The Importance of the Training of Laypeople in Basic Life Support: An Integrative Review

The importance of qualification and training of lay people in Basic Life Support (BLS) leads to a reduction in deaths or irreversible sequelae in the population affected by a Cardiopulmonary Arrest (CPA), because in most emergency cases whoever is close is not a health professional. The purpose of this article is to analyze the importance of qualification and training in Basic Life Support for lay people. This is a descriptive, qualitative study carried out through an integrative literature review (ILR). To carry out the bibliographic review, searches were carried out in the following databases: repositories of Universities, Virtual Health Libraries, PubMed, Journals, Magazines, Federal Laws and Ordinances Scientific Electronic Library Online (SCIELO) and Online System of Search and Analysis of Literature Medical (MEDLINE). Articles related to the theme of the project, articles with Portuguese language, online and free access to the full text and from the year 2014 were included. The studies that constituted the units of analysis have a variety of authors, publication sources and countries of origin of the studies. The training and qualification of the BLS is of relevance for the knowledge of the lay population and should be applied even in the school phase, with theoretical-practical methods and repeated annually, for a better effectiveness in the initial care of a victim in CPA.