RCUK Courses Immediate Life Support Courses

RCUK, or the Resuscitation Council UK, offers Immediate Life Support (ILS) and Paediatric Immediate Life Support (PILS) courses for healthcare professionals.

These are life-support training courses for adults (ILS) and children (PILS), designed to improve skills in recognising and treating deteriorating patients and performing CPR and defibrillation in emergency situations. ILS certificates are valid for one year, and if a certificate is over 12 months out of date, the full course must be completed again.  

ILS (Immediate Life Support)

Purpose: Teaches healthcare professionals how to manage deteriorating adult patients and perform CPR and defibrillation. 

Skills Covered:

• Recognising and treating deteriorating patients using the ABCDE approach. 
• Identifying causes and preventing cardiopulmonary arrest. 
• Quality CPR and defibrillation. 
• Effective team membership and leadership in emergencies. 

Certification: A certificate valid for one year is issued upon successful completion. 

PILS (Paediatric Immediate Life Support)

Purpose: 

Equips healthcare professionals to manage deteriorating children and provide initial treatment until advanced help arrives. 

Skills Covered:

• The ABCDE approach for rapid recognition of seriously ill children. 
• Appropriate initial interventions for respiratory or cardiorespiratory arrest. 
• Effective team skills in paediatric emergencies. 

 Who can attend: 

Healthcare staff who need to develop skills beyond paediatric basic life support but not as advanced as Paediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS).