Additional info has a duty to protect their workers while they are working for them. As an absolute minimum, employers must have a first aid box and an appointed person in charge in case of an emergency. Every employer also has the responsibility to supply on-going information with their employees about medical. For some companies however, sending selected employees on first aid training courses proves to function as safest & most responsible approach to medical in the workplace. A worker that has been trained by an approved organization and holds a qualification in first aid at work can be an asset with their company and their fellow colleagues.
Depending on the size of the business, it's advisable for employers to send a number of their employees to wait first aid training courses so that there will always be a qualified first-aider readily available should a situation arise. Even small companies with fewer employees should still consider sending one or two people to become qualified first-aiders. As an employer it isn't just a legal obligation to make sure that medical is sufficiently catered for, however in extreme circumstances it could mean the difference between life and death.
First aid training might help save lives, that ought to be enough of a motivation for all employers, regardless of the size or nature of these business, to send employees on first aid training courses. These courses can be conducted either on or off site and vary in length from half day refresher sessions to intensive three day courses. The very best first aid courses usually adopt a far more practical and hands on approach, concentrating on scenario based training methods that can build confidence and offer very real and practical life-saving skills.
High Risk Workplaces
Workplaces where there are more significant health and safety risks are much more likely to need a trained and qualified first-aider. In risky workplaces, such as building sites for example, failure to provide first aid in the event of an emergency could well result in a tragic outcome. Workers in these situations which are injured or taken ill need immediate and adequate medical attention before emergency services arrive, therefore these companies need to have trained first-aiders on site at all times.
Low Risk Workplaces
Even workplaces that are considered low risk, such as for example small offices with fewer employees should consider sending their employees on first aid training courses. Employers have both a moral and legal obligation to implement first aid in the workplace, whatever the size of the business.
Legal duties
If employers fail to implement medical procedures, they could end up running into trouble with the law. MEDICAL and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 requires employers to carry out an assessment, considering workplace hazards, risks and other relevant factors. Due to this assessment, the Regulations require employers to provide 'adequate and appropriate' equipment, facilities and personnel, including sending employees to first aid classes if deemed appropriate. These Regulations connect with all workplaces including people that have significantly less than five employees (see 'Low Risk Workplaces' above).
Multiple First Aiders
It stands to reason that the more workers that employers send on medical training, the better their chances will undoubtedly be of handling an initial aid emergency if the situation presents itself. The good news is that if an employer believes that they may not have sufficient trained first-aiders, it's easy enough merely to send more of these employees on an exercise course. Some employers are reluctant to get this done however, believing that first aid courses are expensive and time consuming. The truth is though, this is often false; first aid training courses can be completed in less than half of a day or around three days, according to the course. This means that employers won't need to part with large sums of money or lose key members of staff for extended periods of time.
Moreover, this means that those employers will have the reassurance of knowing that their employees are looked after and that the business's legal obligations are being fulfilled.