Basic Life Support (BLS)
Basic Life Support
Basic Life Support (BLS) is the foundation for saving lives after cardiac arrest.
WHAT IS BASIC LIFE SUPPORT (BLS)?
Basic Life Support (BLS) is the foundation for saving lives after cardiac arrest. This video-based, Instructor-led course teaches both single-rescuer and team basic life support skills for application in both in-facility and prehospital settings. This course is designed for healthcare professionals and other personnel who need to know how to perform CPR and other basic cardiovascular life support skills.
The course content focuses on:
- High-quality CPR and its impact on survival
- Chain of Survival and applying the BLS concepts of the Chain of Survival
- High-quality CPR on adults, children, and infants
- Use an AED
- Effective ventilations with a barrier device
- Importance of teams in multirescuer resuscitation and perform as an effective team member during multirescuer CPR
- Relief of foreign-body airway obstruction (choking) for adults and infants
BLS training is intended for healthcare professionals (certified or noncertified, licensed or nonlicensed), including:
- physicians
- nurses
- paramedics
- emergency medical technicians
- respiratory, physical, and occupational therapists
- physician's assistants
- residents or fellows
- medical or nursing students in training
- aides, medical or nursing assistants, and other allied health personnel
In addition, BLS training can be appropriate for first responders, such as police officers and firefighters, as well as for laypeople whose work brings them into contact with members of the public, such as school, fitness center, or hotel and restaurant employees.
Students must pass a written exam and skills test in order to qualify for a BLS Course Completion Card.
Course length for the classroom-based course is approximately 3 hours.