The importance of First aid at work
Under the Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981, employers are legally required to provide adequate and appropriate equipment, and must arrange for the immediate care of any staff who have an accident or become ill while they are at work. Such equipment and care must be available at all times whenever people are at work.
As well as meeting your legal obligations, when an employee is injured or becomes ill at work, a First Aider can make the difference between a quick recovery or longer-term health issues.
Employers must assess their first aid needs based on the hazards and risks involved in their work and presented by their workplace, and provide appropriate equipment and enough trained first aiders to help injured or ill staff.
If you’d like to discuss how our wellbeing specialists can help you to be legally compliant with first aid in the workplace.
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As experienced providers of clear, easy-to-understand wellbeing support, our team will be more than happy to discuss how they can help you.
How Loch Wellness can help:
We provide a range of First Aid training to equip your staff with the skills they need to handle a range of first aid emergencies including CPR, choking, shock and minor injuries, along with more serious conditions including heart attacks, spinal injuries, fractures and anaphylaxis.
Our certified courses provide you with evidence that you are meeting your health and safety obligations, whilst giving your staff the confidence to cope with a first aid emergency at work.
Our First Aid at Work training course takes place over three days and provides you, as an employer, with evidence that you are meeting your health and safety obligations. At the same time, it ensures your staff gain the knowledge and confidence they need to cope with a first aid emergency at work. This requires participation across all three days. Attendees will receive certification for their new First Aid qualification.
Learning outcomes include:
- The role and responsibilities of a First Aider
- How to assess an incident
- Managing an unresponsive casualty
- CPR and how to use an AED
- Managing first aid emergencies including heart attacks, stroke, choking and epilepsy
- How to deal with conditions such as epilepsy, asthma, diabetes and anaphylaxis
- How to manage shock, head and spinal injuries, wounds and bleeding and fractures, sprains, strains and dislocations
Managing burns and scalds, poisoning and eye injuries
Our First Aid At Work training courses are delivered by medical experts who have real world experience in dealing with medical emergencies. Our trainers share realistic and practical advice that will ensure attendees are equipped to cope in a first aid emergency at work. We can also develop bespoke training courses to suit your requirements and can deliver courses both in-house at your premises, or in a venue to suit you.
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What are my minimum legal obligations as an employer?
The minimum first aid requirement in every workplace is:
- a first aid box (including the appropriate equipment);
- an appointed person to take charge of first aid arrangements;
- first aid information for all employees.
Every employer in the UK, regardless of the size of the company, is legally obliged to plan for the provision of first aid at work.
Employers must make sure that someone is always available to give or arrange first aid. First aiders must have a valid first aid training certificate.
It is not a legal requirement that all employers have a fully trained first aider, but someone must be appointed to take charge of first aid in the workplace.
What is a first aid assessment?
All employers in the UK are required to carry out an assessment of first aid requirements. This assessment should consider:
- whether a designated first aider is required;
- potential hazards in the workplace;
- the size of the company in terms of people and area;
- previous accidents and illnesses;
- hours of working and shift patterns;
- the location of employees during working hours (on or off-site);
- the distance to emergency services;
- potential visitors to the workplace.
What should be included in a first aid box?
There is no set requirement for the contents of a first aid box, as it will be dictated by your first aid needs assessment. As a minimum, you might want to consider including:
- a leaflet giving general first aid guidance;
- plasters of assorted sizes (20);
- sterile triangular bandages (4);
- disposable gloves (1 pair);
- safety pins (6);
- medium size sterile wound dressings (6);
- large-size sterile dressings (2);
- sterile eye pads (2).
A first aid box containing the above would be sufficient for most low-hazard workplaces, such as offices. Make sure that all first aid equipment is within date. Tablets and medicines should not be kept in a first aid box.
