ACLS class prep

I'm taking ACLS next week and after going through the pretest, I don't know much of the material. I'm wondering what they actually teach in the class if you're supposed to learn it all on your own beforehand. I've been reading the book, but if I have to learn it all on my own, what's the point of spending two days in class?
The first day of ACLS class the instructors reviews all the material you have been studying and "pre-testing." The second day varies, sometimes a little more review, then you "run" a code blue "mega code" by yourself as if you were the doctor, then you take a written test. If you walk into an ACLS class the first day with no knowledge of basic EKG rhythms, no knowledge at all of any ACLS drugs it would be too much for you to learn in just the one day and pass the tests the second day.

ACLS is a today class? I would practice on EKG Stat and go through the rhythms. After you get the hang of it, look at the ACLS drugs and figure out when you would use them on what rhythms. If you have trouble remembering the three A's, think of them as drinking drugs. Atropine ups your heart rate because it has a T as the 2nd letter and you top your beer off. Adenosine decreases your heart rate because you have a D in the 2nd letter and you down your beer. Amiodarone is the one left out.

They'll teach u everything u need in class. Don't fret. If you check out quizlet you will see almost the exact same test questions u'll need for the written exam. Shock shock epi shock

We do NOT teach everything in class. That is like saying we teach to the test. You need to study ekg rhythms and algorithims. We teach the technical skills you cannot learn from the book, like airway management, but you need the didactics to understand when and how to do everything else. The AHA mantra is train, review, practice.

Quote from classicdameWe do NOT teach everything in class. That is like saying we teach to the test. You need to study ekg rhythms and algorithims. We teach the technical skills you cannot learn from the book, like airway management, but you need the didactics to understand when and how to do everything else. The AHA mantra is train, review, practice.

Quote from libran1984They'll teach u everything u need in class. Don't fret. If you check out quizlet you will see almost the exact same test questions u'll need for the written exam. Shock shock epi shock

Maybe it was my previous ER experience. There were 2 ppl who didn't pass (non-nurses) my initial ACLS class of 14 two years ago. I felt bradycardia, SVT, Vfib, and asystole were easy rhythms to comprehend. Meds were also fairly easy to understand as an LPN. Otherwise, the mega codes were pretty decent. If I faltered I asked for help from my peers. Never stop and never give up. H's and T's baby!

Quote from Izzy11This is my point. If I had known I had to learn this all on my own, I would've saved some money and taken it on-line. But since I have no experience with any of this stuff (I work in a nursing home/SNF, I've never seen a rhythm strip on the job), I wanted to get classroom instruction on it, but apparently I'm not going to get it.