Let’s look at what helps build the value of AED training courses. Operating an AED device is among the most important life-saving skills. It’s a first-aid emergency response technique that can be crucial for restarting the heart rhythm of an SCA victim. Operating an AED device is complementary to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
However, these skills must be evaluated and acquired through certific5ation courses available at credible organizations like the American Heart Association (AHA). Across the United States, numerous training centers and organizations provide these courses and the proper analysis and performance of defibrillation.
This article elaborates on the value of AED training courses, where to find them, and how they can help you assist a cardiac arrest victim.
AED Training Courses: The Fundamentals
If you search the web, you’ll find numerous AED training courses available in each state. However, not every AED course has the same program, modules, and application. That’s why it’s crucial to find courses recognized by relevant institutions like the American Heart Association and the American Red Cross.
Moreover, you or your employees can enroll in some NCS AED courses recognized by and fulfilling the standards of organizations like OSHA. These organizations are a great place to start your training journey because of the program’s comprehensiveness, the application of the modules, and the learning techniques.
Additionally, there’re hundreds of training centers providing AED courses. Many of them have an AHA or American Red Cross license and certificate to offer recognized and credible certifications.
AED Training Courses: Types of Courses
Learning how to use automated external defibrillators is usually a subsection in a First Aid or CPR course. Training centers rarely provide distinct AED training courses and certifications. Nevertheless, there are some exceptions, meaning you can sometimes learn how to use the AED device and administer shockwaves through specially-designed courses like Red Cross’s AED courses.
Following are some of the most frequent AED courses you will find:
- Adult and Pediatric CPR/AED Training Courses
- Adult AED Training Courses
- Pediatric AED Training Courses
- Heartsaver CPR / AED Training
- AED Training as a part of Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS)
The courses offer various programs for learning AED skills and different competence levels. Some are designed for bystanders and individuals, while others are designed to teach these life-saving skills to medical workers, healthcare providers, and emergency medical care services.
The Value of AED Training Courses: Different Categories of Learners
The survival rates of in-hospital and out-of-hospital cardiac arrest have increased in the past ten years – and AEDs are one of the main causes. The American Heart Association states that without AED devices, around 70% of cardiac arrest victims either die or survive but have impaired brain functions.
That’s why the American Heart Association and the American Red Cross provide courses for different categories of learners. For instance, if you’re a nurse or planning to become one, you can enroll in an AED training course. It’ll enable you to adequately analyze the heart rhythm (shockable/non-shockable) and administer shocks accordingly.
If you’re a childcare provider or a babysitter, you can enroll in some of the available pediatric AED courses. These courses will teach you the fundamentals of administering AED shocks to children or infants. Additionally, you’ll learn about escalating shocks and the various protocols for children and infant defibrillation.
The training centers also provide AED courses for individuals who want to educate themselves in emergency response and other life-saving skills. For example, as a person not related to medical or healthcare work, you can register, apply, and start learning some courses.
AED Training Courses: Jobs With Mandatory AED Training
You can also determine the value of different AED courses for different job types and careers that require AED certification courses and thus ensure the safety of the patients, workers, and other employees. You can enroll in some of these courses for a fair price based on the desired knowledge level and the program’s comprehensiveness.
Government organizations and institutions (on both federal and state levels) require AED training courses and certification for particular professions. Sometimes the lack of AED skills and certificates can result in penalties and financial implications on the business or the individual providing specific services.
Following are some of the job types and workplaces where an AED training course is mandatory:
- Healthcare providers for the elderly: home health aids, nursing home staff, hospice workers;
- Emergency response services: paramedics, combat medics, lifeguards, emergency medical technicians (EMTs), firefighters, and more;
- Counselors and social workers: geriatric, psychiatric, medical, military, pediatric, and other workers;
- Law enforcement and security workers
- Electricians, contractors, and construction workers: workers exposed to extreme heat, electricity, and height conditions.
For these professions, knowing the proper administration of AED shocks and analysis of the heart rhythm is crucial and can save many lives. However, these aren’t the only professions that require AED courses and certificates. Depending on the state policy, many other employees working in different business sectors might be subject to mandatory AED training.
Notice that the courses can be customized for different professions and are always complementary to resuscitation techniques. This comes naturally based on the fact that automated external defibrillation is performed in combination with CPR.
What You Learn in AED Training Courses
In most cases, the value of AED training courses is closely related to the material taught and what you’ll learn during the classes. Usually, when you register, apply, and enroll in an AED course, you’ll learn some of the following aspects of defibrillation:
- How to identify sudden cardiac arrest, what are the symptoms, and how to access the various preconditions for administering an AED;
- How to correspond with 991 and other emergency response services;
- How to perform a high-quality CPR procedure and how to combine it with AED;
- Knowledge about the different emergencies when to avoid giving shocks;
- Simulations.
Each learning aspect of the course will help you become more efficient and effective in performing defibrillation. Moreover, you’ll see the particular value of the training in the examinations and the simulations you’ll regularly perform in front of certified instructors.
Almost all AED training courses will teach you about the different defibrillator types, their mechanisms, and how to use them properly. You’ll also learn about the different natures of various emergencies and when to avoid defibrillation. For example, when the person has been in touch with water or lying on conductive surfaces, AED is not to be used.
The training centers and certifying organizations also provide training courses for AED instructors. If you want to master defibrillation skills, you can enroll in some American Red Cross or AHA-certified AED courses.
AED Training Courses: Additional Benefits
If you want to understand the value of AED training courses, you must take a look at the different benefits. For example, individuals who have participated in AED courses and got certified by a relevant institution can successfully identify the symptoms of cardiac arrest and how to apply electrical shocks.
These classes also teach how to recognize different emergencies, aside from cardiac arrests, such as drowning, drug overdose, when a natural disaster happens, or car accidents. Furthermore, the person who’s gone through an AED course will learn the basics of human anatomy and acquire fundamental knowledge of how to react in some everyday situations.
AED courses will also teach you how to perform CPR depending on the victim’s age, medical condition, and many other factors. On top of that, as we have said before, the automated external defibrillator courses can help you meet your job requirements if you’re planning to work in some positions with an obligatory first aid certification.
Final Words: The Value of AED Training Courses
The benefits of enrolling in AED training courses are innumerable. Training centers adapt them for different types of learners and various skill levels, so individuals and organizations can choose between them. Some AED classes are obligatory for a certain job position. For example, these are essential for healthcare employees, EMSs, contractors, construction workers, etc.
Luckily, training centers can customize and provide AED courses depending on the client’s needs. Most of them are licensed by relevant organizations like AHA and the American Red Cross, proving the value of their courses.
In general, the automated external defibrillator courses are highly important as they can save many lives by teaching you how to properly analyze the heart’s rhythm, apply a shock, and combine it with CPR. You will not only learn the basics of various emergencies but how you can handle them effectively as well!