EMERGENCY RESPONSE FOR THE ATHLETE - VIRTUAL
Course Information
Cogent Steps, LLC is an NATABOC Approved Provider, and an AASPT Preferred Provider offering a new Virtual Emergency Response for the Athlete course (V-ERA). This course has been granted approval for the 2022 calendar year due to COVID-19. This course has been deliberately designed and tailored for physical therapist and athletic training students, licensed providers in athletic training, nursing, physical therapy, and physicians who want to obtain their ERA certification despite restrictions in travel. The course is still focused on specialized training in sideline and venue emergency management of the athlete. The ERA is a leap forward in quality and value for students and hosts.
Cogent Steps, LLC’s V-ERA course was approved in December 2021 as satisfying the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (ABPTS) Acute Management of Injury & Illness requirement for applicants for Sports Specialist Certification for calendar year 2022.
Core skills include primary and secondary assessment, ethics and legal review, care of the athlete through the age spectrum, athletes in adaptive sports, dermatology, medical and traumatic emergencies, and EMS operations. Additional enrichment modules include asthma, anaphylaxis, pulse oximetry, and care of the spine injured athlete.
The V-ERA course is composed of three (3) parts. An online didactic program with up-front, online narrated presentations, and a written test. Please read through all of the information and important details on what you need to know before taking the course and how to prepare for your course. A student intensive Flip grid session, requiring students to upload lab demonstrations, and discussions for evaluation by instructors prior to the live session. The Flip grid session requires the use of the supplies and equipment in the Sideline Venue Emergency Response Kit (SVERK) that must be purchased separately. Finally, there is a two-day, synchronous ZOOM course hosted by Cogent Steps instructors, that includes a final graded practical. Upon successful completion of the ERA, the participant is granted a three-year ERA certification. NATA and other CEU credit is pending approval.
The Flip grid portion MUST be completed 8 days prior to the synchronous ZOOM session for instructor evaluative feedback.
Both the ERA Online Training Module, and V-ERA Two-Day Intensive Training Session MUST be completed within a 6-month period of time. Failure to do so will result in not earning your certificate and having to start the course over from the beginning.
Approximately two weeks prior to the course, you will receive an email from the lead instructor or a staff member of Cogent Steps, LLC informing you of details of the course including Flip grid join code, ZOOM codes, and any specifics of the course.
All synchronous courses typically run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. On that last day, the course may finish slightly earlier than 5 pm, depending upon the order of rotation for practicals. Note the final practical requires the student to have a partner for testing.
On a rare occasion, a situation may arise where a course needs to be canceled or postponed due to administrative or registration issues, or as a result of emergency situations. We make every attempt to decide if this is necessary at least 14 days prior to the first day of the course. We recommend purchasing the SVERK early to ensure there is time to complete all labs and requirements 8 days prior to the ZOOM session. Students are welcome to transfer between courses if a conflict arises.
You will receive your completion certificate via email after you have completed the course and post-course survey. Your certificate is good for 3 years from your synchronous ZOOM ERA course training date.
Please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page for answers to the most commonly received questions from students.
FOR PTs:
REMEMBER: Per ABPTS and the Sports Specialty Council, you must keep your Acute Management of Injury and Illness (the ERA satisfies this) current during the 10 years of certification. Throughout the Maintenance Of Specialty Certification cycle you will need to able to show proof of satisfying this requirement.
The new Emergency Response for the Athlete course is good for 3 years. Please note the MOSC cycle is 10 years. Once you are ERA certified you will be eligible to maintain that by taking the ERA Recertification course while your certification is current. If your ERA certification lapses, you will need to take the Full ERA course to become ERA certified. There is no grace period offered if the ERA certification lapses in order to be consistent with the MOSC requirement.
The ERA is accredited for 20 CCU for PTs.
FOR ATs:
Cogent Steps BOC Approved Provider number is P10170.
BOC has accredited the ERA for 17 hours Category A, consisting of home study 5.5 hours, and live instruction 11.5 hours.
