Neonatal Nurse Week Special
Neonatal Nurse Week Special
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Unfortunately, there has been a huge increase in fraudulent CPR courses over the past few years in Texas. The American Heart Association has been working diligently to try to find them and shut them down, but you can also do your part to help out. If you find a suspicious course, report it to the American Heart Association.
Over the past few years, there has been a rash of fraudulent American Heart Association training courses throughout Texas & the United States. Here is a guide that will assist you.
If you have taken a fraudulent course or if you think a course you are about to take is fraudulent, it is your personal responsibility as a good citizen to report it to the American Heart Association.
Some clues that you may be dealing with a fraudulent CPR company:
The American Heart Association does not certify training courses created by other organizations. Any claims that training products or materials are “AHA Certified,” “AHA Approved,” “AHA Compliant” or “created by AHA certified” people, where the “AHA” means the American Heart Association, are not true and are usually fake websites with fake certifications. All cards must be issued by an authorized training center of the American Heart Association.
All online courses must be taken via the American Heart Association, & skills testing must be done with a certified instructor or VAM (voice assisted manikin)
The American Heart Association regularly revokes the alignment of training sites that do not follow the official guidelines. You can view this list by logging in to The American Heart Association and viewing the list of training sites that should not be aligned. If you find out that any one of these companies is teaching American Heart Association courses, please alert the AHA immediately.
If you are wondering how a company can teach multiple classes at the same time, it is not possible. Some companies, list BLS, ACLS, and PALS courses all starting at the exact same time. It is not possible to teach 3 different courses simultaneously, since they all have different videos.
Beware of CPR training companies that only accept, Venmo, cash, or PayPal. Some of these companies do this to avoid paying taxes and can open and close their businesses quickly.
Also, if you pay for your CPR certification course in cash, you have no recourse if you are scammed. Be sure to pay by credit card so that you can dispute the charges, in case you are scammed and never receive your certification card.
Acceptable Courses Over Zoom
Take the official BLS Online Heartcode or Heartsaver Online CPR and First-aid course. Then skills test with an American Heart Association Instructor over Zoom in an office with CPR manikins.
Not Acceptable Courses Over Zoom
An instructor conducts a Zoom meeting with you and you do NOT have the proper CPR manikins and AED in front of you. ACLS or PALS skills testing over Zoom is strictly forbidden!
Written Test Only
Many CPR companies send their students an online test from eLearning.heart.org. If you take the written test and then the fraudulent company emails you an American Heart Association certification card, you have been scammed. Beware, this is not a valid American Heart Association course. You must practice on CPR manikins to be considered a valid course.
Book Policy
If you are taking an instructor-led course, according to the American Heart Association rules, you must have the book or ebook before, during, and after the class.
If they loan a book to you, rent a book to you, or do not ask you to buy a book, you are taking a fraudulent course.
The instructor to student ratio is very important, so that the instructor can properly monitor the students during the training. If you are taking a course and there is one instructor and more than 9 students, you should alert the American Heart Association.
Beware of taking a class inside of someone’s home or apartment. When you take a class inside of someone’s home, there are a lot of issues that come up such as:
Many CPR companies in Texas teach shortened courses in order to save money. It does not matter if the class size is small or individual training one on one. In many cases, CPR companies list the start time of their course, but not the end time of their course. If the length of your course does not follow these guidelines, the course you are about to take or have taken is fraudulent.
For in-person, non-RQI instruction and certification: BLS Must be: 3-4 hours, ACLS Must be 4-6 hours, PALS: Must be 4-6 hours
The American Heart Association regularly revokes the teaching licenses of CPR instructors who do not follow guidelines. Be careful who you choose. It is possible that if you take a CPR course through a revoked instructor, your certification card would also be revoked. If you want to see the list of revoked instructors, log on to the AHA website and view the list of instructors whose instructor certification cards have been revoked.
It is possible, if you take a non-compliant course, your card could be revoked. Since it is an eCard, your employer or school could be notified that you attended a non compliant course. At this point, you reputation would be harmed since they would know you took a non-compliant course. If you offer publicly held courses at your facility or school, it is possible that the previous three months of cards issued by that instructor would be revoked. Can you imagine all of the refunds you would have to issue and the damage to your reputation? If CE Credits were issued, for example from a dental board, it would add another layer of compliance problems.
For licensees regulated by the state Board of Registered Nursing and the Dental Board, the issuance of Continuing Education (CE) credits must comply with all applicable board requirements and standards. If CE credits are granted for a course that is non-compliant with American Heart Association (AHA) or board-mandated guidelines, it may result in significant regulatory and professional consequences.
Such consequences may include, but are not limited to:
To maintain compliance, all CE activities must adhere strictly to the regulations of the BRN and DBC, as well as the standards set forth by the American Heart Association.
Nurses, dentists, and many other healthcare professionals are held to strict codes of ethics. Completing a CPR course that does not meet proper American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines may result in serious consequences, including the need to retake the course or even facing disciplinary action. Additionally, many schools, hospitals, and medical facilities do not recognize certification cards issued by fraudulent or non-compliant training providers.
For administrators, it is essential to ensure staff receive training through a reputable AHA Training Center. Failing to do so could not only jeopardize compliance but also risk your organization being linked to negative publicity or investigations, as seen in recent cases.
Here are a few stories of CPR scams and fraudulent courses in the news.
If you believe you have participated in an American Heart Association ("AHA") training course that did not comply with official AHA standards and guidelines, it is your responsibility to submit a formal report. Prompt reporting helps ensure that others are not subjected to inadequate or improper instruction.
The acquisition of CPR skills is a critical, life-saving competency that must be taught with the highest degree of accuracy and integrity. Practices such as issuing course completion cards without adequate hands-on practice or no practice on manikins, condensing or omitting required instruction, or otherwise failing to adhere to established AHA protocols may directly endanger public safety and, in the most serious circumstances, result in preventable fatalities.
If you have reason to believe that an AHA BLS, ACLS, or PALS course has been conducted in violation of AHA guidelines, you are encouraged to complete the online reporting form. Reports may be submitted anonymously. The American Heart Association reviews all reports of non-compliance with diligence and seriousness. Upon investigation, the AHA may require corrective action, impose sanctions, or, when warranted, revoke an instructor’s certification and teaching privileges.
Reports may include, but are not limited to, concerns regarding:
