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ACLS

Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) certification is required for nurses, physicians, paramedics, and other clinical professionals working in high-acuity settings. These articles cover what ACLS involves, who needs it, how requirements vary across health systems and states, and how to stay current — whether you’re renewing for the first time or navigating a new employer’s credentialing expectations. All courses referenced meet American Heart Association® standards.

1 02, 2019

Documentation During a Life-Threatening In-Hospital Event

February 1st, 2019|ACLS, Education|

When you’re busy trying to save your patient’s life, probably the last thing on your mind is paperwork. After all, if you’re like most health care practitioners, paperwork is always to be dreaded and is only done because it’s required to be completed by law. While documentation during a code certainly is required by law, you should understand that there are actually some other good reasons to get it done. In fact, it may even help you provide better [...]

30 01, 2019

Cardiac Arrest: First Steps as a Trained Professional

January 30th, 2019|ACLS, CPR Training Articles|

One of the most nerve-wracking aspects of your job as a nurse, physician or other health care provider is the fact that you will be called on regularly to save lives. No matter how well you are trained and how easily you understood and passed your ACLS training, this is still a serious situation that may leave you feeling inadequate initially. You will become acutely aware that the lives of your patients rest in your hands. However, by regularly reviewing [...]

15 01, 2019

Understanding the 2015 Changes to ACLS Guidelines

January 15th, 2019|ACLS|

The American Heart Association comes out with a new version of their guidelines for BLS and ACLS every five years. Changes to the guidelines are designed to reflect current research and care standards with an emphasis put on the ultimate survival of every patient. The most recent set of guidelines came out in 2015, and if you’ve not renewed your ACLS certification recently, you’ll definitely want to recognize these changes. Updates to AHA ACLS Guidelines In the 2015 guidelines, [...]

28 12, 2018

5 Tips for Passing Your ACLS Examination the First Time

December 28th, 2018|ACLS, Advanced Nursing, Career Programs|

It can be scary to take an Advanced Cardiac Life Support class for the first time. You may feel totally out of your element and may feel as if you know less than any of the others around you. While these feelings of low confidence are normal, you can do some things yourself to improve your experience. Specifically, you can follow these five tips to help you ace your certification exam the first time you take it. Learn to [...]

26 12, 2018

The Most Commonly Used Drugs in Advanced Cardiac Life Support

December 26th, 2018|ACLS, Advanced Nursing, Education|

When you are helping patients in a health care facility, medications become an integral part of many of your treatments. This is especially true in the case of life-threatening conditions when code blues are called. As you study your algorithms in preparation for your ACLS certification or renewal, you’ll quickly find that the following medications are frequently seen throughout many treatment pathways. Atropine Atropine is the drug of choice for improving very slow heart rates. It is used as part [...]

19 12, 2018

Best Care Practices for Patients with Congestive Heart Failure

December 19th, 2018|ACLS, Advanced Nursing, Education|

High blood pressure, coronary artery disease and a variety of other heart and blood vessel conditions may gradually cause this condition. However, the most important point for you to consider as you care for patients with this diagnosis is how you can most effectively help them regain their health and avoid sudden death, which become increasingly common with severe CHF.

14 12, 2018

EKG Rhythms: Not for Doctors’ Eyes Only

December 14th, 2018|ACLS, Advanced Nursing, Classes, Education|

One of the most elusive skills for clinicians is learning to read EKGs. Even those who learn to recognize textbook examples at the drop of a hat may suddenly find themselves stumped in a real-life situation. You see, as with many things in the medical world, not all EKG patterns follow textbook examples. However, this brings us to question who should be able to decode EKGs? Should doctors alone be responsible for this important skill, or should you and your [...]

12 12, 2018

Confident Enough to Run a Code

December 12th, 2018|ACLS, Advanced Nursing, BLS, Education, EMT Training|

Confidence is defined as your ability to rely completely on someone or something. As a health care worker, you need to have confidence in your coworkers, but you also need to have a strong reliance on your own ability. This is called self-confidence. One of the areas in which it is easiest to lack self-confidence is in running or participating in a code. You may feel as if you wouldn’t have a clue what to do if your patient [...]

5 12, 2018

Which Team Members Do You Need for a Successful Code?

December 5th, 2018|ACLS, Advanced Nursing, BLS, CPR Training Articles, Education, EMT Training, Neonatal|

No matter how your health care organization is run, it definitely has a protocol for codes. Protocols are designed to help the code run smoothly and efficiently and to ensure everything possible is done to save the patient’s life. By ensuring that you and your coworkers are in your correct roles during a code, you can avoid chaos and confusion. Because a code is an ever-changing situation, some roles may change throughout the process. However, with quick thinking, constant [...]

28 11, 2018

Approaching ACLS Renewal with Thoughtfulness and Concern

November 28th, 2018|ACLS, Education|

If you currently hold an ACLS certification, you must make sure that you renew it regularly to remain compliant with your healthcare organization’s requirements. Your ACLS certification generally lasts two years and does not offer an additional grace period. Rather than looking at this class as a necessary evil, thoughtfully consider how it can actually make you a better health care provider. […]

    Emergency Nurses Association (ENA)   Trauma Nursing Core Course (TNCC)   Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP)   California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN)   Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (BPPE)   California Department of Public Health (CDPH)

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