RQI Partners, LLC is a joint venture established by the American Heart Association (AHA) and Laerdal Medical to transform resuscitation education and quality improvement in healthcare systems worldwide. By replacing traditional, high-stakes, two-year CPR refresher courses with low-dose, high-frequency simulation training, RQI Partners aims to eliminate skill decay, boost provider confidence, and ultimately improve cardiac arrest survival rates in clinical and community settings.
Understanding the RQI Partners Mission and Organizational Background
The foundation of RQI Partners rests on a critical healthcare challenge: traditional cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training requires clinicians to sit through lengthy classroom sessions every two years. Extensive clinical research demonstrates that healthcare providers begin to lose their CPR cognitive knowledge and physical skills within months—sometimes weeks—of completing a conventional course. This phenomenon, known as skill decay, leaves hospitals vulnerable to suboptimal resuscitation responses during critical emergencies.
To address this gap, the American Heart Association and Laerdal Medical—a global leader in medical simulation and resuscitation training—combined their expertise to form RQI Partners. The organization focuses on shifting the paradigm from periodic, event-driven training to continuous quality improvement. By embedding learning into the daily workflow of hospitals and health systems, RQI ensures that nurses, physicians, allied health professionals, and emergency responders maintain peak resuscitation competence at all times.
The Joint Venture Partnership Dynamics
The partnership leverages the unique strengths of its parent organizations:
- American Heart Association (AHA): Provides the foundational science, evidence-based guidelines, and globally recognized certification standards for CPR, Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS), and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS).
- Laerdal Medical: Supplies the advanced engineering, simulation manikins, feedback technology, and digital learning platforms required to measure performance down to the millisecond.
This synergy allows health systems to transition away from logistically burdensome, manual classroom management toward an automated, standardized, and data-driven educational ecosystem.
Core Offerings and Technological Ecosystem
RQI Partners delivers its educational methodology through specialized, technology-enabled platforms designed to meet the rigorous demands of modern healthcare environments. Rather than relying on human instructors to grade chest compression rate and depth manually, the system utilizes smart manikins and real-time audio-visual feedback.
Resuscitation Quality Improvement (RQI) Program
The flagship RQI program is designed for healthcare professionals who need to maintain BLS, ACLS, or PALS credentials. Instead of a traditional eight-hour classroom day, participants engage in quarterly, 10-to-15-minute simulation sessions using institutional RQI carts located directly within their facilities.
- Low-Dose, High-Frequency Model: Learners complete short modules online, followed by hands-on practice sessions every 90 days.
- Instant Objective Feedback: Smart manikins measure compression depth, rate, recoil, and ventilation volume, giving immediate corrective prompts to the learner.
- Mastery Learning: Learners must meet strict American Heart Association competency benchmarks before a module is marked complete, ensuring that passing is based on verified skill rather than mere attendance.
HeartCode BLS, ACLS, and PALS
For institutions not yet ready to deploy permanent RQI carts, RQI Partners administers the AHA’s HeartCode programs. These blended-learning solutions combine web-based cognitive modules with structured hands-on skills sessions. Learners complete the didactic portion online at their own pace before reporting to a skills station equipped with voice-assisted manikins (VAM) for the practical evaluation.
RQI Link and Institutional Management Tools
Managing compliance for thousands of hospital employees presents a massive administrative burden. RQI Partners provides software dashboards that track credential expiration dates, completion rates, and organizational readiness in real time. Nurse managers, clinical educators, and compliance officers can instantly generate audit reports, verify staff competencies, and identify department-level training gaps without sorting through paper cards or fragmented spreadsheets.
Comparison of Traditional CPR Training Versus RQI Methodology
To understand the operational and clinical impact of RQI Partners, it is helpful to examine how continuous simulation contrasts with legacy training models.
| Training Feature | Traditional AHA Coursework | RQI Partners Methodology |
|---|---|---|
| Frequency | Every 2 years (high-stakes) | Quarterly (low-dose, high-frequency) |
| Time Commitment | 4 to 8 hours per session | 10–15 minutes every 90 days |
| Skill Retention | High risk of skill decay after 3–6 months | Sustained high-level competency year-round |
| Assessment Method | Human observation and subjective grading | Objective, real-time sensor feedback on manikins |
| Administrative Burden | Manual tracking, paper cards, scheduling bottlenecks | Automated digital tracking, continuous compliance dashboards |
| Disruption to Staffing | Requires pulling large groups of staff off the floor | Minimal disruption via short, localized station visits |
Implementation and Operational Considerations for Health Systems
Adopting the RQI program requires strategic planning, capital investment, and cross-departmental coordination within a hospital or healthcare network. While the long-term benefits in patient safety and administrative efficiency are substantial, leadership must navigate several practical implementation phases.
