Welcome to the CALS Program

The CALS (Comprehensive Advanced Life Support) Program grew out of a need in rural Minnesota for knowledge and hands-on skills training in emergency medicine. Presented with a wide range of clinical problems and inadequate resources in the emergency department, rural health care providers were unsure about the most appropriate care for their patients. In response to their unique needs, the CALS Program (a 501(c)3 organization) and its comprehensive advanced life support curriculum were developed.

The primary focus of the CALS curriculum is to train medical teams in rural and remote areas to anticipate, recognize, and treat life-threatening emergencies. The curriculum consists of three components: 1) home study, 2) two-day interactive, scenario based provider course and 3) the skills lab. Since the success of caring for critically ill or injured patients is dependent on the overall skills and knowledge of the entire advanced life support team, a team-based approach to caring for the patient is taught.

The first CALS Provider Course was offered in 1996 and since then over 5,000 medical professionals have completed the  course. The need for knowledge and hands-on skills training in emergency medicine is not unique to rural Minnesota. As a consequence, medical personnel in other states have contacted the CALS Program to learn how they can bring the CALS curriculum to their state. Furthermore, the need for quality emergency critical care education for rural and remote providers reaches beyond U.S. shores.  The CALS Program, in response to a request by the U.S. Department of State, modified the curriculum and held courses in which 350 foreign service health providers completed the modified CALS Provider Course.