AHA Courses

American Heart Association Courses

Did you know that Aiken Technical College is an AHA Training Site under the AHA Training Center at Lowcountry Regional EMS Council?

Courses Offered

Basic Life Support (BLS)

The AHA’s BLS course trains participants to promptly recognize several life-threatening emergencies, give high-quality chest compressions, deliver appropriate ventilations and provide early use of an AED. Reflects science and education from the American Heart Association Guidelines Update for CPR and Emergency Cardiovascular Care (ECC).

Who should take this course?

The AHA’s BLS Course is designed for healthcare professionals and other personnel who need to know how to perform CPR and other basic cardiovascular life support skills in a wide variety of in-facility and prehospital settings.

What does this course teach?

High-quality CPR for adults, children, and infants
The AHA Chain of Survival, specifically the BLS components
Important early use of an AED
Effective ventilations using a barrier device
Importance of teams in multirescuer resuscitation and performance as an effective team member during multirescuer CPR
Relief of foreign-body airway obstruction (choking) for adults and infants

Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS)

The AHA’s ACLS course builds on the foundation of lifesaving BLS skills, emphasizing the importance of continuous, high-quality CPR. Reflects science and education from the American Heart Association Guidelines Update for CPR and Emergency Cardiovascular Care (ECC).

Who should take this course?

For healthcare professionals who either direct or participate in the management of cardiopulmonary arrest or other cardiovascular emergencies and for personnel in emergency response

What does this course teach?

Basic life support skills, including effective chest compressions, use of a bag-mask device, and use of an AED
Recognition and early management of respiratory and cardiac arrest
Recognition and early management of peri-arrest conditions such as symptomatic bradycardia
Airway management
Related pharmacology
Management of ACS and stroke
Effective communication as a member and leader of a resuscitation team

Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS):

For healthcare providers who respond to emergencies in infants and children and for personnel in emergency response, emergency medicine, intensive care and critical care units

What does this course teach?

The PALS Provider Course aims to improve outcomes for pediatric patients by preparing healthcare providers to effectively recognize and intervene in patients with respiratory emergencies, shock, and cardiopulmonary arrest by using high‐performance team dynamics and high‐quality individual skills. The course includes a series of case scenario practices with simulations that reinforce important concepts. Upon successful completion of all the patient cases, students must pass the multiple-choice exam with a minimum score of 84%. Topics include:

After successfully completing this course, students will be able to

Perform high‐quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) per American Heart Association (AHA) basic life support (BLS) recommendations
Differentiate between patients who do and do not require immediate intervention
Recognize cardiopulmonary arrest early and begin CPR within 10 seconds
Apply team dynamics
Differentiate between respiratory distress and failure
Perform early interventions for respiratory distress and failure
Differentiate between compensated and decompensated (hypotensive) shock
Perform early interventions for the treatment of shock
Differentiate between unstable and stable patients with arrhythmias
Describe clinical characteristics of instability in patients with arrhythmias
Implement post–cardiac arrest management

Blended Learning Option (online)

Below are the steps to become a certified provider in BLS, ACLS, or PALS.

Complete and pass the AHA Online Blended Learning Module. (Select the appropriate course)
Print a copy of your "Certificate of Completion" from the AHA Online Blended Learning Module
1. Bring your Certificate of Completion with you to your appointment.
Pay the ATC Cashier's office for the Provider Blended Skills Test appropriate to the course you are completing.
1. Cashier's office hours of operation
2. Bring the receipt to your appointment
Arrive at your appointment on time and prepared.
1. If you are missing any items, you will not be able to complete the skills testing.
2. A manikin will be available for students to practice skills before testing.
3. Once you successfully complete the testing, your e-card will be e-mailed to you within 45 days.

The schedule of classes and skills testing will be posted soon! Skills testing available most Friday afternoons, contact David Cary for more information at 803-508-7461 or caryd@atc.edu

Skills Testing takes place in the Health Sciences Building, Room 1400, unless otherwise specified.

Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED (Blended Learning)

AHA's Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED course provides the knowledge and skills that may help save a life. It also offers the basics of first aid for the most common life-threatening emergencies, covering how to recognize them, call for help, and perform lifesaving skills. Heartsaver courses from AHA offer a cohesive, consistent experience for the learner. Best practices to give students the best possible learning experience and help them better retain information. This course also has enhanced and realistic scenarios while providing course and content flexibility.