Infrastructure and Spatial Requirements
Hospitals must allocate secure, accessible physical space for RQI simulation carts. These carts, equipped with adult and infant manikins, computers, and feedback monitors, are typically placed in strategic zones—such as nursing stations, simulation centers, or education departments—to allow clinicians to complete their quarterly requirements during shift changes or breaks.
Change Management and Staff Engagement
Transitioning clinicians accustomed to the traditional two-year classroom cycle requires proactive change management. Clinical educators must communicate that the shorter, more frequent sessions are designed to eliminate test anxiety and build muscle memory. Because the training is self-directed and available 24/7, staff on night shifts and rotating schedules gain greater flexibility in maintaining their credentials.
Financial Models and Return on Investment
RQI Partners operates on a subscription-based, hardware-as-a-service model. Hospitals pay an annual fee that covers software access, manikin maintenance, continuous updates aligned with new AHA guidelines, and digital certification cards (eCards). Healthcare executives evaluate this cost against the savings generated by:
- Eliminating overtime and agency staff coverage required when nurses attend off-site or all-day classes.
- Reducing administrative labor hours spent managing paper records and tracking expirations.
- Mitigating liability risks associated with sub-standard resuscitation performance during in-hospital cardiac arrests (IHCAs).
Clinical Impact and Evidence of Effectiveness
The primary metric of success for any resuscitation program is its effect on patient outcomes, specifically survival to hospital discharge following an in-hospital cardiac arrest. Numerous peer-reviewed studies and hospital system case studies have evaluated the impact of transitioning to the RQI model.
Research consistently indicates that healthcare providers trained via the low-dose, high-frequency RQI method demonstrate significantly better chest compression depth, rate consistency, and ventilation technique compared to those trained biennially. Furthermore, hospitals implementing RQI have reported marked improvements in overall survival rates for cardiac arrest patients, as well as favorable neurological outcomes upon discharge.
By eliminating the competency valley that occurs late in the traditional two-year cycle, RQI ensures a higher baseline of emergency preparedness across multidisciplinary clinical teams.
Frequently Asked Questions
What certifications do participants receive through RQI Partners?
Participants receive official, globally recognized course completion eCards from the American Heart Association. Depending on the professional role and institutional requirements, these include Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS), and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS).
How does RQI Partners handle compliance tracking for hospital accreditation?
RQI Partners provides integrated software dashboards that automatically log completion data, test scores, and skill checks. Hospital accreditation liaisons and regulatory compliance officers can export real-time compliance reports to satisfy Joint Commission and other regulatory body requirements without manual auditing.
Is RQI training available for individual healthcare providers outside of a hospital system?
While RQI is primarily deployed as an enterprise solution for hospitals, health systems, and academic medical centers, individual providers typically access the ecosystem through their employing institution. For independent clinicians seeking standard AHA certification, traditional HeartCode or community training center pathways are generally utilized.
What happens if a clinician misses their quarterly RQI deadline?
The RQI platform sends automated reminder notifications well in advance of the 90-day window closing. If a clinician approaches the deadline without completing the session, local clinical educators and managers receive alerts, allowing them to schedule the brief simulation before any compliance lapse occurs.
Next Actions and Strategic Recommendations
For healthcare executives, clinical educators, and quality officers exploring resuscitation reform, the recommended next step involves conducting a comprehensive internal assessment of current training costs, compliance tracking bottlenecks, and in-hospital cardiac arrest survival benchmarks. Engaging with RQI Partners for an institutional demonstration allows leadership to evaluate cart placement logistics, financial subscription structures, and integration timelines tailored to specific facility footprints. Prioritizing continuous resuscitation readiness remains one of the most effective ways to elevate clinical excellence and patient safety across modern healthcare delivery networks.
