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What is Pediatric Advanced Life Support?

The PALS (Pediatric Advanced Life Support) Course is designed to improve the quality of care provided to seriously ill or injured children, resulting in improved outcomes. The course trains healthcare providers how to initiate and direct advanced life support procedures that go beyond “basic life support.” Included are covered all phases of stabilization and transport associated with a pediatric emergency in both a field or hospital environment. Students completing this course gain an enhanced ability to evaluate and manage an infant or child with respiratory compromise, circulatory compromise, or cardiac arrest.

The PALS course includes participation in a series of simulated core cases that reinforce important concepts, including:

  • Identification and treatment of medical conditions that place the child at risk for cardiac arrest
  • The systematic approach to pediatric assessment, including general assessment, primary assessment, secondary assessment, and tertiary assessment
  • The “assess-categorize-decide-act” approach to assessment and management of a seriously ill infant or child
  • Effective resuscitation team dynamics

Primary Audience

The PALS Course is for healthcare providers who respond to emergencies in infants and children. These include personnel in emergency response, emergency medicine, intensive care and critical care units such as physicians, nurses, paramedics and others who need a PALS course completion card for job or other requirements.

Course Content

  • 1- and 2-rescuer child CPR and AED use
  • 1- and 2-rescuer infant CPR
  • Cardiac, respiratory and shock case discussions and simulations
  • Key changes in pediatric advanced life support, reflecting the new science from the 2010 American Heart Association Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care
  • Management of respiratory emergencies
  • Resuscitation team concept
  • Rhythm disturbances and electrical therapy
  • Systematic Approach to Pediatric Assessment
    Vascular access