Is ACLS or PALS harder?

This is a common question that we frequently get asked. Like many things in life, this answer is very subjective. It really depends on your education, but more specifically, your background or your area of expertise. If you take care of kids, Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) will probably be easier. If you have never taken care of kids PALS will be challenging.

While they are both very similar, they are both significantly different, which explains why PALS is normally longer and considered more challenging (historically).

The biggest difference between the two classes is prevention, in our opinion. While Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) does discuss peri-arrest care, PALS dives deep into both respiratory and shock scenarios leading up to arrest. How to identify these scenarios and how to correct them before an arrest situation happens – or even a peri-arrest situation! There is a big focus on the clinical identification of deteriorating patients leading up to  cardiac arrest. While not necessarily true for every infant/child patient of cardiac arrenst, often it is not cardiac related, there is an underlying pathophysiology causing the arrest – which is often identifiable and preventable. Whereas, adults are long term conditions/diseaes/illnesses leading to sudden cardiac arrest events. Prevention has always been a stable for the American Heart Association (AHA) it is discussed in great detail during PALS classes. The same can be said for adult cardiac events, but there is often more underlying long term signs and symptoms from underlying medical history including comorbidities.

Math, everyones favorite subject

Depending on how long you have been tking ACLS you may recall drugs we use to administer you do not think about any more. Everyone loves to talk about BiCarb. For all the drugx there was always a dose you needed to know to go along with it – some times two per drug. But the ACLS drug box is considerably smaller nowdayys than previous yeaars. Another big difference with the PALS class is drugs are weight based. While you may recall the drug was 0.1mg / kg, you now have to figure out the weight often converting it to kilograms, then multiplying it to get your dose. This can intiidate many students. The same is with the defibrilation energies. Not just medications, but all the equipment is different. You may have a few options of sizes depending on the equipment for adults, but for kids there could be 6-7 different sizes to choose from. Let us nnot forget all the colors to choose from (could not continue without mentioning the Broselow Tape).

With PALS there are not any moe drugs than ACLS, but there is more to drugs than there is in ACLS because everything is weight based making it more intimidating. This is also true when selecting energies when using the cardiac monitor. With PALS the iportance of selecting the right sized equipment is also stressed. All these options making taking PALS seem “harder” than ACLS.

Nothing we have not heard before

Absolute CPR believes ACLS and PALS gets a bad ruputation because of the a-word, Advanced. Depending on your credentials there is nothing covered in ACLS and PALS that you have not discussed in medical school, nursing school, paramedic school, respiratory therapy school, and similar schools. They are not requiring the admin clerk to take these classes, people who already passed an advanced medical academic program.

The more challenging aspect of these classes is taking all this knowledge (pharmacology, ekg interpetation, iv access, airway manuves, and the like) and putting them together and using your critical thinking skills.  The fear of what to do next. But with some a little practice and some encouragment there is nothing advanced about these classes.

To answer the title of this post, the only thing difficult about these classes are finding a awesome place to take them at – look no further, visit our website www.absolutecpr.com to find our next class and Register Now online.