Recognition by healthcare professionals

First Aid & CPR Tennessee

In health care, keeping your skills current is central to protecting patients. For nurses in Tennessee, that means meeting the Board's continuing-competence rule at each renewal; for nursing assistants, it means holding a valid CPR certificate as a condition of training and of the job. Here is what the rules expect for your role — and how recognized, up-to-date, documented training meets it.

Health professionals: continuing education and up-to-date skills

Registered and licensed practical nurses in Tennessee renew their licence through the Tennessee Board of Nursing, whose continuing-competence rule keeps clinical knowledge and skills current by having nurses complete activities relevant to their practice. You choose the activities that fit your role from an approved list.

Under the Tennessee Nurse Practice Act, a nurse is accountable for maintaining competence and for responding appropriately in a clinical emergency. Being able to initiate resuscitation and basic life-saving measures is part of the standard of safe, competent care the Board expects.

These professions are subject to a mandatory continuing-competence standard: the Board requires any two of a defined list of activities per 2-year cycle — one option being 5 contact hours of continuing education (10 if not currently practising) or a current national certification. Basic life support is generally an employer or hospital requirement rather than a licence condition, though an accredited resuscitation course can count toward the contact hours when delivered by a recognized provider.

The requirement is met by any recognized continuing-education activity on an eligible topic. CPR/AED, ACLS (advanced cardiovascular life support) and PALS are among the eligible activities; other topics also qualify (for example safe prescribing, suicide prevention or violence prevention). A single course therefore both meets the obligation and counts toward your hours — provided you keep the proof.

Eligible courses offered in your region

How training becomes recognized

Not all activities are equal. For continuing education to be recognized by a professional order, it must meet specific criteria:

  • the instructor’s competence;
  • the relevance and quality of the content;
  • the training framework;
  • the quality of the material provided;
  • mechanisms to monitor and assess participation.

In Tennessee, these are the criteria the Tennessee Board of Nursing applies — through approved and nationally accredited providers — to recognize a continuing-education activity. Our training is designed to meet these criteria.

Rigorous online learning

Our training draws on the latest medical research and combines practical modules with a theoretical assessment. The resulting certification is credible and verifiable — presentable to your professional order and to your employer — and prepares you to excel in your practice.

Support and care staff: a certificate required to work

A CPR and first-aid course does not replace occupational training — it is added to it. To work with vulnerable people, a valid first-aid certificate is often required in addition to your professional training.

Tennessee goes further for support staff. To enter a 75-hour nurse aide training program, a candidate must hold a current Basic Life Support for Health Care Providers CPR certificate — a standalone credential, distinct from the training diploma, that must be obtained and then kept current. A recognized certificate meets that requirement for Certified Nursing Assistants working in assisted living, home health and long-term care.

See the recognized training for this role

Attestation, certificate and invoice: proof your training is recognized

On successful completion, you receive:

  • an official attestation;
  • a certificate of completion;
  • a detailed invoice;
  • online access to your documents for as long as your certification remains valid.

These documents are the proof to present to your professional order to credit your hours, or to your employer to demonstrate your compliance.

For organizations: keep your team compliant

When the certificate is an employer requirement, the real challenge is tracking. Our organization system manages a team’s training: a certification dashboard, deadline tracking, automatic renewal reminders and proof archiving. An organization keeps its whole staff current without watching every date by hand.

Training aligned with the latest emergency-care standards

Our CPR, AED and first-aid training is developed in line with the most recent international guidelines for emergency cardiovascular care and first aid.

We rigorously follow the recommendations of ILCOR (International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation), the international body responsible for the scientific evaluation and development of global resuscitation standards. These recommendations serve as a reference for health organizations, institutions and professional orders worldwide — and are updated as scientific and clinical evidence evolves.

Keep your skills current with confidence

Every intervention can make a difference. Keeping CPR and emergency-care skills current is both a professional requirement and a responsibility toward patients, colleagues and the public.

See all health-care courses

References

Content is being updated.