Investigation of emergency medicine residents’ skills in using external pacemakers

External pacing is one of the most efficient methods of treating multiple conduction abnormalities. The goal of this study was to determine how well emergency medicine residents (EMRs) could use external pacemakers and how much they learned after training. The study investigated resident physicians who were pursuing their education at a department of emergency medicine (ED) in a tertiary hospital. The physicians who agreed to participate in this study were initially tested on the application of external pacemakers. They were then provided with both theoretical and practical instructions on the external pacemaker before undergoing a post-test assessment. The prior external pacemaker application skills and the pre-test and post-test results of the resident physicians were compared. It was found that 22.5% of the participants (n=9) had been working in the ED for 0-1 year, whereas 37.5% (n=15) had been working in the ED for 3-4 years. Furthermore, 36 (90%) participants had previously witnessed an external pacemaker application, and 29 (72.5%) had used an external pacemaker before. A mean score of 10.28±2.5 was obtained from the participants in the pre-test phase, while the post-test score was recorded as being 13.03±1.67. Statistical analysis indicated significant increases in scores after training (p<0.001), leading to the conclusion that theoretical and practical training can enhance the external pacemaker competencies of emergency department residents.