ABOUT US
We are happy to announce we are officially a Small, Micro, Minority, Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business serving our community of Northern Virginia, Washington, DC, Pennsylvania, parts of Florida, and Maryland since 2002. Our company is a licensed and insured Training Center and Training Site providing valuable CPR & First Aid Training in English and Spanish. Our instructors are certified by the American Heart Association (AHA), American Red Cross (ARC), Emergency Care and Safety Institute (ECSI), National Safety Council (NSC), and American Safety and Health Institute (ASHI).
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How we Started
Our company first started in San Diego, California in 2002 while working on designing a Spanish CPR Course as an internship for A-B CPR. We then began assisting AmeriMed CPR Training in La Mesa with their Spanish classes that were being conducted for the Foster Parents Organization. Shortly after that, we began assisting and affiliating with American EHS and American CPR Training and from working with these 3 great organizations, the idea of going independent began. Due to being reassigned for work, we relocated and opened our doors in Falls Church, VA in 2004. Safety First CPR & First Aid Training became the first company in Northern Virginia that was not only able to conduct CPR and First Aid Classes in Spanish but also Certify under the American Heart Association (AHA) and shortly thereafter American Safety and Health Institute (ASHI). Up until then, unless the students attended training provided by the American Red Cross, they were not able to get certified in CPR & First Aid.
Our Philosophy
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Our company strives to provide the best customer service. We believe in providing excellent customer service. Our best marketing tool is the more word-of-mouth referrals our company gets. We maintain the utmost professionalism in all of our classes. We do our best to serve the communities we work for.
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Our Instructors
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Our instructors are the best of the best. Many of them have over 10 years of professional and teaching experience. They are affiliated with the American Heart Association (AHA), American Safety and Health Institute (ASHI), Emergency Care and Safety Institute (ECSI), and/or American Red Cross (ARC) as either Instructors, Instructor Trainers, Training Center Faculties, Regional Faculty, or National Faculty. Our instructors have gained their hands-on experience either as Hospital Corpsmen, Army Medics, Nurses, EMT's, or Emergency Physicians which provides real-life experience to what they are teaching. Many of our instructors/educators have worked for or as independent contractors for CardiacScience, RescueOne, Health Safety Institute National Training Solution, Amerimed, American Environment Health Safety, Lifework, Inc., Life Safety, CPR Pros, CPR & More, Always CPR, and many others.
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Francisco Cano
Owner, Health Safety Consultant
Mr. Cano graduated in 1994 from Bishop O'Connell High School in Arlington, Virginia. In 2004, Mr. Cano received his Bachelor of Science Degree from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale in Workforce Education Development where he Graduated with Honors. In July 2020, Mr. Cano graduated from Liberty University with his Master of Education in Higher Learning Instructional Design and Technology. In October 2023, Mr. Cano completed his Executive Certification in Instructional Design and Technology from Liberty University. Mr. Cano is currently serving as the BLS Program Director and Mock Code Blue Program Director in the Department of Education and Training at one of the local hospitals.
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In 1994 shortly after graduating from Bishop O'Connell, Mr. Cano decided that he wanted to do something for his country and joined the United States Navy. Mr. Cano while serving in the United States Navy as a Dental Technician, became specialized as a Field Medic and an Oral Maxillofacial Surgical Technician.
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Mr. Cano obtained his National Registry of Emergency Medical Technician Basic certification while he was on Active Duty in 1997. Mr. Cano for over 3 years served as the Program Director for the Emergency Vehicle Operators Course at the National Naval Medical Center Bethesda for the Hospital Education and Training Department. He oversaw and conducted the training of new Ambulance Emergency Vehicle Operators. While Mr. Cano was on his last active duty tour at the National Naval Dental Center (NNDC), Mr. Cano was the Basic Life Support Assistant Program Manager and the Basic Life Support Program Administrator under the Military Training Network for the entire National Naval Dental Command. He separated from Active Duty in January 2004. Mr. Cano decided to continue serving in the military, he joined the US Naval Reserves and served as a Surgical Technician until January 2006.
