Health and Wellness
Job security is always a concern. Learn transportable skills in the high demand, well-paying field of health services.
NOTE: For any health course that exceeds three days in length, please consider other commitments and use discretion when registering for these time sensitive, high-competency courses.
Categories
Assistance with Medications
CPR and First Aid (AHA)
Community Health Programs
The Community Health Worker (CHW) Training Academy provides the knowledge and skills necessary to build and strengthen Community Health Workers. CHWs, especially in Idaho, play an important role as a bridge between traditionally under-served populations and needed health information; support and care; as well as basic and social services. Program participants gain professional skills through the Core, Advanced, Apprentice and Supervisor training programs. Specific health topic add-on modules are also available to enhance the fundamental training. Please join our mailing list to get updates on trainings, events, and CHW news. SIGN UP FOR THE CHW NEWSLETTER
Dental Assisting
ESL Prep
Students will study various topics to strengthen English language skills and can provide help with basic health vocabulary before starting a course.
Emergency Medical Technician
Emergency Medicine
Health and Well-being
Mental Health
Nursing Assistant (CNA)
Online Health Programs
Phlebotomy Technician
Wilderness Physical Therapy: Level 1 (Basic Competencies)
Put your wilderness skills to use and learn how to combine your passion and profession. The Wilderness Physical Therapy First Responder Certification helps you achieve valuable PT continuing education units while studying what you love. In partnership with Idaho State University, students who complete this 5 part certification will receive 40 PT contact hours (4.0 CEU) and a Wilderness PT First Responder (WPT-FR) Certification. These courses are designed for physical therapists, other medical professionals, and those who are interested in emergency wilderness care. For the Wilderness PT First Responder Certification, participants must complete all 5 courses for a total of 4.0 CEUs. 4 of the courses are self-paced online classes, whereas the 5th course is in-person. These courses are best taken in the suggested order. Each course may be taken as a stand-alone for CEUs but participants will not receive the WPT-FR certification unless all 5 are completed. Course I: Introduction to Wilderness Physical Therapy .5 PT CEUs (5 contact hours) Course II: Environmental Factors in the Wilderness .6 CEUs (6 contact hours) Course III: Trauma in the Back-country .5 PT CEUs (5 contact hours) Course IV: Medical Problems in the Back-country .4 PT CEUs (4 contact hours) Course V: Traversing Wilderness Physical Therapy: An Outdoor, Hands-on Course 2.0 PT CEUs (20 contact hours) Additional information: www.wildernesspted.com Email: info@wildernesspted.com
Course Catalog
AHA BLS Provider CPR
This class teaches everything necessary to administer CPR in healthcare settings such as assessment of breathing and cardiac emergencies in adults, infants, and children with one-and-two rescuer CPR; adult and pediatric obstructed airway management; AED; and mouth-to-mouth ventilation. Approved by the American Heart Association (AHA) and taught by AHA certified instructors. This class does not offer First Aid training. If you are interested in First Aid training click here. Click here to view our blended learning BLS Provider CPR for additional date options. Note: If the course has listed Pharmacy, OTA, ISU Dental Program, EMT, or other departments it is for their departments only. Please do not register for any of these sections.
Assistance with Medications
Qualify yourself to assist with medications in assisted living, group home, and certified family home settings. Upon completion of the course, you will know the legal requirements for assistance with medications, be able to identify safety factors involved and know your responsibilities and restrictions when assisting with medications. Closed-book written exam and skills exam are conducted at the end of class. Begin studying the course manual* at least one week prior to the class This 8-hour course is taught in a one-day Saturday course or split between two 4 hour evenings. NOTE: These classes are fully face-to-face.
