The Philippine Heart Association (PHA), through its Council on Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), formally launched the PHA CPR Academy as part of its continuing push to professionalize and standardize training of cardiopulmonary resuscitation in the country.
The launch was held during the first CPR Academy Culminating Ceremony and CPR Summit 2026 on Tuesday, May 26, at Edsa Shangri-La Manila, Mandaluyong City, gathering health leaders, government officials, educators, emergency responders, CPR advocates, training institutions, and partner and media organizations.
Through the CPR Academy, the PHA Council on CPR aims to strengthen its role as one of the country’s trusted and fast-evolving institutions for CPR education, continuously aligning its programs with updated science, standardized instruction, and major international CPR standards.
As more organizations and institutions seek formal CPR instruction, the PHA Council on CPR continues to position itself as a benchmark for quality CPR education grounded in medical credibility, updated curriculum, and consistent training standards.
Currently, the PHA CPR Council offers six courses related to resuscitation – Basic Life Support, Advanced Cardiac Life Support, Advanced Resuscitation Course, Basic Anatomy and Physiology for Emergency Medical Technicians, Basic ECG for Non-cardiologists and its latest addition - Pediatric Advanced Life Support, which was also launched during the ceremonies.
The launching came at a time cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in the Philippines -- with nearly 30 Filipinos dying from heart attacks every hour and an estimated 70,000 Filipinos experiencing sudden cardiac arrest yearly -- based on the recorded data by the Philippine Statistics Authority.
With the formal launch of the CPR Academy, the council also launched CPR-Ready Barangay, a reinstallation of the 11-year old CPR-ready Barangay launched in 2015. The new project aims at CPR-readiness at the grassroots level. Vice Chair for Advocacy Dr. Jax Lerios-Dela Pena said that such approach may be more effective in delivering CPR to cardiac arrest victims, “One barangay at a time to achieve a CPR-ready Philippines.”
The summit also featured the recognition of CPR training centers and institutions that continue to support the PHA’s mission of expanding high-quality CPR education across Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, currently with more than 550 active trainers.
The PHA said the prestige of the Council on CPR is built not only on its name, but also on its commitment to continuous evolution, science-based instruction, and sustainable lifesaving education.
By continuously upgrading its curriculum, adapting to international CPR guidelines, and producing competent CPR practitioners and instructors, the Council strengthens trust among healthcare professionals, partner institutions, educators, and communities seeking credible CPR training.
Through the CPR Academy, the PHA aims to help create a nationwide ripple effect of lifesaving education, one trained lifesaver, one future instructor, and one CPR-ready community at a time.
