Quarterly CPR Training Program Pilot Is Underway

September 24, 2020 | 1 min. to read

Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital is the pilot site for a new CPR training program that could be rolled out systemwide. The Resuscitation Quality Improvement (RQI) Program, an American Heart Association initiative, went live at Marianjoy on July 20. The Northwestern Medicine Academy is leading implementation of the RQI technology with support from NM's Innovation Department.

Outside the Marianjoy pilot, NM is offering RQI as an interim learning option due to current limitations on in-person CPR courses due to the pandemic. Clinical staff who need to renew or obtain BLS, ACLS and PALS certification may request RQI enrollment via NM Interactive if they are not already enrolled automatically.

RQI Simulation Stations combine online knowledge training with real-time feedback on performance of simulated CPR. Using RQI, healthcare providers can quickly refresh vital CPR skills. More than 400 staff members at Marianjoy with BLS, ACLS or PALS licensure are enrolled in the pilot program. They will complete short assignments every three months in place of the traditional classroom approach every two years.

“Our staff has been pleased with not only the convenience of the new process but the shorter amount of time required,” says Anne Hubling, DNP, MHSA, vice president and chief nurse executive at Marianjoy. “We are excited to be the system site for piloting the American Heart Association’s gold standard of BLS, ACLS and PALs training.”

Kathryn Williamson-Link, MSN, RN, director of Nursing Practice and Development at Marianjoy, worked closely on the pilot project since its inception. “We were excited by the technology providing a standard curriculum and the ability for staff to get just-in-time, unbiased feedback on the quality of their CPR skills,” Williamson-Link says. “Staff appreciated that you could do it privately and focus on the skills that are most challenging for them. RQI and ongoing mock cardiac arrest drills help us give our patients the best care and outcome.”
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Learn more about the RQI program.