The American Heart Association (AHA) trains thousands of medical professionals and community members each year in life-saving skills like Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS), and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS). Becoming an AHA Instructor allows individuals to teach these standardized courses and issue official certification cards to students. This role involves disseminating current resuscitation science and ensuring high-quality instruction for those learning to respond to cardiovascular emergencies. The path to instructor certification is a structured, multi-step process that ensures all instructors meet the organization’s educational and administrative standards.
Understanding the Instructor Role and Prerequisites
The initial step toward becoming an AHA Instructor requires candidates to possess a high level of proficiency and current certification in the discipline they intend to teach. An applicant must hold a current, unexpired AHA Provider course completion card for the specific field, such as BLS, ACLS, or Heartsaver. This certification must be obtained before enrolling in the instructor training program. This prerequisite ensures the candidate is fluent in the core science and skills they will be responsible for teaching others.
Candidates must demonstrate exemplary practical skills in their chosen discipline, as they will be evaluated on their ability to perform all required maneuvers correctly and confidently. Beyond clinical competence, the role demands a significant time commitment and an aptitude for administrative duties. These duties include course preparation, student coaching, accurate record keeping, and adhering to all AHA policy updates.
The Official AHA Instructor Training Process
The formal training process is a blended-learning format consisting of two mandatory components: an online module and an in-person, hands-on session. The first step is successfully completing the discipline-specific AHA Instructor Essentials Online Course. This self-directed online portion introduces the core competencies of an instructor, including the AHA’s instruction cycle. It also educates the candidate on how to use the standardized teaching materials.
Once the online module is finished, the candidate receives a completion certificate necessary to attend the second, hands-on portion of the course. This classroom session is conducted by a Training Center Faculty (TCF) member and focuses on in-depth material and practical teaching strategies. The TCF guides candidates in skills practice, objective performance evaluation, and utilizing teaching techniques to ensure students meet learning objectives.
Affiliating with an AHA Training Center
Affiliation with an American Heart Association Training Center (TC) is a mandatory administrative requirement, as instructors cannot teach or issue cards independently. The TC acts as the local managing organization, providing quality control, administrative support, and oversight to all aligned instructors. This relationship is established early, as many TCs require candidates to be accepted and have an Instructor Candidate Application on file before they enroll in the Instructor Essentials Course.
Finding a TC involves utilizing the AHA’s online tools to locate centers in the desired geographic area and then reaching out to inquire about their application process. TCs often have a formal application or interview process to ensure the candidate’s goals and practices align with the center’s policies and administrative needs.
Upon acceptance, the TC becomes the primary resource for the instructor. The TC provides consistent communication on new AHA guidelines and training resources.
Instructor Monitoring and Final Certification
After successfully completing the blended Instructor Essentials Course, the candidate enters the final phase: the monitoring process. The instructor candidate must be successfully monitored by a Training Center Faculty (TCF) member while teaching their first course to real students. This monitoring session is a practical assessment designed to ensure the candidate is prepared to teach independently while maintaining all AHA standards.
The AHA mandates that this monitoring must be completed within six months of finishing the hands-on instructor course. Failure to meet this deadline requires the candidate to repeat the classroom portion of the instructor course. Once the TCF confirms the candidate’s instructional competence and adherence to course materials, the successful monitoring is documented, and the official AHA Instructor eCard is issued.
Maintaining Certification and Ongoing Responsibilities
Maintaining active AHA Instructor status is subject to a two-year renewal cycle, which requires continuous engagement and adherence to administrative duties. To qualify for renewal, instructors must teach a minimum of four complete AHA courses, such as BLS or ACLS, during the two-year period. This requirement ensures instructors remain proficient in their teaching skills and familiar with current course content.
Administrative responsibilities include timely course reporting, submitting class rosters to the affiliated Training Center, and issuing student eCards. Instructors must also stay current with all updates from the AHA, which often involves reviewing new guidelines and attending update courses as mandated by the Training Center.
The renewal process typically involves a re-monitoring session by a TCF member. During this session, the instructor’s skills and instructional competence are re-evaluated to maintain their certification status.