How To Become a BLS Instructor

Being an American Heart Association (AHA) CPR instructor allows great flexibility and independence for individuals looking to create their own income. Additionally, for many corporations it makes good financial sense to have an in house CPR instructor that can certify their staff in CPR and First Aid when needed.

In the American Heart Association (AHA) instructor course you will learn how to teach individuals in all fields how to perform either basic life support (BLS) or Heartsaver CPR & First Aid.

Are you looking to teach Basic Life Support CPR in your community or for your workplace? We will break down the steps to becoming a BLS instructor.

What is a BLS Instructor?

Basic Life Support (BLS) instructors are certified to teach adult and child CPR, AED, and First Aid classes. To be successful in this role you will need to be proficient in BLS skills and comfortable teaching in front of large groups. BLS instructors also need good organizational skills to properly facilitate classes and keep track of the required paperwork to properly issue certifications to their students.

How do I become a BLS Instructor?

The first step on your journey to become a Basic Life Support Instructor is to earn your BLS certification. You will be expected to be competent in performing CPR on all ages by yourself as well as with a team. You should know how to use an AED on adults, children, and infants.

BLS Class

Next, you will need to purchase all the necessary equipment for the instructor class to be performed virtually. You will need to purchase adult and infant CPR manikins with feedback monitors, an adult bag mask, an infant bag mask, CPR training valve, and an AED trainer.

Please note that all instructor courses, while they can be taught virtually, should be in a live, face to face format. Prerecorded classes are not a legitimate way of performing a BLS instructor course.

How much does it cost to become a BLS Instructor?

We recommend taking some time to budget for the expenses of becoming a BLS instructor. Doing so will give you time to plan classes and recoup your investment as quick as possible.

The costs you should expect to become a Basic Life Support Instructor are:

• AHA Initial BLS Provider Course: $80 (varies by location)
• AHA Initial Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED Course: $100
• AHA Instructor Essentials online course: $38
• AHA Instructor hands-on/classroom course: $600 (varies by location)
• Cost of E-card can range from $10.50 to $25.00
• Monitoring: $0 (Some Training Centers may charge outside the classroom course cost)
• Liability insurance range : Lockton Affinity $100-$200

The cost of this training varies for many reasons. All AHA instructors independently set their own prices. Apart from training material purchased from the AHA, no other income should be misconstrued as income to the AHA. Regardless of what you pay for a class in your area, keep in mind there aren’t many programs you can complete in a day that can earn you an average salary of $50k per year.

What kind of BLS Instructor Certifications are there?

We recommend becoming an AHA BLS instructor. However, the American Red Cross and the Health Safety Institute are also reputable certification brands for BLS. However, across the U.S., the AHA is the most recognized certification. However, you’re not limited to picking one brand of BLS training. There are courses that bridge AHA instructors to become ARC and HSI instructors. If you wish to go that route, we recommend starting as an AHA BLS instructor because the AHA does not allow bridging from other brands to their brand as an instructor.