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HomeHeartsaver: Class Duration

 
2015 Heartsaver Courses
 
As of April 26, 2016 Course Information
 
Q: What are the AHA’s Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED Instructor-Led Training (ILT) Courses?
 
A: Heartsaver ILT Courses include Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED, Heartsaver CPR AED, and Heartsaver First Aid. The AHA's Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED courses have been updated to reflect new science in the 2015 American Heart Association Guidelines Update for CPR and Emergency Cardiovascular Care and the 2015 American Heart Association and American Red Cross Update for First Aid. Heartsaver courses are designed to prepare students to provide first aid, CPR, and AED use in a safe, timely, and effective manner. These courses are designed to be flexible and customizable with optional modules.
 
Q: Who is the intended audience for Heartsaver courses?
 
A: Heartsaver courses are intended for are designed for anyone with little or no medical training who needs a course completion card for job, regulatory (e.g., OSHA), or other requirements. These courses can also be taken by anyone who wants to be prepared for an emergency in any setting.
 
Q: What is different about the 2015 Guidelines version Heartsaver courses versus the 2010 Guidelines version Heartsaver courses?
 
A: The 2015 Guidelines Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED Courses reflect new science and education changes from the 2015 AHA Guidelines Updated for CPR and ECC and the 2015 American Heart Association and American Red Cross Update for First Aid. Additionally, these courses have been restructured and enhanced to offer
•Realistic scenarios, simulations, and animations depicting lay rescuers and shown from their perspectives
•New topics, based on science updates and the needs of the lay rescuer audience, including concussion, tourniquets, amputation, and opioid overdose
• Added course and content flexibility for AHA Instructors and students
 
Q: What are the key science changes included in the 2015 Guidelines Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED Courses?
 
A: Specific science changes include
•Better incorporation of speaker mode with a cell phone
•Recommendations for suspected concussion
•Change in CPR compression rate from 100 to 120 compressions per minute
•Naloxone treatment recommendations for opioid toxicity
•More emphasis on dispatcher-assisted CPR instructions
•More emphasis on FAST (Face, Arm, Speech, Time) stroke assessment technique
•Update for aspirin dosage – adults experiencing chest pain may chew 1 adult or 2 low-dose aspirins
•For severe allergic reaction with no improvement within 5-10 minutes, recommended second dose of epinephrine
 
Q: Specifically, what content is taught in the AHA’s Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED Courses?
 
A: At the end of the Heartsaver CPR AED Course, students will be able to:
•Describe how high-quality CPR improves survival
•Explain the concepts of the Chain of Survival
•Recognize when someone needs CPR
•Perform high-quality CPR for an adult
•Describe how to perform CPR with help from others
•Give effective breaths by using mouth-to-mouth or a mask for all age groups
•Demonstrate how to use an AED on an adult
•Perform high-quality CPR for a child*
•Demonstrate how to use an AED on a child*
•Perform high-quality CPR for an infant*
•Describe when and how to help a choking adult or child
•Demonstrate how to help a choking infant* *Child and infant modules are optional.
At the end of the Heartsaver First Aid Course, students will be able to
•List the priorities, roles, and responsibilities of first aid rescuers
•Describe the key steps in first aid
•Remove protective gloves
•Find the problem
•Describe the assessment and first aid actions for the following life-threatening conditions: heart attack, difficulty breathing, choking, severe bleeding, shock, and stroke
•Use an epinephrine pen
•Control bleeding and bandaging
•Recognize elements of common injuries
•Recognize elements of common illnesses
•Describe how to find information on preventing illness and injury
•Recognize the legal questions that apply to first aid rescuers At the end of the Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED Course, students will be able to do all of the above.
 
Q: Why is AED training included in all of AHA’s CPR courses?
 
A: The science in the official 2015 AHA Guidelines Update for CPR and ECC shows that victims have a greater chance of survival from cardiac arrest when high-quality CPR includes use of an AED.
 
Q: Why do the 2015 Guidelines recommend an increase in Community Lay Rescuer AED
Programs?
 
A. CPR and the use of AEDs by public safety-first responders were recommended to increase survival rates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. There is clear and consistent evidence of improved survival from cardiac arrest when a bystander performs CPR and rapidly uses an AED. Thus, immediate access to a defibrillator is a primary component of the system of care to be implemented in public locations where there is a relatively high likelihood of witnessed cardiac arrest, e.g., airports, casinos, and sports facilities. While in the past, AEDs were located in locked buildings or locked cabinets, they are now more widely available in public and workplace settings.
Q: What is the format for the Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED ILT Courses?
 
A: Heartsaver courses include group interaction and hands-on coaching and feedback from an AHA Instructor. These classroom-based courses are video based. Many of the lessons in the Heartsaver courses use the practice-while-watching format. This means that students practice skills as the video guides them. These courses are designed for a ratio of 3 students to 1 manikin, with no more than 2 manikins to 1 Instructor.
 
Q: On which skills are students tested in Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED ILT Courses?
 
