What Life Support Class Do I Need?

If you aren’t in the medical field, you might be looking at life support courses and thinking “Whatcourse do I need?” You’ve come to the right place! In life support, you might see terms like First Aid,AED, ACLS, PALS, BLS, and CPR. We’ll break these terms down after we give you the simple answer:

First Aid courses are designed for people with no medical training. They teach you how toaddress a variety of injuries, general emergency preparedness, and universal safetyprecautions for rescuers. This course may be included with CPR training, such as in the AHAHeartsaver course.

CPR courses are designed for people with no medical training. They teach cardiopulmonaryresuscitation, manually pumping the chest to continue blood flow to the brain. These coursesmay include AED training – AEDs are the devices used to deliver an electric shock directly tothe heart.

BLS courses are designed for people with no medical training, but with medical professionalsin mind. This course is similar to CPR, but it is different because it will always include AEDtraining and manual ventilation.

ACLS courses are designed for medical personnel that work directly with patients. They teachteam-based dynamic procedures where specialized equipment & medicines are available. Thiscertification is required for a variety of professions, including nursing.

PALS courses are designed for medical personnel that work directly with patients, especiallythose who expect to treat children. This certification is more specialized than BLS or ACLS andis required for some medical professions, including ED staff, pediatric nurses, and NICU staff.

If you’re a non-medical person who wants to be prepared for emergencies and injuries, you should consider the Heartsaver CPR AED course. This certification is ideal for teachers, parents, daycarestaff, lifeguards, and businesses. It’ll teach CPR, First Aid, and AED use – all the training you needfor general emergencies.

If you’re in the medical field and not in patient care or are trying to transition into the medical field,then a BLS course is the best fit for you. A BLS certification from an AHA-approved program isrequired for most jobs in the healthcare industry – even non-patient-facing roles, like SterileProcessing Techs, still require BLS.

As for ACLS and PALS, there is no reason to obtain these certifications if your current orprospective job does not require them. To apply the training from these courses, you will needaccess to specialized equipment, medications not available to the public, and a trained team ofprofessionals to support you.

Zenith Career Services offers First Aid, CPR, BLS, ACLS, and PALS* classes in Stockton andBakersfield. If you are interested in signing up for any of these courses, you can contact us throughour online form or see the contact information below:

Stockton: 209-323-2577

Bakersfield: 661-479-7788

*PALS classes are currently only available in Stockton.