Clifton Park & Halfmoon Emergency Corps (CPHM) is pleased to announce the re-opening of their American Heart Association (AHA) Training Center. This is being done as COVID-19 restrictions are slowly lifted and after new guidance was issued by the AHA. The training center will now be able to accommodate individuals who need to renew their CPR certification to meet the updated guidance. Gina Wierzbowski, CPHM’s AHA Training Center Coordinator said, “We have missed teaching and are eager to welcome students back to our Training Center!”
The AHA has recently updated guidelines about expiring CPR certifications, which will affect anyone whose CPR Certification was set to expire between March and June 2020. Guidelines issued by the AHA in March had extended the recommended renewal dates for up to 120 days. The new guidelines just issued state that CPR Certification cards with expiration dates in March, April, May, and June of this year may still be extended up to 120 days from the last day of the month in which they expire. However, the updated AHA guidelines now also specify that individuals with CPR certification cards expiring in July 202 should renew them by July 31st.
CPHM is offering a robust skills testing schedule to accommodate the large number of individuals that will need to renew their CPR certification. CPHM will offer the AHA’s blended learning option, which involves the student completing an online portion of the course independently and then performing hands on skills testing in front of an evaluator from the CPHM AHA Training Center.
To minimize risk, CPHM will follow new procedures to protect students and instructors. All participants will be asked to follow a number of safety requirements that include a temperature check upon arrival. Students will also be required to use hand sanitizer upon arrival and wear a face mask. In addition, CPHM will strictly maintain a 1-to-1 student-to-manikin ratio and one-way valves and face masks will be used when performing breaths during CPR. Gloves will also be worn at all times during the testing. All props and manikins will be thoroughly disinfected after each student.
“CPHM is strongly committed to the mission of saving lives through CPR and also to keeping our community healthy. These safety procedures achieve both goals and allow us to successfully re-open our AHA Training Center,” said Wierzbowski. “These guidelines will be in place for both in person classes and skills tests.”
CPHM offers certification in Heartsaver CPR/First Aid, Basic Life Support for Healthcare Providers, Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support and Pediatric Advanced Life Support. Wierzbowski said all courses can be completed using the blended learning option.
Students can register for classes by contacting our AHA Training Center at 518-371-3880, ext. 119 or aha@cphmems.org.