A: Skills tested for each course are listed below:
 
Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED
•Removing Protective Gloves
•Finding the problem
•Using an Epinephrine Pen
•Controlling Bleeding and Bandaging
•Adult CPR AED
•Child CPR (when taught)
•Infant CPR (when taught)
 
Heartsaver CPR AED
•Adult CPR AED
•Child CPR (when taught)
•Infant CPR (when taught)
 
Heartsaver First Aid
•Removing Protective Gloves
•Finding the problem
•Using an Epinephrine Pen
•Controlling Bleeding and Bandaging
 
Q: What barrier devices can be used for the adult, child, and infant skills testing in Heartsaver CPR AED?
 
A: Heartsaver CPR AED provides students the opportunity to practice giving breaths both mouth-to-mouth and with a mask during the course. The course materials describe the use of “barrier device” on the skills testing checklists for testing purposes. For this course, the term “barrier device” is defined in the materials as either a face shield or a pocket mask. Students are required to practice using a pocket mask and, if they are testing with a face shield, the AHA recommends they also practice using a face shield.
 

 
Q: Approximately how long do the Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED ILT Courses take to complete?
 
A: The following are approximate completion times for each course. Times are based on recommended ratio of 6 students to 2 manikins to 1 Instructor. Using a different ration of students to manikins to Instructors will result in increased course completion times.
 
•Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED: approximately 4 1/2 hours (including optional Child-Infant 7 hours)
 
•Heartsaver CPR AED: approximately 2 ½ hours (including optional lessons Child-Infant 4 1/2 hours)
 
•Heartsaver First Aid: approximately 2 hours (including optional lessons and breaks 3 hours)
 
Q: Does the successful completion of Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED ILT Courses result in receipt of an AHA course completion card?  If so, which card?
 
A. Yes. Students who successfully complete the requirements of these courses will receive an AHA course completion card, valid two years.
 
Q: Are continuing education (CE/CME) credits offered for the Heartsaver First Aid and CPR AED ILT Courses?
 
A: No, CE/CME credits are not offered for these courses.
 
Q: Is there a “challenge option” for Heartsaver courses?
 
A: No, there is no challenge option for Heartsaver courses.
 
 
Q: What is the difference between an airway block and choking?
 
A: The term choking refers to a block in the upper airway caused by food or other objects. The airway block can be mild or severe. When the airway block is mild, the person who is choking can breathe, speak, and cough. Forceful coughing will often succeed in dislodging the object from the airway. A rescuer does not need to intervene as long as the person can breathe, speak, and cough. If the rescuer is worried about the person’s breathing, the rescuer should call 911. If the airway block is severe, air is not getting to the lungs, so the rescuer must act. The person with severe airway block is unable to breathe, speak, or cough. Choking with severe airway block is life-threatening, and the person needs to recognize the problem and provide immediate first aid with abdominal thrusts.
 
Q: Should I perform CPR on someone who has a pacemaker?
 
A: Yes. CPR is safe to do on someone with a pacemaker. If using an AED, try to avoid placing the AED pads directly over the pacemaker, because the pacemaker can block delivery of the shock to the heart. For additional information, please refer to the “Special Situations” section of the DVD and your Heartsaver Student Workbook.
 
Q: How do I perform CPR on someone who is confined to the wheelchair?
 
A: Move the person to the floor and begin CPR. If you are unable to move the person and you are alone, provide chest thrusts if you can, by kneeling behind the wheelchair, wrapping your arms around the person, and using your fists to perform thrusts in the center of the chest. Continue chest thrusts until help arrives. It is always better to attempt CPR than to do nothing.

 

 

Suggested Time Requirements When scheduling Heartsaver Hands on Skills Practice and Testing Sessions:
 

SKILLS:

       Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED (all modules):  90 minutes per student


Heartsaver CPR AED: 45 minutes per student


Heartsaver First Aid: 30 minutes per student


Heartsaver Pediatric First Aid CPR AED (all modules): 90 minutes per student

 
       Note: Students must have completed AHA online class prior to practice and
       skills testing.

Q:  What is the length of the Heartsaver blended learning Instructor-led hands-on session?
A:  Following the sample agenda included in the Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED Instructor Manual, the time for the Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED hands-on session is approximately 2 ½ hours, with optional lessons included. The hands-on session for Heartsaver First Aid is approximately 30 minutes, and the hands-on session for Heartsaver CPR AED is approximately 45-90 minutes (45 minutes if teaching only Adult CPR AED).



Suggested Time Requirements When scheduling Heartsaver Classroom Sessions:

CLASSROOM:
 
Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED: approximately 7 hours (including optional-lessons and breaks, Child-Infant). Adult only 4 to 5 hours.

Heartsaver CPR AED: approximately 4 ½ hours (including optional lessons and breaks, Child-Infant). Adult only 2 hours; 1 hour Child; 1 hour Infant; Breaks 30 minutes.

Heartsaver First Aid: approximately 2 1/2  to 3 hours.

Heartsaver Pediatric AED CPR First Aid: Approximately 5 to 7 hours depending on number of students, manikins and if optional lessons are included.


We will only cancel a class for weather related reasons. Even if only one student is enrolled in class it will be held!

  • Optional modules in child CPR and AED use and infant CPR, including child and infant choking
  • Optional exam

Family & Friend CPR Agenda