University of Birmingham celebrates 30 years of life-saving impact

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Resuscitation, Mentorship, Development (RMD) programme, a pioneering student-led initiative at the University of Birmingham, that has trained thousands in life-saving basic life support (BLS) skills.

Founded in 1995 by three medical students, RMD came from a desire to improve the quality and accessibility of life support training for medical and dental students at the University. Today, it is one of Europe’s largest peer-led life support training programmes, now training over 1,000 students annually across eight healthcare disciplines.

“What has most touched me is the difference we’ve made to people who received life support from students we trained,” said Professor Jon Hulme, one of the founders, of the programme, now Associate Skills Professor at the University of Birmingham and Consultant in Intensive Care Medicine at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust.

With the support of Professor Julian Bion, a long-time champion of the programme, RMD quickly gained momentum. It is now accredited by the European Resuscitation Council, endorsed by the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine, and recognised by the General Medical Council as a model of innovative teaching.

They deliver life-saving skills to thousands of school pupils across the West Midlands, and run sessions at Park Runs, festivals, and University open days, backed by the British Heart Foundation and Health Education England.

Case study:

One of the many success stories from RMD’s history involves two students who had been trained in the programme. While rehearsing with the University’s Bhangra dance club, one collapsed into cardiac arrest. Thanks to the training he had received through RMD, his friend immediately began CPR and coordinated the emergency response, ultimately saving his friend’s life.

The student made a full recovery after being fitted with an implantable defibrillator and returned to his studies, with both since returning to several training sessions to share their story.

University of Birmingham and Birmingham City Football Club partnership:

The University’s partnership with Birmingham City Football Club (BCFC) has expanded RMD’s outreach, where skilled instructors attended a match to train fans in basic life support. Through the partnership, the programme hopes to expand community outreach initiatives to improve the rate of awareness of how to perform crucial life support skills, especially in socio-economically deprived areas.

Jeremy Dale, Interim Chief Executive Officer, Birmingham City FC said:

“We are proud of our partnership with the University of Birmingham, which is focused on working together to transform the lives of people in our city. We are particularly proud to bring vital lifesaving skills to our communities. We all need to look after each other and there aren’t many better ways of doing that than to be equipped with life-saving CPR skills, because in those situations we know every minute matters.”

Professor Neil Hanley, Pro Vice Chancellor and Head of the College of Medicine and Health, said:

“The University of Birmingham is proud to champion such wonderful student-led innovation. RMD has been part of the Medical School for 30 years, creating a tremendous legacy as well as a bright future. It is a privilege to be associated with the programme and the students who have delivered it.”

As RMD enters its fourth decade, the team is focused on growth and innovation for this next chapter. Future plans include:

• Increasing refresher training sessions for senior students, to maintain and improve basic life support skills.
• Expanding community outreach initiatives.
• Supporting the rollout of the RMD model at other UK universities, in collaboration with the Resuscitation Council UK