AHA Heartcode BLS Provider CPR - Online Blended Learning
Heartcode BLS Provider CPR is an online blended learning course option ideal for students recertifying or with a previous CPR background. Students will be emailed a ‘key’ to access the online course. After completing the online portion, students attend a structured BLS Hands-On Session with an AHA Instructor. Students will need to present the course certificate to the instructor at the two-hour hands-on session. Hands-on Session: 2 Hours Fee: $65 (includes an online course, hands-on session with AHA instructor, and certification card) The online portion must be completed and the student will need to present the course certificate to the instructor at the two-hour hands-on session. Important Information: Students will be sent an email within 2 business days of enrollment with instructions for accessing and completing the online portion of the course. To allow time to complete the online component prior to the in-person session, the deadline for enrollment in this course is 3 business days before the in-person session. Students who withdraw from the course after the online access instructions are mailed out may only receive a refund minus the cost of the online component, which is $34. Online learning portion of class: 3 Hours, Hands-on Session: 2.5 Hours
Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) - Web Supplemented
Do you want to take a CNA class but would rather take a portion of it online? This web-supplemented course reduces face-to-face time by almost half. Prepare yourself for employment opportunities as a nursing assistant in extended care facilities, hospitals, home health and hospice situations. This course meets the requirements for Idaho certification of nursing assistants. Clinical hours may be outside normal class hours, but students will be provided clinical dates at least one month in advance. This is a time intensive course. Please consider other commitments and use discretion before registering for the course. Face-to-Face dates will be provided the first day of class. Quizzes and lectures will be done online and skills will be covered during lab date. In alignment with state requirements, students are required to attend 100% of the course to complete the program successfully. Clinical facilities may require proof of COVID vaccinations prior to clinical rotations. Note: BACKGROUND CHECK/Drug Screening ISU does not generally perform background checks or drug screening in the CNA program, except in our State Hospital South Course, where both are required. If you have a criminal history that will prevent you from passing a background check you may want to reconsider taking this course as you will not be able to work as a CNA. Please refer to the Idaho Criminal History Unit website at https://healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/bcu. See ‘denials.’ Once course has begun, you will be ineligible for reimbursement or transfer of course fees. If we are informed of a past crime or positive drug screen during the course, we must inform the clinical agency and allow them to decide if the student can rotate. If denied clinical, the student will be unable to finish the course. This course meets the following requirements for Idaho registration of nursing assistants: 1) 88 hours of classroom instruction (including discussion, videos, hands-on lab experiences) 2) 32 hours clinical experience in health care facilities 3) Guidance preparing for manual skills testing and written exam as required by the State of Idaho for placement on state registry. Additional costs include: Textbooks, BLS Healthcare Provider CPR training, clinical attire, clinical tools and immunizations. Clinical hours may be outside normal class hours, but student will be provided clinical dates at least one month in advance. In alignment with state requirements, students are required to attend 100% of the course to complete the program successfully. Please see registration handout for more information. Accreditation: Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, Idaho Board of Nursing, Idaho Division of Career Technical Education Computer requirements: A computer and hard drive with adequate memory, high-speed Internet access, up-to-date internet browser, basic Microsoft package (Word), Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Phlebotomy Technician - Web Supplemented
The ISU phlebotomy program prepares you to take a national certification exam upon course completion. Topics range from blood draws and laboratory procedures to employability skills and safety. Students must be 18 years of age or over to take this course. Sixty hours of this 160-hour course are completed online. Students will meet twice per week for the skills portion of the course, followed by 40 hours of clinical experience and blood draws with a clinical agency. Clinical hours are likely to be outside of normal course hours due to agency operating hours, but a clinical schedule will be provided in advance. Total clinical hours are dependent on students completing at least 100 blood draws. In alignment with state requirements, students are required to attend 100% of the course to complete the program successfully. Clinical facilities may require proof of COVID vaccinations prior to clinical rotations. Additional costs: Textbook, uniform, immunizations, and BLS provider CPR certification course. Some clinical sites may require a drug screen. Additional requirements: Health Insurance: All students are required to have health insurance before entering the clinical setting. Background Check: All students will complete a background check. Failed background checks will prevent participation in this course.
AHA Heartsaver First Aid/CPR/AED
This course is designed to teach lay responders critical skills needed to respond to and manage an emergency until emergency medical services arrives. Skills covered in this course include first aid; choking relief in adults, children, and infants; and what to do for sudden cardiac arrest in adults, children, and infants. This course is ideal for health and fitness coaches, teachers and school staff, lifeguards, flight attendants, and anyone who needs a credential in first aid and CPR, including Certified Family Home. Note: This course does not meet requirements for AHA Healthcare Provider BLS CPR.
