CPR and Basic Life Support (BLS)
CPR and Basic Life Support (BLS) training is required of many health-care professionals and lay rescuers to help revive, resuscitate, or sustain a person who is experiencing cardiac arrest or respiratory failure.
Sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death in adults and 88% of all cardiac arrest happen in people’s homes. Providing CPR can double a person’s chance of survival from sudden cardiac arrest. If CPR is started within 4 minutes of collapse, and defibrillation is provided within 10 minutes, a person has a 40% chance of survival.
C-A-B
The primary skills taught in the BLS course include CPR (chest compressions to circulate blood) and rescue breathing (C-A-B).
Compressions
Push hard and fast on the center of the victim’s chest
Airway
Tilt the victim’s head back and lift the chin to open the airway
Breathing
Give recue breaths making sure lungs are filling with air
UC Davis Health offers a number of options for CPR that are appropriate of all levels of UC Davis Health staff and community participants in the Sacramento area. The course matrix below explains the CPR courses available at UC Davis Health. See each class webpage for more detailed course information and registration.
Courses
UC Davis Health CPR courses meet Joint Commission requirements for UC Davis Health staff and are only open to employees. Certificates of achievement will be available upon completion. If you need an AHA CPR card you should take an AHA course. AHA courses are open to employees and community participants. AHA CPR cards will be awarded upon successful completion.
Employees who have taken CPR outside of UC Davis may submit their card to our office by fax, inter-office mail or e-mail. Only AHA cards can be accepted per hospital policy 3010.
* Bag-valve-mask skill is a challenging skill that requires practice regularly to do well. Refers to any person who is required to have the skill of using a bag-valve-mask. Includes, but not limited to, MD, RN, LVN, respiratory therapist, pharmacists. Examples of excluded staff: physical therapist, dietitians, MOSC, HUSC, hospital assistant, medical assistant.
Which CPR course should I take?
- UC Davis Health Biennial CPR
- UC Davis Health employees who need to renew CPR certification requirements for employment at UC Davis Health only. This class is offered every two years in January and February, during odd years. Renewing during this time is important to maintain CPR certifications throughout the organization, as there are limited renewal options between biennial renewal cycles.
- UC Davis Health CPR
- UC Davis Health employees who need to meet CPR certification requirements for employment at UC Davis Health only. This class is offered throughout the year with limited availability.
- AHA Healthcare Provider: Online & Hands-On Skills
- Any health care professional that needs an AHA BLS card.
- Basic Life Support (BLS): Heartcode® RQI Cart (Emergency Department only)
- UC Davis Health Emergency Department staff who need an AHA BLS card.
- AHA Friends and Family CPR
- Friends and family who want to learn CPR but do not need an AHA BLS card upon completion.
Questions
Please contact the AHA program manager at hs-aha@ucdavis.edu.
Coordinator
Jan Shepard, M.S.N., R.N., N.P.D.-B.C., C.C.R.N.
Professional Development Specialist
The Center for Professional Practice of Nursing strives to provide quality education to nurses and allied health professionals at UC Davis Health and throughout the community.