Courses

ARC ALS Courses

The adult advanced life support courses are standardised national courses teaching evidence-based resuscitation guidelines and skills to healthcare professionals. The Australian Resuscitation Council and the RC(UK) have collaborated to co-badge their courses. As all co-badged courses in Australia are regulated by the ARC, the course credentials are cross-recognised by the RC(UK), New Zealand Resuscitation Council (NZRC) and the European Resuscitation Council (ERC). ALS certificates provided by the NZRC, RC(UK) or ERC are recognised by the ARC. The RC(UK) and ERC use the same evidence based teaching material, program and assessment processes.

ARC adult advanced life support courses are held in every state and territory of Australia by centres that are approved and certified by the Australian Resuscitation Council. Course manuals, teaching and administrative materials are made available to approved centres by the ARC to ensure a consistently high quality approach to the course and that it conforms to the ARC resuscitation guidelines. This all ensures a uniformity of content and standard regardless of the location or organisation delivering the course. The courses include core lectures and interactive workshops. Face-to-face teaching is mainly delivered in small groups with hands-on practical skill stations and clinically based simulations.

The ARC credentials all its instructors delivering the advanced life support programs. ARC Instructors follow a prescribed development pathway to ensure the maintenance of high standards. All Instructors on the ARC Courses have undergone training and development in order to be registered by the ARC as an Instructor as set down in the course regulations.
Candidates on the courses are derived from the medical, nursing, paramedical and allied healthcare professions to teach best available evidence based approach. ARC Courses provide the opportunity for inter-professional education to promote the knowledge, skills, attributes and attitudes in order to work together in an effective collaborative fashion.

Continuous assessment of candidates occurs throughout the advanced life support courses, including using clinical simulations that allow candidates to demonstrate the core competencies that have been taught on the course. These include airway management, initial assessment and resuscitation and cardiac arrest scenarios.

Certification for the courses is valid for up to 4 years. Recertification courses are available for both the ALS1 and ALS2 courses at ARC Course Centres. The recertification face-to-face component of each course is approximately half the length of the initial course.

It is not essential to complete the ALS1 prior to the ALS2. However the ALS2 does have a higher level of expected knowledge and recent clinical exposure to critical/crisis events at the commencement of the course. Both advanced life support courses are widely accepted by government and private hospitals, healthcare organisations, Australian Defence Force, rural and remote health including the resource industry.

Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

The ALS course is recognised for continuing professional development by many colleges and organisations. As the systems vary between professional colleges, state and individual organisations, candidates should check with their respective professional bodies for the latest requirements.
Colleges that currently recognise the advanced life support courses include: