ALS has been developed using our evidence-based Guidelines and decades of experience in delivering effective resuscitation courses for healthcare professionals. The ALS course aims to help candidates build the confidence needed to take the lead in an emergency.
During the course, you will develop the knowledge and skills required to:
• Recognise and manage the deteriorating patient using a structured ABCDE approach;
• Deliver standardised CPR in adults;
• Manage a cardiac arrest by working with a multidisciplinary team in an emergency situation;
• Become an effective and confident team member and leader by utilizing non-technical skills.
Who is the course for?
ALS recertification courses can only be taken by healthcare professionals who hold a valid Resuscitation Council UK ALS provider certificate, or whose certificate has expired within twelve months of their certificate expiry date. If more than a year has passed since the original certificate expired, the candidate must take a full ALS, e-ALS or modular ALS course.
The Resuscitation Council UK (RCUK) Advanced Life Support (ALS) course is relevant to healthcare professionals, including foundation and specialist trainees, nursing staff and allied health professionals.
This curriculum map has been produced by the RCUK to illustrate the potential key capabilities that may be achieved when undertaking or instructing on an ALS course.
indicates a capability highly likely to be achieved and ( ) indicates a capability that might be achieved by attending or instructing on the relevant RCUK course. Any capability achieved during a RCUK course will need to be accompanied by appropriate supporting evidence, and this responsibility lies with the individual.
This list is not exhaustive and other capabilities may be achieved based upon individual experiences.
Please click on the relevant curriculum or training programme to download how the RCUK ALS course may support the acquisition of key capabilities within specialist learning objectives for career or training progression.
Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RECM) 2021 Curriculum
Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA) 2021 Curriculum
The Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine (FICM) 2021 Curriculum
Nursing and Midwifery Council
This is a one day course that will take place in a Resuscitation Council UK Course Centre.
All of our Course Centres are approved and certified by Resuscitation Council UK. Courses are run by dedicated and qualified Instructors, who have taken an RCUK Instructor course to guarantee that our courses are uniform and the content remains the same across our Course Centres.
Pre course preparation:
Before your course, you will be registered on our Learning Management System (LMS). Here, you can access course modules and a pre-course multiple choice question (MCQ) paper.
You will receive your course manual one month before the course. Candidates are expected to read the manual in preparation for the course and submit a completed pre-course MCQ paper before the course begins.
Programme:
Over the course of the day, you will take part in lectures, workshops, skill stations and cardiac arrest simulations.
Assessment and certification:
During the course, Candidates will be continuously assessed based on their performance in clinical simulations. You will be expected to show competency in the core skills of the course, including airway management, high quality CPR and defibrillation, and cardiac arrest management.
At the end of the course, theoretical knowledge will be formally tested with an MCQ paper and practical components in a cardiac arrest simulation.
Candidates who successfully complete the course will be awarded with a Resuscitation Council UK ALS provider certificate, which is valid for four years and recognised in healthcare settings in the UK, Europe and Australia.
This course is recognised as continuing professional development (CPD) by the Medical, Dental and Nursing Royal Colleges and Health Care Professional Council. Please contact your registering body for further information.
The first step is to find a Course Centre near you. Below, you’ll find an area where you can search for local courses and find out how to get in touch with the organiser.
Course fees are decided locally by the Course Centre; Resuscitation Council UK only charges the Course Centre £29.90 per Candidate registration and £33.35 per ALS manual.
Courses often book quickly, so we would advise planning your attendance well in advance of when you want to train.
If you are a healthcare professional who would be expected to apply the skills taught as part of your clinical duties, or to teach them on a regular basis, you are eligible to participate on the ALS course. Appropriate applicants include doctors, nurses working in critical care areas (e.g. ED, CCU, ICU, HDU, operating theatres, acute medical admissions units), paramedics, ICU outreach teams or in the resuscitation/medical emergency team.
All applicants must hold a current clinical appointment and professional healthcare qualification or be in training for a professional healthcare qualification.
Medical students, student nurses and other healthcare providers not covered in the groups above should be encouraged to complete the Immediate Life Support (ILS) course. Those with a particular interest in resuscitation should then consider attending an ALS provider course, where appropriate. Medical students in their final year of training can be accepted as candidates on an ALS course if this is an established local arrangement.
ALS qualification:
You can recertify by attending one of the following courses:
- two-day ALS course
- e-ALS
- ALS modular course
- one-day ALS recertification course.
You are unable to undertake the one-day ‘ALS recertification’ course if more than one year has passed since your last course certificate expiry date. The ‘ALS recertification’ course is not recommended if you are not practicing the skills within your current job role.
ARNI qualification:
You may recertify by attending the ARNI Provider course.
EPALS qualification:
You may recertify by attending:
- a full EPALS course
- day two of an EPALS course, (please note, your current EPALS certificate must still be in date to recertify on day two of the course)
You may only recertify on day two of the course if your current EPALS certificate is still be in date. If your certificate is not in date, you will need to attend the one-day course.
NLS qualification:
You may recertify by attending the NLS Provider course.
ILS qualification:
You may recertify by attending the:
- one-day ILS course
- half-day ILS recertification course
You may only attend the half-day recertification course if it is within one year of the expiry date of your most recent ILS certificate. If more than two years have passed since the date of your last ILS certificate, you will need to attend the one-day course.
PILS qualification:
You may recertify by attending the:
- one-day PILS course
- half-day PILS recertification course.
You may only attend the half-day recertification course if it is within one year of the expiry date of your most recent PILS certificate. If more than two years have passed since the date of your last PILS certificate, you will need to attend the one-day course.
ALS, ARNI, EPALS, NLS, ILS, PILS qualifications:
You have one year from the expiry date of your course certificate, which you can recertify your qualification.
For more FAQs visit our online support system
Course Availability
You can book one of the many courses in the UK shown in the list below by contacting the Course Centre organiser. The cost for a Candidate place will vary based on the Course Centre.
| Course centre town | Course centre | Start date | Organiser | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sheffield | Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust | Wednesday 15 Jan. '25 |
Danielle Catherall sth.resusservicesadmin@nhs.net |
Candidates: places available |
| London | Academy of Life Support | Sunday 19 Jan. '25 |
Gemma Hooper 07908200306 gemma@academyoflifesupport.com |
Candidates: places available |
| Rotherham | Rotherham District General Hospital | Friday 24 Jan. '25 |
Mehwish Alam 01709424748 mehwish.alam1@nhs.net |
Candidates: places available |
| Aylesbury | NES Healthcare UK | Tuesday 28 Jan. '25 |
NES Healthcare training@neshealthcare.co.uk |
Candidates: places available |
| London | North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust | Saturday 1 Feb. '25 |
Jackie Ward 02088872230 northmid.resuscitation@nhs.net |
Candidates: places available |