Rescue Elite encourages questions from our prospective and ongoing students. We want to ensure we provide you with the most up-to-date and accurate information about CPR, First Aid, and AHA Training. We recognize that most people are busy and cannot always reach out to ask questions or may be confused about an issue but are not sure how to ask the question. To do our best in addressing questions about CPR, First Aid, and AHA Training, we have listed some of the most frequently asked questions for you to review.
People often use the terms cardiac arrest and heart attack interchangeably, but they are not the same. As an instructor, it is important to know the difference:
If someone is unconscious, check to see if they are breathing for 10 seconds. If they are not, then you must start CPR.
Research has shown that CPR performed by a bystander improves the survival chances for a victim of cardiac arrest. In 2014, data showed that nearly 45 percent of cardiac arrest victims whose incidents occurred outside of a hospital survived when a bystander performed CPR.
The main steps of CPR are:
This refers to how many cycles of CPR you should perform in two minutes – 30 compressions and two rescue breaths are one cycle. For CPR to be effective, rescuers should perform five cycles in two minutes. Additionally, it is recommended that rescuers swap after two minutes and five cycles to prevent exhaustion and maintain effective compressions.
It is currently 30 compressions to two breaths for adults.
Most of the steps are similar, but there are a few differences:
CPR guidelines are updated every five years to reflect the most recent science and research findings from members of the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR). The members include:
There are several types of CPR training available.
Some people have an opening that connects the airway directly to the skin. This is called a stoma. If the person needs breaths, give them directly into the stoma.
You might carry a mask with you. Some masks fold up very small and fit on a key ring. If your job requires you to use a mask and you do not have one, do compressions until someone with a mask arrives. Compressions alone are better than doing nothing.
If you can, quickly move the person to a firm surface to give CPR. Make sure you support the head and neck. If you are alone and cannot move the person, try to find something flat and firm. Slide it under the back to provide a firm surface.
To reduce risk of it getting in the way, remove them.
Even some healthcare providers have a hard time telling if there is a pulse within 10 seconds. It is better to give CPR to a person who has a pulse than to not give CPR to someone who needs it.
No. "Cough CPR" does not work if the person does not respond. If you think you or someone else is having a serious medical emergency, phone your emergency response number (or 9-1-1).
The AHA does not endorse "cough CPR," a coughing procedure widely publicized on the Internet. As noted in the AHA Guidelines for CPR and ECC, "cough CPR" is not useful for unresponsive victims and should not be taught to lay rescuers.
Although there is no science to support this recommendation, a person who is alone and choking may be able to give abdominal thrusts to himself over a hard object such as the back of a chair.
Hands-Only CPR is CPR without mouth-to-mouth breaths. It is recommended for use by bystanders who see a teen or adult collapse in an "out-of-hospital" setting (such as at home, at work or in a park). It consists of two easy steps:
The AHA recommends that healthcare providers use conventional CPR with a combination of breaths and compressions. Conventional CPR should also be used for:
Stop when…
AED certification means you have been trained to use an Automated External Defibrillator and have proven you understand how to use it safely. Rescue Elite provides AED certification as part of our Heartsaver® CPR AED class, Heartsaver® First Aid CPR AED class, Heartsaver® Pediatric First Aid CPR AED class and our BLS class.
While CPR certification is not a job qualification on its own, many jobs require CPR certification, including:
If your industry requires CPR certification, providing it to your employees ensures:
To become CPR certified, you do have to have some hands-on training. However, our Heartcode® programs allow students to do the cognitive and learning part online, then join an instructor-led classroom to practice skills and take the test.
Perform CPR to the best of your ability. If you are trying to do the right thing and you are not trying to hurt the victim, Good Samaritan laws will protect you in most states.
No. The AHA does not certify people in CPR, first aid, or advanced cardiovascular life support skills; the AHA verifies that, at the time a person successfully completed training, he or she was able to perform skills satisfactorily.
First aid training teaches you how to respond to specific types of emergencies so you can provide care to someone while waiting for first responders or medical professionals to arrive. Specifically, you learn how to help someone suffering from serious injuries, a heart attack, seizures, and shock.
By learning how to care for someone suffering from a serious injury or illness, you can literally save their life. The time between the onset of symptoms or injury and being seen by a medical professional is critical, and first aid can provide an improved outcome for the victim.
The most important thing to learn is to make sure you are safe to provide care. For example, if there is fire or traffic, it is important to make sure you and the victim are in safe areas before beginning CPR. Otherwise, do not move a victim in case there is a neck or spine injury. After that, remember this:
Basic life support (BLS) is the foundation for saving lives after cardiac arrest and is specifically intended for healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, CNAs, EMTs, firefighters, and other first responders.
BLS and CPR are the same things, though BLS is intended for healthcare providers and emergency responders. It includes more in-depth instruction and instructions for doing 2-person CPR. However, CPR is a part of first aid in that you are providing first aid to someone suffering from cardiac arrest.
Yes, in addition to CPR, BLS also teaches first aid.
While anyone can benefit from having first aid training, jobs, and industries that require or prefer it include:
The AHA does not mandate a minimum age requirement for learning CPR. The ability to perform CPR is based more on body strength than age. Studies have shown that children as young as nine years old can learn and retain CPR skills.
The science in the official AHA Guidelines for CPR and ECC shows that victims have a greater chance of survival from cardiac arrest when high-quality CPR includes the use of an AED.
Heartsaver® CPR AED is probably best for you. This course is offered in both instructor-led training classes and hands-on skills sessions for blended learning courses.
Our Heartsaver® Courses are for anyone with limited or no medical training who needs a course completion card for job, regulatory or other requirements. While these courses are designed to meet OSHA requirements, OSHA does not review or approve any courses for compliance.
