Early recognition of cardiac arrest and timely initiation of resuscitation can significantly improve the survival rate and outcomes for the survived patients. Therefore, it is very important that nurses but also other healthcare professionals are well aware of resuscitation procedures and that they are trained to perform them. It is also desirable that all citizens are familiar with the basic resuscitation procedures, so that they can recognize the emergency situation on spot, call emergency service and provide first aid before the arrival of trained teams.

Supported by ProSes, the Republika Srpska Resuscitation Council (RESS RS) organized a series of trainings on basic life support (BLS) for nurses in the last quarter of 2020. A total of 179 nurses underwent the training, from hospitals in Banja Luka, Foca, East Sarajevo, Prijedor, Trebinje and primary healthcare centers in Doboj, Gradiska, Kostajnica, Mrkonjic Grad, Novi Grad, Prijedor, Srbac and Sipovo.

In addition to basic life support procedures endorsed by global organizations that provide guidelines for emergency life support, the training also included instructions on care provision during COVID 19 pandemic. Providing care to these patients is very strenuous for health professionals who are already under pressure because of increased number of patients and insufficient number of health care staff.

Similar emergency life support trainings are organized in the Federation of BIH by the FBIH Nurse Association (UMST FBIH). Since 2018, the FBIH NA has organized a series of BLS trainings for 21 nurses. A total of 294 nurses engaged in one-day training on Immediate Life Support (ILS) and 8 nurses had several-day training on Advanced Life Support (ALS).

These trainings are a part of the continuous professional education offered and organized by nurses associations. In addition to the RESS RS and FBIH Nurses Association, as of this year, the project also collaborates with the Association of Nurses and Midwives of the Republika Srpska.