Indian pediatrics
September 28, 2026 · via Europe PMC
Impact of Step Stool in the Delivery of CPR by Healthcare Providers: a Simulation-Based Study.
Sarkar M, Samanta M, Sen S, Sinharay N, Ali M, Roy A, Ramachandra G.
AI summary — for doctors, generated from the abstract only
Using a step stool improved the quality of simulated pediatric chest compressions, particularly for shorter providers.
What was studied
A simulation-based cross-sectional study at an Indian tertiary hospital where 72 healthcare providers performed paired CPR sessions on a quantitative CPR manikin, without and with a 21.5 cm step stool.
Key findings
- Mean compression depth increased by 4.5 mm and adequate depth improved by 20%
- Adequate recoil improved by 13%
- In the shortest height tertile, compression depth increased by 10 mm
- 83.3% of participants reported greater comfort with the stool
Clinical relevance
A simple, low-cost aid could improve CPR delivery by shorter rescuers.
Who should care
Limitations
A manikin simulation with short sessions and no patient outcomes, in a single hospital.
Provide step stools at resuscitation bedsides so shorter rescuers can compress effectively.
This is an AI-generated summary of the published abstract, not a clinical recommendation. It may not reflect the full text or subsequent updates — verify against the original source before acting on it.
Abstract
Objectives
To assess the impact of using a standard height step stool on the quality of pediatric cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for health care providers (HCP) of different heights in a simulated environment.
Methods
A simulation-based prospective cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary care referral hospital in Eastern India using a quantitative CPR (QCPR) training manikin (Little Junior QCPR, Laerdal Medical, Norway). A total of 8 min of CPR session was conducted, where 2 compressors performed alternatively in every 2-min segment without a step stool. After a 15-min rest, the session was repeated using a standard step stool (21.5 cm). The quality of chest compression was assessed using Q-CPR Review software v2.0 in three defined height tertiles (short, medium and tall). Compression rate, depth, good release percentage, and app-derived total scores were assessed as the primary outcome. Every compressor provided feedback regarding the level of their comfort, fatigue, and bodyache, graded on a Likert scale.
Results
Out of 80 healthcare providers (HCPs) who were screened, 72 participated in 36 CPR sessions; each CPR session had two cycles of CPR, one without and one with step stool. The mean (SD) participant height was 167 (6.5) cm. Overall, mean compression depth increased by 4.5 mm, adequate compression depth improved by 20%, and adequate recoil improved by 13%. In the shortest height tertile, compression depth increased by 10 mm. Additionally, 83.3% of participants reported greater comfort while performing CPR with the step stool.
Conclusion
Step stool improved the compression depth, reduced incomplete recoils, and improved CPR quality among HCPs in simulation setting, with a greater advantage among the shorter HCPs.
DOI
10.1007/s13312-026-00429-x
PMID
42804062
Research metadata (titles, abstracts, authors, publication dates) is sourced from Europe PMC, which aggregates content from PubMed/MEDLINE, PubMed Central, and other providers under the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM/NCBI). NLM does not claim copyright on abstracts; the original journal publishers or authors may hold rights to the full articles. AI-generated summaries are derived only from the abstract, never the full text, and are always labeled as AI-generated.
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