Advanced Life Support (ALS) Certification

You now have a choice in healthcare education from the first provider of resuscitation training in the United States. The Advanced Life Support (ALS, sometimes referred as acls) class from the American Red Cross has been designed specifically for healthcare providers and first responders – and offers ways to help streamline your training, improve your skill retention and help you better serve your patients.

By building on your Basic Life Support (BLS) knowledge, our scientifically equivalent and educationally superior training emphasizes providing high-quality patient care by integrating rhythm interpretation, electrical interventions, and pharmacologic knowledge with critical thinking, problem-solving, and in-person psychomotor skills practice to achieve the best possible patient outcomes. Throughout the Red Cross ALS course, you'll learn advanced life support assessment, as well as how to best manage respiratory emergencies, and Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) protocols for acute arrhythmias, cardiac arrest (including post-cardiac arrest care), acute coronary syndromes and acute stroke within or outside of a medical facility setting.

Blended Learning and Streamlined Options for Experienced Providers

Advanced Life Support (sometimes referred as advanced cardiac life support, or acls) classes are available via our innovative Blended Learning program, which combines online training coursework with an in-person skills session – so you can take them when and where you like – and on the device that suits you best. Throughout the course, our interactive scenarios will help you understand the science behind ALS and the finer points of providing care, and improve your clinical decision-making skills. With the online class complete, and after passing your final written exam, you'll attend an in-person skills session – where you'll meet with a certified ALS/ACLS Red Cross instructor and demonstrate your ALS skills. After passing both sections of the course, you'll receive a two-year ALS certificate.

Personalized Instruction & Time-Saving ALS Pre-Assessments

As part of the Blended Learning experience, our ALS class features adaptive learning technology. By using this groundbreaking technology, you'll not only follow a personalized learning path, but you'll have the option to test out of sessions if you demonstrate competency. It’s an innovative way to reduce your overall class time and help you earn your ALS certification (sometimes referred as acls certification) faster.

Experienced ALS Providers

If you're an experienced ALS provider, the Red Cross gives you the option to renew your ALS certification even faster. With the opportunity to do a brief, in-person skills review before testing (Review Option), or simply move straight to the Challenge Option and immediately take the skills test, you can get your ALS and ACLS recertified in less time.

Should I Enroll in an ALS Class?

Advanced Life Support courses are designed for professional healthcare providers who participate in the assessment and management of critical patients, including those working in in-hospital, pre-hospital, and out-of-hospital medical facilities.

The only prerequisite for enrollment is that you must be proficient in adult basic life support (BLS) skills.

Go to BLS Certification

FAQs