Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) certification needs a two-day course for healthcare professionals. It prepares you to respond to emergencies in children and infants skilfully. The course is ideal for professionals, like first responders, emergency medicine providers, physicians, nurses, and paramedics.
The PALS course is specifically designed to teach the needed responses to life-threatening clinical events. By the end of this training module, you’ll learn to effectively recognize and intervene in patients with respiratory emergencies, shock, and cardiopulmonary arrest.
You can easily learn and master PALS by enrolling in an online certification through an American Heart Association or AHA-accredited course. The use of digital technology has increased the popularity of online PALS certification. It is an attractive alternative to traditional, classroom-based studies.
Online certification can save you time and money while providing you with the learning skills needed to work in an emergency pediatric environment.
Before enrolling in a PALS Certification course online, it is essential to check for a few things.
Legitimate Providers
Many institutional providers offer online PALS certification training. But, you need to ensure the validity of any course before taking it up. Check whether the PALS online course is approved by the American Heart Association, a CAPCE accredited organization. You can find this information on the course provider’s website.
Updated Course
Many employers require PALS recertification as it provides you with new knowledge and skills needed to save lives. It would help if you ensured the online certification course you are enrolling in adheres to new updates issued by AHA Guidelines for CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) and ECC (Emergency Cardiovascular Care). These guidelines are the standard for any PALS training. So, any institution not offering an updated course should not be taken into consideration.
Prerequisites of the Course
There are certain prerequisites for taking the PALS course. For enrolment, you need to be at least 18 years of age. It is also essential to be proficient in infant and child Basic Life support skills. You should also know how to recognize a variety of heart rhythms, understand different types of airway management tools, the Systematic Approach Algorithm, and learn about the drugs commonly used in the PALS algorithms and charts.
Completion Course Requirements
To get a PALS course completion card, check for the basic requirements and their validity. Apart from the cognitive portion and passing of the final written exam, a hands-on skills session also needs to be completed by a certified PALS instructor.
Blended learning
Along with the online curriculum, the course should also provide hands-on skills sessions. This blended learning will help you learn at your own pace and comfortably, no matter where you are.
Flexible Classes
As online PALS certification is a two-day course, you need to check whether the provider allows rescheduling of the class. You may be caught up in an emergency and unable to attend the classes. Rescheduling will give you the advantage of changing the date and timing for course completion. Also, the online course should provide you with more than one attempt to pass the exam.
Continuing Medical Education (CME) Credit
Choose a provider that also offers you continuing medical credit along with the training. Only legitimate providers can offer CME credit, which is another factor you can use to check a company’s legitimacy. While looking for an online PALS course, you need to compare the CME credits offered by online providers and ensure that they come from a reputable board. The type of CME currency, such as AMA, ANCC, and ADA, should also be considered.
Look at the Certification Cost
The cost of the online course will vary from expensive to inexpensive. Expensive online programs will offer more additional features, including videos and various studying resources. It entirely depends on you whether you want a simplified program or need in-depth skill development.
Some institutions also refund you the full amount if you decide to opt-out of the course within the first week. It ensures you the peace of mind needed while moving forward with the certification.
Check the Reviews
Before taking up any online course, it is essential to go through the reviews and testimonials. This will give you an idea of how good are the courses of different online PALS certification providers.
Most online courses offer 6 or more hours for certification courses and 3 or more hours for recertification courses. PALS offers an excellent career opportunity for medical professionals who want to serve emergency pediatric patients using the latest techniques and scientific developments. However, choose the best course provider to get the right curriculum according to the skill sets you wish to acquire.