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First Aid & CPR Certifications

Many people do not realize how important emergency preparedness is until a situation arises. There are several first aid and CPR certifications available for people who are required to have credentials for their jobs or for those who want to arm themselves with the skills to save a life.

  1. Basic First Aid

    • A basic first aid certification is useful for professionals who require a quick refresher course.

      Basic first aid focuses on injury prevention, including the 12 common emergency situations and corresponding first aid procedures. CPR Today offers a first aid course, which is a refresher for professionals who have previously had first aid certification. The course takes up to an hour to complete and is followed by a test with 26 true-or-false questions. A Basic First Aid certificate and certification wallet card, which is valid for three years, are given to those who successfully complete the course.

    First Aid, CPR and AED

    • The American Red Cross includes defibrillator instruction in its first aid and CPR course.

      The American Red Cross offers a two-year certification course in first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automatic external defibrillator (AED). First aid techniques include treating a range of injuries, including burns, wounds and spinal injuries, among others. Students also learn what to do in the case of sudden illness, stroke, seizure, bites or poisoning. Students learn how to care for adults, children and infants with breathing or cardiac emergencies. Finally, students learn how to use an automatic external defibrillator in the event of cardiac arrest.

    Heartsaver CPR

    • First responders such as firefighters require a heartsaver certification.

      People who must respond to emergencies in their line of work take the heartsaver CPR certification, which teaches CPR and relief of foreign-body airway obstruction in adults, infants and children. Examples of jobs that require this certification are security guards, firefighters, police and other lay responders. An MTN Heartsaver CPR course completion card and two-year certification are given to those who complete the course, which is offered by the American Heart Association.

    BLS for Health Care Providers

    • The Basic Life Support certification teaches rescue breathing and bag-mask techniques.

      The American Heart Association's Basic Life Support for Healthcare Providers course is for health care professionals who must know how to perform CPR and other lifesaving skills. The course teaches the recognition of life-threatening emergencies, how to provide CPR, use an AED and effectively relieve choking. Topics covered are bag-mask techniques, the American Heart Association chain of survival and rescue breathing for adults, children and infants. It also includes CPR training with an advanced airway. The course completion card is valid for two years.

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