Why Take A CPR or First Aid Class Online? I've Already Been Trained!
If you've been through CPR or First Aid Training before, you know the basics. You know how to assess the victim, check the ABCs or 3Bs, and aware of the danger of shock how to avoid it. Maybe you've had to use your training, maybe not. You've probably used it when handling relatively minor things, like cuts, scrapes, or minor burns. Chances are, you haven't done CPR on anyone recently.
The certificate you were given when you finished your training (if you got an online CPR certification at all) is usually only valid for up to two years. Most programs recommend you take the course again to re-certify a year later. This is wise, considering information we don't use is more easily lost - and inaccessible to us when we need it. Also, information changes over time, as medical research determines that a different method of treatment is best. For example, butter used to be advised to put on burns, to "soothe" the wound. Now, it has been determined that this actually prolongs the burning, making it worse, and that for most burns, using cold water is a much better choice until the burning has stopped and the healing can start. Another example is that a tourniquet was advised in much more mild of situations, where now the tourniquet is only advised in situations where otherwise the person would lose their life, and the lose of a limb is "less bad".
Taking An Online CPR Or First Aid Refresher Course
The advantages of an online CPR and/or First Aid refresher course are many. First, an online course is much easier to fit into your life. It doesn't require taking time out of your busy day to attend an on-site course, working with people you don't know, and trying to impress others with your knowledge. It doesn't require paying big bucks to remember stuff you already know, and to take the test to "prove it" to them, just to get a new certificate or to know that you are educated in what do to when someone needs first aid.
Another benefit of taking a CPR or first aid online course is that, because of the lower overhead for these businesses, there is usually little or no cost to the course. Many online CPR or First Aid courses are free - they just want the information available to everyone. Of course, if you want to get a certificate you can display to others (either in wall size or wallet size) you will need to pay a small fee, usually under $40. Then either wait a few days for a nice certificate to arrive or have it emailed to you to print out from your own computer and be able to use it immediately.
Most courses online for CPR or first aid have some reading involved, some basic information to re-absorb or refresh yourself on. But it takes nowhere near the hours many in person courses take. Only the most important information is given, and thus more easily retained.
