Infant and child CPR class: for parents, grandparents and sitters

Which CPR class is best for new parents and grandparents?

We recommend AHA Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED. The American Heart Association designs it for anyone with little or no medical training, whether you need a card or simply want to be ready to respond in an emergency. That fits a new parent, a grandparent who watches the baby on weekdays, a nanny or a teen babysitter.

On the AHA course list, child CPR and infant CPR are optional modules. Our classes always include them, so every student practices CPR on adult, child and infant manikins. You also leave with first aid skills for injuries and medical emergencies, on the same card.

The AHA also has a course focused only on infants and children, Heartsaver Pediatric First Aid CPR AED, which it suggests for child care workers, babysitters and parents. We do not offer that course. Our Heartsaver class covers infants and children too, plus adults, which is useful if you also look after an older relative.

BLS is the course for healthcare providers, so a parent or sitter does not need it unless a job asks for it. Our BLS vs CPR guide explains the difference.

What you learn in an infant and child CPR class

How to do infant CPR: the short version

The AHA's public infant CPR page gives a simple rule: if a child or infant is unresponsive and not breathing, or only gasping, give CPR. It also explains that infants usually have healthy hearts, and an infant's heart often stops because the baby cannot breathe or is having trouble breathing. If a child or infant's heart stops, the AHA says to give compressions with breaths.

The AHA page lists three steps: make sure the scene is safe, shout for help, then give CPR with compressions and breaths. Use an AED as soon as one arrives, and keep going until EMS arrives.

Infant choking: is it covered in the class?

Yes. Choking help for an adult, child or infant is on the AHA course list for Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED, and you practice it hands-on in class with your instructor coaching you.

The AHA also posts separate downloadable choking reference cards for infants and for children on its infant CPR page. If choking is the main thing you worry about, this class covers it along with CPR.

How long the class takes and when it runs

Most students finish in under 3 hours, and your AHA eCard is issued the same day you pass. Classes are in person at 100 N. Barranca St, Suite #255-B, West Covina, CA 91791, on the second floor, with free parking in the building.

Daycare and preschool staff: check your licensing rule first

If you work in a licensed child care center or run a licensed family child care home in California, your training rule may be different. The California EMS Authority (EMSA) lists the child care provider health and safety training as 4 hours of pediatric first aid, 4 hours of pediatric CPR and 8 hours of preventive health and safety practices, 16 hours in all.

EMSA says the pediatric first aid and CPR part can be taken from the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross, must be repeated every two years, and cannot be shortened for a renewal. The preventive health and safety part cannot be taken from the AHA or Red Cross: it must come from an EMSA approved program or an accredited college. For the AHA, the course built for child care workers is Heartsaver Pediatric First Aid CPR AED. The AHA lists it at 4 to 5.25 hours, while EMSA asks for 8 hours of pediatric first aid and CPR, so confirm the class length with the training provider and your licensing office.

Do nannies and babysitters need CPR certification?

California does not license in-home care. The California Department of Social Services says in-home care is license-exempt, and that while nanny and au pair agencies may screen candidates, there are no licensing standards candidates must meet.

So whether you need CPR is up to the family who hires you. The CDSS checklist for parents choosing in-home care asks whether the provider is CPR and first aid certified, so expect families to ask. A current AHA card shows a family that you have practiced infant and child CPR and choking relief with an instructor, and Heartsaver First Aid CPR AED adds first aid on the same card.

Younger sitters can also look at our online Red Cross Babysitting Basics course. It is self-paced online with a certificate of completion, not a hands-on CPR class. The AHA sets no minimum age for learning CPR and says the ability to do CPR depends more on body strength than age, so a teen sitter can take the Heartsaver class too.

Infant CPR class for a parents group

If you have a group, such as new parents from a school or your own staff, our instructor can come to your office, school or facility in the San Gabriel Valley and bring the manikins and AED trainers. See onsite group training for the minimum group size and an instant quote, or call (626) 605-2067.