Testimonials from physicians, parents, & physician-parents.
I am the director of Pediatric Emergency Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital. Being in the business of resuscitating babies and small children I feel that I am in a good position to evaluate Amy Gross's Little Hearts CPR class which I attended recently. Actually I attended the Spanish class which she also offers along with my new nanny (Amy's Spanish is great!), and my wife attended the English class. We all found it very educational and engaging. Amy keeps the material exciting and hands on. Each participant works on their own mannequin, which is especially helpful. From a medical perspective Amy is right up-to-date with the most recent guidelines and aware of the most recent developments. I would suggest this class for any parent or caretaker who wants to refine their neonatal resuscitation skills so that in the event that something dangerous happens you will be ready to take the right steps to save your child. Thank you Amy!!
M.D. and Dad, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital.
So much more than CPR. Amy teaches everything from car seat safety to what foods to avoid with your toddler, in a comprehensive, engaging, and funny way. She has thought of everything, and does not stop at infant and child safety, but gives important tips for our own safety as well (our children need healthy and living parents too!). She suggests useful ways to think about safety in your home, which helps generalize from class to your specific situation, and also helps "recreate" the safety tips if you have forgotten them. I have taken the course twice, organized a course for my mommies group, and have sent many parents to Amy. I would definitely recommend her course to any parent or caregiver.
NYC Mom
As a physician, I am certified in pediatric CPR but took Amy's class to brush up on my skills and be sure my husband felt comfortable in case of an unexpected emergency. Amy's passion for teaching the material was fantastic. She did a great job teaching practical CPR and makes the class fun as well. Her discussion on child car safety, especially in taxis, was outstanding and incredibly important, something I would recommend to every parent living in the city. We learned some potentially life-saving tips and plan on sending other family members to her course.
Diplomate American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
As a physician and administrator, I have both arranged and taken multiple CPR courses over the years, taught by a variety of personnel. The Little Hearts CPR is quite possibly the best that I've ever taken. Amy Gross is knowledgeable, thorough, serious about her topic, yet able to present the material in a humorous, accessible way. I will be referring others!
Brooklyn, NY
If there is one class to take before you have a child, this is the class. Amy is a wonderful teacher - informative, knowledgeable and humorous. In addition, Amy is not only good at teaching CPR; she also imparts practical every-day advice on how to keep your child safe and avoid potentially dangerous situations in the first place. I would totally recommend this class to all soon-to-be parents or caregivers--it is one of the best 2.5 hours you can spend. Being prepared in an emergency is one of the best gifts you can give your child--so add this class to your baby registry.
NYC Mom
Being a future grandparent, I said 'yes' when my daughter and son-in-law suggested that my wife and I learn Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation. Deep down I felt that this was not going to be time well spent, since as an Orthopaedic Surgeon who deals with trauma patients, I’m an expert in CPR.
I’m happy to admit that missing this opportunity could have a horrible mistake. Amy Gross, our instructor, was all about business. Friendly, at times humorous, but also very serious about teaching us the basics---as well as the differences between the infant, the young toddler, and the adult who are choking.
Personally I learned that infants respond differently and quite suddenly to choking. They don’t give too many signals or signs of the emergency. Ms Gross walked us through the event moment by moment, not sparing a thought or an experience from her years of teaching this course.
Ms. Gross taught us how to be strong and responsive to this emergency and how to concentrate on getting the child back to life. It was the most important time I have spent in a long medical career spanning thirty years. I hope I will never need Ms Gross’s words or thoughts on my grandchild, but now I feel prepared to deal with other children.You can read books, look at pictures and videos, but a hands-on course like the one Ms Gross teaches at Little Hearts cannot or should not be replaced. This is your grandchild. Be prepared for an accident that hopefully will never happen.
MD, Mount Sinai Hospital
I am an Emergency Department Assistant Director and Director of Disaster Medicine in a busy trauma center, and I highly recommend taking Little Hearts CPR. Having the knowledge base of what to do in the event of an emergency is imperative for both parents and any other caretaker. The course was new information for my husband, which he can now practice at home. For me, refreshing my skills and practicing can never happen too often. The course format is well put together and taught in a way that anyone can understand. The atmosphere is relaxed and conducive to learning, and the safety information is very helpful.
ED Director of Emergency Management
Elmhurst Hospital/Mount Sinai Medical Center
Amy Gross is extremely effective at helping new parents and parents-to-be understand Baby CPR and other life-safety techniques. She also emphasizes key best practices that all parents of should be aware of, such as proper child car seat installation. Her great sense of humor and quick wit--combined with her New York honesty - all made the course not only a great investment, but a worthwhile use of our time.
