AHA Courses - Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support
The Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) course is designed for healthcare providers to enhance their skills in the treatment of the adult victim suffering from a cardiopulmonary emergency. ACLS emphasizes the importance of basic life support to patient survival, the integration of effective basic life support with the advanced cardiovascular life support interventions, and the importance of team dynamics and communication, and immediate post-cardiac-arrest care with the related pharmacology.
Course Contents
- Key changes in advanced cardiac life support reflecting the new science from the American Heart Association.
- Basic life support skills.
- Recognition and early management of respiratory and cardiac arrest.
- Recognition and early management of peri-arrest conditions such as symptomatic bradycardia.
- Airway management and the related Pharmacology.
- Management of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) and stroke.
- Effective communication as a member and leader of a resuscitation team.
Target Audience
This course is for emergency, intensive care and critical care healthcare providers such as physicians, nurses, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, respiratory therapists, and other professionals who may need to respond to cardiovascular or cardiopulmonary emergencies.
Course Format
ACLS Provider Course requires approximately 14 hours to complete, divided into two days, including skills practice and skills testing.
Certification
American Heart Association ACLS for Healthcare Providers Course Completion Card valid for two years. In addition to a certificate of course completion.
Testing
In the classroom, students demonstrate competency in their skills in all learning stations and passing the CPR and AED skills test, in addition to bag-mask ventilation skills, and a Megacode test in simulated clinical scenarios. Students are also required to pass a written test.
Instructors
AHA certified Life Support training center and certified ACLS instructors.
Student Materials
American Heart Association ACLS for Healthcare Providers Student Manual (includes Pocket Reference Card).