In 2010, Mr. Cano decided that he wanted to serve our country and he rejoined our fine military and enlisted in the Army Reserves where he became a CBRN Specialist certified with the ProBoard and DOD Fire certified as a Hazardous Material Technician, Hazardous Material Technical Escort and as a Combat Medic. In October 2018, Mr. Cano retired from the Army Reserves after serving our country for 20 years of cumulative service in both the Navy and the Army.
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While stationed in Johnstown, PA, in December 2015, Mr. Cano became a Volunteer Fire Fighter with Lower Yoder Volunteer Fire Department where he made it up the ranks from Fire Fighter to Lieutenant to Fire Chief. He later joined West Hills Regional Fire Department where he was an active member as a firefighter. Some of the other accomplishments of Mr. Cano while being a volunteer firefighter, included annually completing his recertification in Hazmat Awareness, Hazmat Operations, Hazmat Technician, and obtaining his Fire Fighter 1 certification through the PA Fire Commission.
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Mr. Cano is certified through the American Heart Association as a Basic Life Support Training Center Faculty since 2000 and an Advance Life Cardiac Support Instructor Trainer since 2019 under Lifework, Inc. Since 2004, Mr. Cano is also an Instructor Trainer and has a Training Center with American Safety and Health Institute. Mr. Cano since 2019 is also certified with the American Red Cross as a Basic Life Support (BLS) Instructor Trainer, Advance Life Support (ALS) Instructor Trainer, and Pediatric Life Support (PALS) Instructor.
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Mr. Cano is fluent in Spanish which allows him to reach out to the local Hispanic community. In 2001, Mr. Cano developed a Spanish Curriculum for students and an Instructor Manual while he did his internship with A-B-CPR. He had developed the curriculum using American Heart Association Guidelines prior to the development of the Spanish Program in 2006. In 2002, he was given special permission by the American Heart Association to not only conduct classes in Spanish but also be able to certify students. Additionally, Safety First CPR & First Aid training was the first non-American Red Cross Company not only able to teach but also to certify students in CPR and First Aid in Spanish for Home Day Care Providers to maintain their certification with the county and/or state. Safety First CPR & First Aid Training continues serving the Spanish-speaking community of Northern Virginia, DC, and Maryland.
With over 25 years of teaching experience with both military and civilian organizations, Mr. Cano's clients have included referrals from Fairfax County Office for Children since 2002, the National Park Service, Fox News Channel, Amtrak, FBI, MHP, Dr. Bonacci, Dr. Whittington, Northern Virginia Oral Maxillofacial and Implant Surgery, Dr. Ahrabi, Fairfax Oral Surgery Clinic, Pediatric Associates of Alexandria, Virginia Department of Education, word of mouth referrals from our previous clients, and many others.
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Why does Mr. Cano continue teaching?
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Mr. Cano loves serving his community. Mr. Cano loves to teach and also loves to talk about the importance of the role of the First Responder in helping those injured individuals until care can be transferred to the next level of care. His passion has made him able to establish a more personal approach to his lessons and to his students.
Late July 2020, Mr. Cano himself was grateful for a group of 4 Good Samaritans that stopped to check on him after having a bad crash on his way to work on his motorcycle. He suffered 5 broken ribs on his left side (ribs 5-9 fractured with 3 of them dislocated), minor pneumothorax, and right broken Scaphoid. Mr. Cano was thankful for them stopping to check on him and keep him safe while EMS showed up on scene. He was also very thankful to have been given another chance of life.
Meet the Rest of Our Team
Jackie holds a B.S. in English and a Minor in Chemistry from Jacksonville University. She is currently working on her M.A. in Rhetoric and Composition at the University of Central Florida. She also teaches composition. She has assisted her father with instructing CPR and First Aid since she was 16 and became a certified ASHI/HSI instructor while she was in college. She looks forward to being able to bring these valuable skills to the community she serves.
Jacqueline Cano Diaz
Chief Marketing Officer and Health Safety Instructor