Rio Salado Offers CPR Class Online

By David Staudacher, Rio Salado College PR Manager

“I want everyone in the world to take this class,” said Angela Ambrosia, a faculty chair member at Tempe-based Rio Salado College.

It’s safe to say every teacher will say their class is the most important and that everyone should enroll in it. But not every teacher can say their class has the potential to save lives. Ambrosia’s cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) class has the potential to save lives and that is why she wants more people to enroll in her class.

“If I can teach somebody so that they will feel comfortable and not panic when this occurs, it will be great,” said Ambrosia. “I think we can improve the survival rate for cardiac arrest patients.”

In the Rio Salado class, students will learn to identify signs and symptoms of cardiac arrest with emphasis on early action. They will learn how to manage a conscious and unconscious airway obstruction and the proper technique for performing one and two rescuer CPR on the adult, infant and pediatric victim. Additionally, the students learn to deliver effective oxygenation and ventilation using a bag- valve-mask device and how to perform automatic, external defibrillation as part of the resuscitation of the adult in cardiac arrest.

“Students will learn current American Heart Association standards for one and two rescuer CPR and obstructed airway procedures on the adult, infant, and pediatric victim,” said Ambrosia. “The students will also learn to use automatic, external defibrillation and resuscitation equipment.”

According to the American Heart Association, the use of CPR dates back to 1740. Unfortunately, most Americans don’t know how to perform it today.

Rio Salado College launched the classes in January and saw more than 100 students take the online class and pass the in-person exam. Among the students who passed the exam is Tempe resident Jennifer Phoebe, who is a mother of three young children.

“I’m taking classes to get my degree in nursing and because I have children,” said Phoebe. “I thought CPR is something I should know. It’s long overdue.”

With family and work already keeping her busy, Phoebe found it difficult to attend classes in a traditional setting. So she chose online classes where she could attend class when it fit into her schedule.

“I have time constraints with kids and it made it a lot easier to take the classes online,” said Phoebe. “People think it’s going to be easy because it’s online, but you really have to learn the material. It was a great format for me and it was easy to understand. There was a lot of material and I learned a tremendous amount.”

After taking the classes online, Phoebe was relieved to practice what she learned during an in-person test under Ambrosia’s supervision at the college’s main location in Tempe.

“I felt a lot better coming in and doing it on a mannequin,” said Phoebe. “It reinforced everything I learned online.

To learn more about Rio Salado College, please visit http://www.riosalado.edu or call 480.517.8000.