Advanced Emergency Medical Technician (AEMT)
The Advanced Emergency Medical Technician (AEMT) course is an intensive and comprehensive hybrid program which includes online progressive learning and in-person skills labs, clinicals and field (ambulance observation) components. The primary focus of the Advanced Emergency Medical Technician is to provide basic and limited advanced emergency medical care and transportation for critical and emergent patients who access the emergency medical system. This course meets the Idaho and national requirements to apply for certification as an Advanced EMT. This course is a 14 -week course consisting of approximately 220 hours spread between online coursework, 54 hours of in-person lab/skills time, up to five 12-hour shifts in a clinical setting and ride-alongs with an ambulance crew. Pre-requisite: Must have achieved and have a current NREMT certification. Preference for EMT’s with minimum 1 year of experience. Additional Costs: Additional Costs: Textbook, blood pressure cuff and stethoscope, clinical facility required immunizations, drug screening test, MyClinical Exchange account, skills and written certification exams, American Heart Association ACLS training will be during class time but will have an addition fee. AEMT national testing fees are not included in the class. Must be 18 years or older. NOTE: Due to clinical requirements, a current background check is a course requirement. A failed background check will prevent participation in this course. For more information, including additional costs please see the handout for additional costs and course information.
Community Health Worker Advanced Course (CHW Advanced)
The Community Health Worker Advanced course expands student's knowledge and skills and offers experiential learning through community or clinical tracks with a rotation at a preceptor site. This course must be taken after The Community Health Worker Core Course has been completed. The 13-week core course consists of 48 hours of blended, live-online and asynchronous training, and 48 Clinical hours. CHW Advanced courses are offered in a hybrid online web-based classroom. The class will meet in live online classroom three times during the thirteen weeks; evenings, 6pm-9pm—on the first night of class, with the remaining 2 sessions announced during the first class. Weeks 2-6, 8-12, students will be working asynchronous (self-paced) and will also be required to choose from 25+ available asynchronous Health Specific Modules and must complete five new modules by end of class. This course will also consist of 48 clinical hours that can run simultaneously. Prerequisite: Students should have completed the CHW Core course before the Advanced class begins. Some sessions of this course will require an access code for registration. Please visit the ISU Community Health Worker Training Academy for more information, or email chw@isu.edu. Community health workers are a vital component of the state and national public health and health care workforce. "Community Health Worker" is an umbrella term for a number of different job titles, including community health advocates, outreach educators, peer leaders, promotores de salud, doulas, and patient navigators. For many decades, CHWs have made significant contributions to community-based health promotion, disease prevention and maternal child health support. They have also improved the rate of health insurance coverage for underserved communities and individuals. CHWs improve access to and increase utilization of primary health care, reduce costs of care, improve quality of care, and reduce health disparities. For more information about this training curriculum, contact the Department of Community and Public Health at Idaho State University, chw@isu.edu or call (208) 282-2729 or visit the website at: isu.edu/chw/ Idaho State University, in collaboration with the Idaho Statewide Healthcare Innovation Plan (SHIP) project originally developed this training. ISU is continuing to offer this training for those interested in becoming Community Health Workers. Interested applicants are not required to apply and become students at ISU in order to take the training.
Certified Family Home Basic Medication Awareness and Infection Control
The purpose of this course is to educate Certified Family Home (CFH) providers and substitute caregivers regarding medication safety and infection control. Participants will gain a basic understanding of medications including storing and caring for medications, six rights of medication oversight, medication side effects and warning signs, infection control, maintaining medication records and more. This course satisfies the requirements of IDAPA 16.03.19.400.05: “Each staff assisting with resident medications will have successfully completed a medication training under Section 100 of these rules.” That section states under IDAPA 16.03.19.100.03.e: “Unless a licensed practical nurse, registered nurse, physician’s assistant, or medical doctor, completion of a Department-approved medications course through an Idaho technical college.”Successful completion of this course will consist of an open-book written test with a passing rate of 80% or greater and participation in the skills demonstration and testing. (Beginning July 7, 2025 this 5 hour course will be in-person.) Successful completion of this course will consist of an open book written test with a passing rate of 80% or greater and participation in the skills demonstration and testing. Spanish course available. Please call 208-282-3372 for details.