The Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981 require all employers to provide adequate and appropriate equipment, facilities and personnel to enable first aid to be given to employees if they are injured or become ill at work. These regulations apply to all workplaces including those with less than five employees and to the self-employed.
Following a review of first aid training and approval arrangements, the HSE have implemented the following changes, effective from 1 October 2009:
- The HSE approved course for first aid in the workplace has become the three-day First Aid at Work (FAW) course – formerly a four-day course - A new one-day course Emergency First Aid at Work (EFAW) has been introduced.
Overview:
This qualification introduces candidates to:
- The roles and responsibilities of a first aider - The legal requirements for first aid provision - The importance of accurate incident reporting - First aid equipment and its safe use - The need to minimise the risk of infection - The importance of assessing an incident - Undertaking a primary survey - When and how to call for help Outline programme:
The EFAW training and assessment will cover the following topics:
- Roles and responsibilities of a first aider - Assessment and management of first aid incidents - Management of an unconscious casualty - Management of a casualty who is not breathing normally - Management of a casualty who is choking - Management of a casualty who has a bleeding injury - Management of a casualty who is in shock
In line with the Resuscitation Council (UK) recommendation that use of an AED be integrated as part of the CPR sequence, we have revised the practical assessments accordingly:
The use of an AED is included in the practical assessments for CPR:
This will include instruction on: • placing the AED pads correctly and • following the AED instructions
The course either has new dates in data loading, or is only run as a dedicated or In Company course.