Stamford, CT
As a physician, I am very aware of the importance of being able to react in emergency situations, when time is of the essence. I felt it was imperative that we both were trained in CPR and other basic life support measures before our first child arrived. Although I am already certified in the different types of CPR, I decided to accompany my husband to this class, both to support him and for the opportunity to get a timely refresher for me. The class was informative, providing hands-on training and assessment, and covered not only CPR and choking, but also some basic child safety issues which were very helpful. And, almost as important, the 2.5 hour class didn't seem overly long- Amy kept the atmosphere relaxed, open, and even entertaining. I would recommend this class for all levels.
Anesthesiologist
New York Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical Center
I am so glad that I joined my husband at Amy's Little Hearts CPR class while we were expecting our first child. She is an excellent teacher and thoroughly explained Infant/Child CPR. My husband now feels more comfortable about caring for our baby, and as a pediatrician, I was happy to refresh my skills. Amy also spends quality time at the end of the session reviewing safety childproofing ideas that all parents should hear. I highly recommend this class to anyone caring for a baby.
LaGuardia Place Pediatrics, Soho
As an Emergency Medicine Physician, I was already certified in infant CPR, but decided to support my pregnant wife and join her at the Little Hearts Infant CPR class. Amy ran a very informative, interesting, enjoyable and most important, accurate session. My wife is now comfortable in her ability to react in an emergency situation and as for me, it never hurts to run through the steps again as a refresher. Additionally, Amy's know-how in preventing hazards and in infant and child safety was very valuable, and we feel much more confident about becoming new parents.
Board Certified Emergency Medicine Physician
Extremely informative ---- helps to prevent your worst fears from coming true.
MD, NYC Mom
I liked that Little Hearts training was condensed into a 2.5 hour class. As a working mother, I found it easy to fit into my schedule. I took the class with my babysitter and I feel comfortable knowing that she has some solid training in choking and CPR in case of an emergency.
NYC Mom
While I did CPR training years ago and thought I would know what to do in case of an emergency, it was not until after I had my own children and I took the course with Little Hearts CPR that I realized how stale I was and how important it is to keep these skills current. The instruction was focused, efficient and geared to ease of recall in a true emergency. Now I am confident, should the unexpected arise, that I will be able to provide my family with the initial emergency help they might need.
NYC Dad
After two recent scares with my newborn experiencing some reflux and difficulty breathing, I took Amy Gross's Infant CPR class. Not only was the class well structured, but I left knowing with great certainty that I would be able to handle any emergency that might arise in my baby's life. Amy made me feel right at home with her very relaxed approach to what might ordinarily be overwhelming information to digest. Her hands-on guidance was also quite helpful. At one point, I was unsure about where my fingers should be placed on the demonstration doll, and before I could raise my hand to ask, she came around and gently corrected my positioning. I left feeling empowered and even gathered additional information when it comes to the safety of our newborns -- i.e. travel, etc.
NYC Mom
Little Hearts CPR provides essential training for anyone entrusted with the care and well-being of children... parents, relatives, nannies, friends. My husband and I took this course together and found Amy's instruction to be concise, effective and highly relevant to newbie urbanite parents. We came back raving about the course so much that our nanny asked to attend a Little Heart's session even though she had received infant CPR training from another company a year prior. Little Hearts not only gave us the basic knowledge to handle emergencies but it also taught us how to avoid potentially hazardous situations in the first place. The few hours you spend in this course is time very well spent indeed.
NYC Mom
As a physical therapist, I've taken CPR classes before but I found your class to be better than others I've had in many ways. As a new mom I approach CPR/Safety from a biased perspective and the information AMY presented has the potential to be really distressing to discuss. She does an excellent job of infusing humor and giving useful information without instilling any undue fear in (let's face it) neurotic NYC parents!
NYC Mom and Physical Therapist
I have taken Adult CPR training classes more times than I care to remember - either for lifeguard, camp counselor, or teacher certification. With the birth of our daughter, I decided to take yet another CPR class, only this time for infants. Considering my years of being around children as an educator, I doubted that there was much left for me to learn about emergency safety, but I felt obligated to attend a course because I was now responsible for my daughter's well being. After a lot of research and friends' recommendations, we attended Amy Gross' Little Hearts CPR & Safety course. Well, I was certainly in for a surprise -- not only did Amy provide me with new knowledge and skills on CPR, choking and general safety strategies for the car, home and travel, but she also helped me think of ways to remain calm in an emergency situation. What was most surprising to my husband and me was that we actually LAUGHED and ENJOYED ourserves at our session. This is a tribute to Amy's charismatic delivery and keen sense of humor.
NYC Middle School teacher and administrator