AHA BLS Certification for Healthcare Providers

Who the AHA BLS Provider course is for

The American Heart Association BLS Provider course is designed for healthcare professionals who need BLS certification for work: dentists and dental hygienists, nurses, physicians, medical assistants, physical therapists, urgent care staff, hospital and network teams, and other clinicians who may need to respond to cardiac arrest in or out of hospital.

If your employer or licensing board requires an AHA BLS Provider course completion card, this is the course built for that requirement. Always confirm with your employer or board which card they accept—AHA cards are accepted in all U.S. states, but each workplace sets its own rules.

What BLS covers

BLS focuses on high-quality CPR and team dynamics for single-rescuer and team Basic Life Support in in-hospital and out-of-hospital settings. Course skills include:

• Adult, child, and infant CPR
• AED use
• Bag-mask ventilation
• Relief of choking
• Team dynamics for multi-rescuer resuscitation

Illinois CPR Certification teaches the current AHA BLS Provider curriculum with hands-on practice—not a lecture-only or online-only shortcut.

Hands-on skills with feedback manikins

Since January 31, 2019, the AHA has required instrumented directive feedback devices or manikins that give real-time rate and depth feedback in all courses that teach adult CPR. Your team practices compressions with that live feedback so skills match current AHA guidelines and course requirements.

Online-only BLS does not meet AHA hands-on requirements and does not produce an AHA BLS Provider course completion card. If you need a card employers recognize, plan on a skills session with an AHA Instructor.

Format

Instructor-led classroom at your site (mobile / onsite)

Initial course length

About 4.5 hours with breaks (AHA estimate at a 1:6:2 instructor:student:manikin ratio)

Renewal course length

About 4 hours (AHA estimate at the same ratio)

Card type

AHA BLS Provider course completion eCard

Validity

Two years, through the end of the month issued

Ages covered in skills

Adult, child, and infant

Classroom and blended options

Most groups book a full instructor-led BLS Provider course on site. Some Training Centers also support HeartCode BLS (online cognitive portion) plus an in-person skills session.

[TODO: confirm Jason offers HeartCode BLS skills sessions]

eCard delivery and verification

After you successfully complete the skills and written requirements, course completion cards are issued through the AHA Training Center your instructor is aligned with. Training Centers must issue cards within 20 business days of successful completion; in practice, eCards often arrive sooner.

Course completion cards are issued through [TODO: AHA Training Center name, City, IL].

You can verify AHA eCards at heart.org/cpr/mycards.

Renewal every two years

Plan to renew BLS certification before your eCard expires. We schedule renewals for full teams so dental office BLS and clinic staff stay current together—often before or after clinic hours so you protect production time.

What to bring

• A government-issued photo ID
• Comfortable clothes you can kneel and practice compressions in
• Any employer paperwork your credentialing team needs signed
• Your previous AHA BLS card if you are renewing (helpful, not always required)

Group size and pricing

[TODO: minimum and maximum group size per class]

Pricing depends on group size, location, and whether you need initial or renewal courses. We do not publish rates here—request a quote for onsite BLS training and we will follow up with options for your team.

Classroom flow for a typical onsite BLS day

A typical mobile AHA BLS session starts with check-in and a short overview of high-quality CPR science, then moves quickly into skills practice. Teams rotate through adult CPR with feedback manikins, AED scenarios, bag-mask ventilation, child and infant skills, and choking relief. Multi-rescuer drills emphasize clear roles and closed-loop communication—the team dynamics piece employers care about during real codes.

Written testing follows AHA course rules for the BLS Provider curriculum. Instructors coach participants who need remediation within the session whenever possible so your whole group can stay on track for cards. When someone needs more practice time, we document next steps rather than rushing a skill that is not yet solid.

Dental office BLS and clinic credentialing

Dental office BLS renewals are one of the most common requests we receive. Hygienists, assistants, and dentists often share the same two-year cycle, and credentialing teams want an AHA BLS Provider course completion eCard they can verify. Medical clinics, physical therapy practices, and urgent care centers use the same course for clinical staff who may need to respond before EMS arrives.

Because Illinois CPR Certification specializes in onsite BLS training, we plan around operatory schedules and patient hours. Split groups, early starts, and after-hours sessions are normal requests—mention them when you request a quote so we can size the room and manikin count correctly.

What “follows current AHA guidelines” means here

We teach the American Heart Association BLS Provider course using current AHA instructional materials and skills testing criteria. That is different from marketing phrases like “AHA-certified professionals” or “AHA-compliant courses,” which the AHA warns against. Your takeaway after successful completion is an AHA BLS Provider course completion eCard—not a generic certificate invented by a website.

If your organization also needs training for non-clinical staff, contact us about the right AHA course for your team. Do not assume Heartsaver is automatically available until that offering is confirmed on this site.

Why teams book Illinois CPR Certification

• Mobile first. AHA BLS at your office—no weekend classroom travel.
• Healthcare-focused. Built around dental, clinic, PT, urgent care, and hospital schedules.
• Current AHA requirements. Feedback manikins and instructor-led skills, not online-only claims.
• Clear next steps. Quote, schedule, train, then eCards through the aligned Training Center.

Ready to schedule? Request a quote for AHA BLS or call (847) 321-7610. See also how onsite group training works and frequently asked questions.