Recognition by healthcare professionals
First Aid & CPR France
In health care, maintaining high standards of care is essential to protect the public. For nurses, mastering resuscitation and emergency gestures is part of a legally framed continuing-education obligation; for nursing aides it conditions access to the diploma. 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
In France, nurses are registered with the Ordre National des Infirmiers (ONI) and subject to a continuing professional development (DPC) obligation. The goal: to maintain and update knowledge and skills — including first-aid and resuscitation gestures — throughout the career.
The DPC scheme, run by the Agence Nationale du DPC (ANDPC), applies to all health professionals; compliance is checked by the Order's departmental councils. The Code de la santé publique underpins this duty to keep skills current and the ability to act in an emergency.
These professions are subject to a triennial DPC obligation: at least two actions of different types (continuing education, practice evaluation, risk management) over three years. An accredited resuscitation course registered with the ANDPC counts toward this obligation.
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.
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 France, the Agence Nationale du DPC (ANDPC) registers DPC bodies and actions and applies the recognition criteria. 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.
For nursing aides, AFGSU 2 (21 hours of emergency care including CPR and AED) has been mandatory since the 21 April 2007 order and is a precondition for the State Nursing-Aide Diploma (DEAS). This emergency attestation, required in addition to occupational training, must be maintained through a refresher (MAC) every 4 years; recognized, up-to-date training meets that requirement.
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 coursesReferences
- Agence Nationale du DPC (ANDPC) — DPC in practice
- AFGSU 2 for nursing aides
- Order of 21 April 2007 on the AFGSU
- Ordre National des Infirmiers (ONI)
- ILCOR — International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation
Content is being updated.