PALS vs ACLS
PALS and ACLS are the American Heart Association’s two advanced life support courses. They share a lot — team dynamics, rhythm recognition, defibrillation, post-arrest care — but they are built for different patients, and the causes of arrest they focus on are different.
The short answer
ACLS is for adults, PALS is for infants and children. If you only treat adults, take ACLS; if you treat children, take PALS; if you resuscitate both, as in emergency medicine, you usually need both, on top of BLS.
| ACLS | PALS | |
|---|---|---|
| Patients | Adults | Infants and children |
| Typical path to arrest | Often a primary cardiac event | Usually respiratory failure or shock first |
| Focus | Arrest rhythms, ACS, stroke, post-arrest care | Recognising and treating respiratory problems and shock before arrest |
| Doses and energies | Standard adult doses | Calculated by weight |
| CPR tested | Adult | Child and infant |
| Card | ACLS Provider, 2 years | PALS Provider, 2 years |
Both courses require current BLS skills, both use the same high-performance team roles and communication, both teach defibrillation and synchronised cardioversion, and both finish with post-cardiac arrest care. If you hold one, the other will feel familiar in structure.
Your employer decides the requirement for your post. Our guides to ACLS for clinicians and PALS for clinicians describe the usual pattern in the UAE. For the BLS-versus-advanced question, see BLS vs ACLS.
BLS always comes first. After that, take the one your current role needs most urgently. Some clinicians book ACLS and PALS on consecutive days to keep their renewal dates aligned.
Other life support and first aid courses: BLS Course · ACLS Course · First Aid Course · Training calendar
Yes. PALS requires BLS, not ACLS.
Neither is harder in general. PALS places more weight on assessment and weight-based dosing; ACLS on adult arrest rhythms and ACS and stroke recognition.
Emergency departments that see children commonly require both ACLS and PALS.
No. ACLS is adult-focused; paediatric advanced care is taught in PALS.
Yes. Many clinicians book them close together so that both cards expire around the same time.
Safety First Medical Services is an American Heart Association training centre on Al Reem Island. HeartCode blended PALS, classroom PALS and on-site group sessions for paediatric, emergency and neonatal teams, with a two-year AHA PALS Provider eCard on completion.
See PALS dates and register Classroom PALS course Group booking enquiry
What we teach follows the awarding body and the UAE health authorities. For the definitive position on a course or licensing question, these are the places to check.
Last reviewed by the training team at Safety First Medical Services, an American Heart Association training centre at Addax Office Tower, Al Reem Island, Abu Dhabi. Call +971 55 761 9841 or email training@safetyfirstmed.ae.