By: Ryan Duey
On the second Saturday of each month, Clay County EMS hosts CPR and Basic Life Services classes for the public. This Saturday, March 8th, they will hold a BLS Level 2 CPR class at 9:00 a.m. Attendees who complete this class will leave with a BLS certification in CPR, which is required by many healthcare and public safety organizations.
Alec Trembath, EMS Director, said the overall goal is for at least 80% of the County to become CPR aware. He spoke of the different classes EMS offers to the public.
“We have a couple of different level classes that people can take. There’s the Heart Saver class, which is our entry-level class. It’s more for people who just want to know how to do CPR and use AEDs. We also touch on first aid and hemorrhage control and stuff like that in there, too.”
“The next level is the BLS class or Basic Life Support. That class is geared more for nurses or other first responders, like firefighters or police, but anybody can take it. We also do ACLS classes, and those are a little bit more in-depth and geared more toward medical providers.”
Saturday’s class will run between three to four hours. There is a fee of $100, which covers all class materials and training, along with the certification. Trembath said anyone who goes through the newly formed First Responder Experience Academy (FREA) will become BLS certified at no cost.
“We also have a First Responder Experience Academy coming up. We have applications for it at the Department. This class is just to get people familiar with the first responders of Clay County and Clay Center.”
“So, they’ll spend some time with EMS, some time with the police, and then some time with fire also. On the EMS side of it, if you take it, you will come out with a free BLS CPR certification.”
Trembath said that for those who may be too busy for an all-morning class, the American Heart Association does offer hybrid classes also. Part of the classes are done online, with testing and certification taking place at the EMS Department. To sign up for this weekend’s class, or to learn more about the FREA program, contact EMS.