WHO SHOULD TAKE THE COURSE?

Heartsaver courses are intended for anyone with LITTLE TO 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.

COURSE COVERS

Adult CPR and AED Use
Opioid-associated Life-threatening Emergencies
Child CPR and AED Use
Infant CPR
First Aid Basics
Choking in an Adult, Child, or Infant

Blended Learning Heartsaver blended courses include an online portion and a hands-on portion. The online portion can be completed at work, at home, or wherever you have internet access. The hands-on skills practice and the testing sessions are conducted in-person with an AHA BLS Instructor.

Below are the steps to become a certified provider of AHA's Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED course.

Complete and pass the AHA Online Blended Learning Module.
1. Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED
Print a copy of your "Certificate of Completion" from the AHA Online Blended Learning Module
1. Bring your Certificate of Completion with you to your appointment.
Pay the ATC Cashier's office for the Provider Blended Skills Test appropriate to the course you are completing.
1. Cashier's office hours of operation
2. Bring the receipt to your appointment
Arrive at your appointment on time and prepared.
1. If you are missing any items, you will not be able to complete the skills testing.
2. A manikin will be available for students to practice skills before testing.
3. Once you successfully complete the testing, your e-card will be e-mailed to you.

The 2023 schedule of classes and skills testing will be posted soon!

Skills Testing takes place in the Health Sciences Building, Room 1400, unless otherwise specified.

Full in-person classes can be arrainged for groups. Please e-mail caryd@atc.edu for further details.

Course Costs

AHA Courses	COST
Basic Life Support (BLS) Blended Skills	$20.00
Basic Life Support (BLS) Full Course	$45.00
Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) Blended Skills	$75.00
Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) Full Course	$200.00
Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) Blended Skills	$75.00
Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS)	$200.00
Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED Blended Skills	$35.00
Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED	$55.00
BLS/ACLS/PALS Instructor Orientation (Per Discipline)	$100.00

How to Become an AHA Instructor

Becoming an American Heart Association instructor is easy. Follow the steps bellow to get started today!

Get accepted by ATC Training Site by completing an Instructor Candidate Application. Aiken Tech is not currently accepting new Instructors for AHA courses at this time.
You must have a current AHA provider certification in the discipline you wish to instruct. Disciplines include ACLS, BLS, PALS, and Heartsaver. Please e-mail a copy of your current provider card(s) for the discipline(s) you wish to teach caryd@atc.edu
Complete the discipline-specific Instructor Essentials Course.
Schedule an in person interview by e-mailing caryd@atc.edu
Successfully be monitored teaching your first course within six months of completing the discipline-specific classroom Instructor Course. Training Center Coordinators can require additional monitoring.

Once you become an Instructor, you will have access to the most current emergency cardiovascular care science, course updates, training resources, and tools through the online AHA Instructor Network. You will also be able to post class dates and times to reach more students through our public website.

Current AHA Instructors

Instructors who are interested in aligning with ATC's training site must complete the following forms.

AHA Instructor Application
AHA Instructor Records Transfer Request
Please send a copy of your Provider/Instructor Card(s) and 2020 Instructor Update Certificate of Completion(s) to caryd@atc.edu
Schedule an in person interview by e-mailing caryd@atc.edu

Once the completed forms have been reviewed, you will receive an e-mail from ATC Faculty with further information.

AHA Instructor Community: Your Forum of Instructor Peers

Once you become an AHA Instructor, you will have immediate access to our Instructor Community. On this networking site, you can connect with your fellow AHA Instructors to exchange knowledge, information, and expertise or directly ask us questions. We hope that you explore the site and begin to share ideas, discuss the latest trends in CPR training and give us feedback to partner with you to provide outstanding training and save more lives.

What can you do in the AHA Instructor Community?

Participate in or start discussion forums
Post and comment on blogs
Chat with colleagues, share stories and photos, ask and answer questions
List local events and view AHA national events
Access resources to promote your CPR and ECC training
Earn "badges" based on your activity in the community
Connect with friends
Join groups based on your Instructor discipline(s)
And more! We'll continually adjust the site to add new features based on your input.

While the Instructor Community is your space, we will be listening to your opinions to learn more about your needs and wants as a provider of lifesaving training.