Oxygen Therapy

The Red Cross Oxygen Therapy certifications that we issue are valid 3 years from the date of the course.

We are going to answer this question from the perspective of a first-aid company that teaches Red Cross Oxygen Therapy courses and issues this specific certification. Our Oxygen Therapy course is an hour-long course designed to provide health care providers who work in out-of-hospital or pre-hospital settings with the knowledge and skills they need to use oxygen therapy equipment, in accordance with Canadian BLS guidelines. In this sense an ‘oxygen therapist’ is not a specific role, but just a healthcare provider who is certified to use basic oxygen therapy equipment in an emergency.

Alert First Aid and the Canadian Red Cross only offer the 1 hour Oxygen Therapy course. This course teaches responders trained in Basic Life Support to use basic oxygen therapy equipment in accordance with Canadian BLS guidelines.

Studies have been shown that Oxygen Therapy can actually be harmful for some patients, and should only be administered in accordance with specific guidelines. If you have a supplemental oxygen kit in your work or community setting, you should become certified in oxygen therapy in order to administer oxygen more safely.