Every UK employer includes a duty to protect their employees while they are doing work for them. Being an absolute minimum, employers should have a first aid box and an appointed person in control in case of an emergency. Every employer also offers the responsibility to provide on-going information with their employees about medical. For most companies however, sending selected employees on first aid training courses proves to be the safest and most responsible approach to medical in the workplace. An employee that is trained by an approved organization and holds a qualification in first aid at work is an asset to their company and their fellow colleagues.
According to the size of the business, it's advisable for employers to send several 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 visitors to become qualified first-aiders. Being an employer it is not only a legal obligation to ensure medical is sufficiently catered for, however in extreme circumstances it might 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, whatever the size or nature of their business, to send employees on first aid training courses. These courses could be conducted either on or off site and vary long from half day refresher sessions to intensive three day courses. The best first aid courses usually adopt a far more practical and practical approach, focusing on scenario based training methods that are designed to 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 high risk workplaces, such as for example building sites for example, failure to provide medical in case of an emergency could well result in a tragic outcome. Workers in these circumstances which are injured or taken ill need immediate and adequate medical attention until the emergency services arrive, therefore these companies have to have trained first-aiders available on site constantly.
Low Risk Workplaces
Even workplaces which are considered low risk, such as for example small offices with fewer employees should consider sending their workers on first aid classes. Employers have both a moral and legal obligation to implement medical in the workplace, regardless of the size of the business.
Legal duties
If employers fail to implement medical procedures, they could find themselves 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. As a result of this assessment, the Regulations require employers to supply 'adequate and appropriate' equipment, facilities and personnel, including sending employees to medical classes if deemed appropriate. These Regulations connect with all workplaces including those with 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 first aid training, the better their chances will undoubtedly be of handling a first aid emergency if the situation presents itself. Fortunately 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 do this however, believing that first aid courses are costly and time consuming. https://firstaidtraininglancashire.co.uk/best-first-aid-training-lancashire/ is though, this is very often not the case; first aid classes could be completed in as little as half of a day or up to three days, with respect to the course. Which means that employers won't have to part with large sums of money or lose key members of staff for extended periods of time.
Moreover, this means that those employers could have the satisfaction of knowing that their employees are looked after and that the business's legal obligations are being fulfilled.