First responders or professional rescuers generally include fire, police, and emergency medical personnel. These types of prehospital professionals usually need to complete a Basic Life Support (BLS) course. Check with your employer or licensing authority and learn more about our BLS course options.
The AHA's Heartsaver® Pediatric First Aid CPR AED Course is designed to meet regulatory requirements for childcare workers in all 50 United States. The AHA offers this course in both blended learning and classroom-based formats. We offer Heartsaver® Pediatric First Aid CPR AED classes and hands-on skills sessions for blended learning courses.
For American Heart Association courses that include psychomotor skills such as CPR, students must complete a hands-on skills session to obtain an AHA course completion card. With AHA blended learning, students will practice and test skills to ensure competency during the hands-on skills session. We offer a variety of blended learning and eLearning courses. For blended learning courses, a student completes part of the course in a self-directed manner online, followed by a hands-on skills session in person with an AHA Instructor or using a Voice Assisted Manikin (VAM). AHA eLearning courses are fully self-directed and do not require a separate hands-on skills session.
No, first aid is not included in the AHA’s BLS courses. The AHA offers a variety of courses that will prepare you to respond to a first-aid emergency, including
No, BLS is not included in AHA’s ACLS courses. However, it is expected that healthcare providers taking an ACLS course come to class already proficient in BLS skills.
In CPR and first aid training,
Our CPR and first aid courses involve hands-on practice sessions, so wear something comfortable. If you have long hair, it is best to wear it back.
Course Materials for each course are offered with course registration and will be distributed based on delivery selection.
No. Each student must have his or her own current and appropriate manual or workbook readily available for use before, during, and after the course. The AHA owns the copyrights to AHA textbooks, manuals, and other CPR, first aid, and advanced cardiovascular care training materials. These materials may not be copied, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of the AHA. To request permission to reprint, copy or use portions of CPR, first aid, and advanced cardiovascular care materials, submit a written request to the AHA at copyright.heart.org.
The AHA does not produce materials in Braille. However, through the proper channels, we can provide you with a student manual/workbook in digital format for your use.
Training Centers must issue course completion cards within 20 days of successful course completion. Please contact us if you have any questions about your card.
Yes.
To check the validity of an AHA course completion card, contact the Training Center that issued the card. The Training Center’s information can be found on your course completion card.
Course completion cards are valid for two years through the end of the month, during which the course completion card was issued.
Contact us to inquire about your options for renewing your course completion card. We will also be able to answer questions about class availability and cost.
Please contact us if you have any questions about getting a replacement card.
Yes, AHA course completion cards are accepted in all US states.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada (HSFC) works closely with the AHA. The HSFC provider card is recognized by the AHA and can be used for admission to an AHA provider course (renewal or update) or Instructor course in the same discipline. The HSFC Instructor card is recognized by AHA Training Centers the same way as an Instructor card issued by an AHA Training Center.
Please contact us for more information.
The AHA requires that instructors be at least 18 years of age to teach Heartsaver® and BLS courses. ACLS, PALS, and PEARS Instructors must be at least 18 years of age and licensed or certified in a healthcare occupation where the skills are within the provider's scope of practice.
Yes, BLS Instructors are authorized to teach all Heartsaver®-level courses, including Heartsaver® First Aid, Heartsaver® First Aid CPR AED, and Heartsaver® Pediatric First Aid CPR AED. Instructors must have a copy of the appropriate Instructor manual for the course that they are teaching. It is also highly recommended that BLS Instructors review a copy of the student workbook for each course prior to teaching the course.
Compressions are the most important skill of CPR. Studies have shown that students mastered CPR skills best when they began by practicing compressions and breaths, then the other skills, and then putting it all together.
It is difficult for lay rescuers to open the airway with a jaw thrust. To make sure that the lay rescuer can open the airway, only a head tilt-chin lift is taught. In addition, all methods of opening the airway can produce movement of an injured spine, so the jaw thrust may not be any safer than a head tilt-chin lift.
Compressions are at the core of good CPR. Every time compressions are interrupted, the first few compressions are not as effective as later compressions. The more often the compressions are interrupted, the lower the victim's chance of survival.
Cardiac arrest in infants is most often caused by a problem with breathing that worsens over a short period of time. This means that an AED is less likely to be effective in infants compared with adults. Also, the 2015 AHA Guidelines Update for CPR and ECG recommends a more advanced defibrillator than an AED. This more advanced defibrillator is taught in more advanced courses. Although an AED could be used for an infant, the science experts were concerned with adding another level of knowledge to this course because infant cardiac arrest is uncommon and because the AED is much less likely to be required. For these reasons, this topic is best left for more advanced courses.
Actions to assist a person who is choking cannot be safely performed on other students in the classroom.
Unfortunately, most manikins used in the classroom are not suitable for effective practice. Although we have included the choking practice before, it likely does not prepare people for a choking emergency because it cannot be practiced correctly in the classroom. Rather than practice potentially incorrect techniques such as inadequate abdominal thrusts and to avoid the risk of harm to other students, the choking practice was removed from the course.
It does not matter where the person is tapped. For consistency, we teach tapping the shoulder of adults and children and tapping the foot of infants.
The AHA offers continuing medical education (CME), or continuing education (CE) credits for some of its CPR and ECC courses, and CME/CE may also be offered for live events. Learn how to claim and obtain your CME/CE Certificate.
Learn how to claim your eCard via email, using the eCards site, or via SMS text. Also, find out how to view your claimed eCard and how an employer can verify a student's claimed eCard. Learn how to claim and view your AHA eCard.