Are Online CPR Certifications Legit?

Online CPR Certifications

The moment the World Wide Web became accessible to average families, lives began to change. The days where Encyclopedia Britannica salesmen would drive house to house, pushing the need to have a complete reference set, disappeared because of our ability to find the answers FREE and instantly through search engines. The same changes are happening in healthcare CPR training and instruction. Distance learning is exactly what it says it is…distant. Whether some of these changes are due to busy lives or to a huge “personal bubble”, they are happening.

Do a Google search for ‘online CPR training’, and you will find a host of businesses offering CPR training online for half the cost of traditional CPR classes. With these classes, there is no need to leave the comfort of your home or office, you save money, and supposedly you have the certification you needed virtually immediately. Online courses are offered for personal trainers, coaches, teachers, professional nurses and other healthcare providers. That being said, there are two important questions that need to be answered: What real purpose do online CPR certifications serve and are online CPR certifications legitimate? Let’s start with the latter.

Government Regulations May Affect the Validity of Your Online CPR Class

There are specific fields of work regulated by state or federal guidelines. For example, Wisconsin chiropractors are required to have a CPR AED certification, and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services has a list of approved providers chiropractors and other licensed professionals can choose from. Included in this list is the American Heart Association, with a paragraph under the list of providers that states, paying attention to the first two words:

Any course offered by the above providers that includes the following is approved by this department to fulfill the cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external defibrillator (AED) training objectives for persons who are required, as a condition of licensure, certification, or registration to be proficient in CPR or in the use of an AED.

Online CPR Certification versus In-Person American Heart Association Classes

'Any course' is the key to the above reference, because it means any courses offered by the American Heart Association, including blended courses, meet the states requirements. I brought up Wisconsin chiropractic CPR certifications specifically because of an email conversation I had with an Illinois chiropractor that is licensed in Wisconsin as well. The chiropractor asked me if I would be able to help him renew his CPR certification to keep his Wisconsin license valid.

Seeing as Healthline First Aid is growing in the CPR market, I wanted to take this opportunity work with the chiropractor, as well as promote local businesses. As an American Heart Association instructor, there are several blended CPR courses I teach. I felt the Heartsaver CPR AED course would work perfect for the chiropractor’s needs, because these courses combine online cognitive training with hands-on skills practice and testing, and at the same time offering increased flexibility to the client and instructor. Shortly after emailing my recommendation to the chiropractor, I received an email saying “Unfortunately I need a hands-on course. Wisconsin requires it to be in person training”.

CPR Certification Renewal Requirements Vary by Industry

If an employer or profession in an unregulated field requires a CPR certification, the employer has the ability to accept any CPR certification they deem acceptable, including online certifications. Other industries related to healthcare cannot use online certification training. My client was right, as Wisconsin does require in person training for chiropractors. A CPR course that is entirely online would not meet those requirements, but the blended Heartsaver CPR AED course offered by the American Heart Association is the exact same certification he would receive in a traditional class because there is a hands-on, in person portion. Like I mentioned above, the blended option allows the client to do the lecture portion of the class online anywhere there is an internet connection.  The instructor lead skills practice and testing is very flexible to schedule with less classroom time commitments, but still allows the client to practice and demonstrate the skills they need, which meets the states requirements for “in person training”. 

Online-Only CPR Certification Scams

It is easy to see what purpose the blended option serves, but what purpose does a completely online CPR certification serve? As a healthcare professional, I would say there is no purpose. Past clients have shared with me their experience of spending $20-$35 for an online certification, only to have their school or employer tell them their certification is not valid. In the end, these clients have to spend even more time and money to their legitimate certification.

A large health club franchise recently contacted Healthline First Aid, asking if we would be able to train 200 plus members of their staff, which we could. The manager who contacted me stated Wisconsin and Illinois require first aid and CPR certification, and it was originally at the employees’ expense. Because management recommended a completely online CPR certification, the club was now paying for all those employees to get certified again through a state approved course. Contacting us for training first would have saved the club a lot of money.

First Aid is About Saving Lives

Most importantly, the goal of taking a CPR class to be able to properly perform CPR. The skills learned in a CPR class may need to be used on a friend or family member, and watching an online video with no hands-on practice means performing inadequate CPR. In-person CPR training from Healthline First Aid meets AHA and state certification requirements and provides a hands-on approach. Proper CPR will give patients, friends, or a family member the best chance of survival.

Schedule in-person CPR and First Aid training in Wisconsin with professional instructors from Healthline First Aid.