What use is this information though to someone performing CPR? It’s important in the sense that maybe better techniques can be developed but if I need CPR it doesn’t matter one bit if the person doing it knows it’s success rate. In fact probably better they don’t know. If they know the odds are low perhaps they’ll give up too soon.

I could see an argument that knowing the statistics could help the CPR-giver in the aftermath. After all the patient is very likely to die and if the CPR-giver was under the impression that it is likely to work, then they may feel a lot of unwarranted guilt.

> What use is this information though to someone performing CPR?

Possibly quite important to their psychological condition afterwards, given what the very low effectiveness means.

To absolve themselves of guilt and self-doubt.

Someone who doesn't know that CPR has a very low success rate might perform CPR on someone that ends up not surviving and feeling guilty and full of self-doubt, thinking they performed CPR incorrectly.

There was a Reddit thread from someone who had spent years feeling that exact guilt for not saving her grandma https://www.reddit.com/r/BestofRedditorUpdates/comments/102k...

When I was thought it, it was clearly pointed out to me that chance of survival is ~5%, but increases significantly if an AED can be used in time. I've also been told about the rib cracking etc. Just as a counterpoint.

I know a dude who's a very competent ambo, he saw a man collapse and immediately rebooted his heart with a single perfect strike to the chest.

Beyond the prior state of the patient, technique can actually matter as well - but the fact is that the vast majority of people are never going to develop skills beyond "ah ah ah ah staying alive".

Sounds like he administered a precordial thump.

I was taught it was not terribly effective except in case of lightning strike. We weren’t taught how to do it in Mountaineering-Oriented First Aid because of that, and because the leadership, wound care, trauma, and specific conditions aspects of the course took almost the whole three days.

CPR is particularly unlikely to be life-saving in a wilderness scenario (like mountaineering) because professional medical care may be many hours away. Even if you can get a patient's heart restarted with CPR, they may not survive to reach a hospital.