FAQs

1. Why should my school, business or place of work be certified in CPR?

More than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of the hospital each year.  CPR, if administered immediately after cardiac arrest, can double or triple a person's chance of survival.  We recommend that everyone be certified in our CPR/AED course.  We’ve found that if your profession doesn’t require a CPR certification, it’s most likely still recommended.  Are you a business?  If your building has an AED, does everyone know how to use it?  In order to use an AED, you must be able to perform high-quality CPR.  Are you a school?  High school students are required to perform CPR and operate an AED to graduate.  It’s recommended that all teachers in the state of Pennsylvania be certified in CPR.  Are you a place of worship?  Consider training your staff and regular volunteers in case of an emergency.  We want to equip as many people as possible to be able to perform high-quality CPR in an emergency situation!

2. What’s the difference between Live, Blended & RSV Courses?

All three course types cover the exact same material, just done in different ways.  The majority of our courses are live courses, which are 100% in-person from beginning to end.  Blended courses are like hybrid courses.  The majority of the course, the learning portion, is done online at your own pace.  After that is complete, we schedule a time to do the skills portion of the course live and in-person.  RSV courses are 100% virtual.  The online learning portion is done just like a Blended course, but the skills portion is virtual.      

3. Why do the CPR RSV Courses cost more?

All three course types require students to perform CPR on a mannequin.  The additional cost of RSV courses is the cost of getting a mannequin to the home or business for each student.  There are different options available, including purchasing a loaner mannequin or one that you keep.  If you have access to a mannequin, then the RSV course is the same cost as a live or blended course!

4. When signing up for a CPR course, should I select the Adult only course, Adult + Child only course, or Adult, Child & Infant course?

If your profession requires you to be CPR-certified, they most likely require the adult, child & infant course.  The child and infant portions require you to perform child & infant CPR.  All three course types cost the same amount of money, but the child & infant courses just take a little more time.  We recommend getting certified with the course that most closely resembles who you will be around in your business or place of work.  

5. Where are your live and blended courses held?

For most schools and businesses, we travel to you and have courses at your location.  We also offer courses for individuals and small groups at the Richard G. Snyder YMCA in Kittanning, PA every month. 

6. Do you offer any kind of discounts or group rates?

We can offer discounts to large, recurring groups (typically groups of 25 people or more).  We’re also glad to help non-profits and active military/veterans with special rates.  Reach out to info@echosafety.org for more details! 

7. Are there any differences between digital cards and print cards?

Nope, they are exactly the same, just in two different forms!

8. How long does it take to receive my certification card?

Print cards are issued at the actual course before you leave.  Digital cards are issued within 24 hours, most of the time immediately following the completion of the course.

9. Will I be able to keep a copy of the course material?

If you choose the digital card option, a digital book is included at no charge.  If you choose the print card option, a digital or print book is available for a small fee.  

10. What are your typical class sizes?

It depends on the specific class, but most of our courses have up to 24 people in one session.  For larger groups that need a certification at the same time, we are able to provide courses over multiple days for more flexibility or hold a large auditorium-style class with a group of instructors and break out sessions for skills.      

11.  What is the student-to-teacher ratio?

The student-to-teacher ratios are listed under the ‘courses’ tab for each course we offer.  For example, In our CPR/AED course, we keep a 12:1 student to teacher ratio.  So if you had a group of 13-24 participants, we would always provide two highly-trained instructors.

12.  Can I reschedule a class even if I have already registered and paid?

For sure, life happens!  Email info@echosafety.org and we can help with that.

13.  If I need a certification card immediately and cannot wait until the next open course date, can you certify me?

We can try!  Email info@echosafety.org or call us at 724.204.1822.  If we have an instructor available, we would most likely recommend the blended course option.    

14.  What organization(s) are your courses accredited through?

All our courses are facilitated through the Health & Safety Institute.  More information can be found here: https://emergencycare.hsi.com/

15.  Will you reference the CPR scene from ‘The Office’ at any point during your CPR course?

Absolutely we will.