Clinicians' Experiences of Attending OHCA in Children

Launched by UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK · Apr 8, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying how ambulance clinicians feel and what they experience when they respond to emergencies involving children who have suffered a cardiac arrest outside of the hospital. A cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating, and it’s a critical situation that needs immediate action to help the child survive. Since these incidents are rare, many ambulance clinicians might only encounter them once in their careers, which can be stressful and challenging. The goal of this research is to gather insights from these clinicians to improve how they manage these emergencies and to provide better support for them.

To participate in this study, ambulance clinicians who currently respond to emergency calls (like 999 in the UK) and are willing to share their experiences can join. The research will involve reviewing medical records of children under 18 who experienced cardiac arrest, conducting surveys with ambulance staff across the UK, and holding interviews and discussions to learn from their experiences. The findings will help create recommendations to enhance training and response strategies, ultimately aiming to improve care for children in these life-threatening situations.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• • Out of hospital cardiac arrest patients
• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Patients attended by London Ambulance Service NHS Trust (LAS)
• • Incidents occurring between January 2021 and December 2024
• • Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest recognised by LAS clinicians
• • Aged under 18 years at the time the incident occurred
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • New born patients who had not taken their first spontaneous breath before cardiac arrest was recognised
• • Incidents occurring outside of LAS' operational area (Greater London, UK)
• • Patients who have registered an NHS National Data Opt-Out
• • Survey participants
• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Ambulance clinician (including registered healthcare professionals and non-registered ambulance clinicians)
• • Currently responds to 999 calls (face to face) as part of their role
• • Would be expected to attend a paediatric OHCA incident as part of their role
• • Consents to participate in study
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Non-clinical ambulance service employee
• • Not employed by an NHS Ambulance Service in the UK
• • Interview participants (recent exposure)
• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Ambulance clinician (including registered healthcare professionals and non-registered ambulance clinicians)
• • Employed by a participating NHS Ambulance Service Site
• • Attended an out of hospital cardiac arrest incident involving a child (\>1 day old, \< 18 years old) in the 12 months prior to the proposed interview date
• • Consents to participation in the study
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Previously participated in an interview or focus group discussion as part of this study
• • Employed in a specialist critical care role (e.g. Critical Care Paramedic)
• • Attended an out of hospital cardiac arrest incident involving a child (\>1 day old, \<18 years old) within two weeks of the proposed interview date
• • Interview participants (historic exposure)
• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Ambulance clinician (including registered healthcare professionals and non-registered ambulance clinicians)
• • Employed by a participating NHS Ambulance Service Site
• • Attended an out of hospital cardiac arrest incident involving a child (\>1 day old, \< 18 years old) more than 12 months prior to the proposed interview date
• • Consents to participation in the study
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Previously participated in an interview or focus group discussion as part of this study
• • Attended an out of hospital cardiac arrest incident involving a child (\>1 day old, \< 18 years old) within 12 months of the proposed interview date
• • Employed in a specialist critical care role (e.g. Critical Care Paramedic)
• • Focus group participants
• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Ambulance clinician employed in a specialist critical care role (e.g. Critical Care Paramedic)
• • Employed by a participating NHS Ambulance Service Site
• • Consents to participation in the study
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Previously participated in an interview or focus group discussion as part of this study
• • Has not attended an out of hospital cardiac arrest incident involving a child (\>1 day old, \<18 years old) whilst working in a specialist critical care role (e.g. Critical Care Paramedic)