Frequently Asked Questions

FIRST AID

- Defibrillators
- First Aid Box
- First Aid Equipment
- First Aid for the Public
- First Aid for travelling, remote & lone workers
- First Aid in Schools
- First Aiders
- Insurance
- Record Keeping
- Tablets and Medication

Defibrillators

Should I provide a defibrillator for use in the workplace?

As an employer, you will need to carry out an assessment of first aid needs appropriate to the circumstances of the workplace. There is no legal bar to employers making a defibrillator available in the workplace if the assessment of first aid needs indicates such equipment is required.

The Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 do not prevent someone who is specially trained from taking action beyond the initial management of a casualty. It is important that the person who will be required to use a defibrillator, usually a First Aider, is appropriately trained. Courses in the use of defibrillators are available. Training providers offering such courses do not need approval from HSE for this purpose.

First aid box

What should a first aid box in the workplace contain?

There is no mandatory list of contents for first aid boxes. Deciding what to include should be based on the employer’s assessment of first aid needs. A suggested list of contents, where there is no special risk in the workplace, is given in the free leaflet: First aid at work: your questions answered. Equivalent but different items will be considered acceptable. Any items in the first aid box that have passed their expiry date should be disposed of safely.

In general, tablets and medication should not be kept in the first aid box.

A suggested list of contents for travelling first aid kits is included in the Approved Code of Practice and Guidance: First aid at work. The Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 L74.

First aid equipment

What first aid equipment should be provided?

Once an assessment of first aid needs has been carried out, the findings can be used to decide what first aid equipment should be provided in the workplace. The minimum level of first aid equipment is a suitably stocked first aid box. The assessment may indicate that additional materials and equipment are required such as scissors, adhesive tape, disposable aprons and individually wrapped moist wipes. They may be put in the first aid container if there is room or stored separately.

There may be a need for items such as protective equipment where first aiders may have to enter dangerous atmospheres. This should be securely stored near the first aid box, in the first aid room or the hazard area, as appropriate. Access to the equipment should be restricted to those trained in its use.

If mains tap water is not readily available for eye irrigation, at least one litre of sterile water or sterile normal saline (0.9%) in sealed, disposable containers should be provided. When the seal has been broken, the container should not be reused. The container should not be used beyond its expiry date

First aid for the public

Do I need to make first aid provision for members of the public?

The Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 do not oblige employers to provide first aid for members of the public. However, many organisations provide a service for others, for example places of entertainment, fairgrounds and shops, and HSE strongly recommends that employers include the public and others on their premises when making their assessment of first aid needs.

First aid for travelling, remote and lone workers

I have employees who travel regularly or work elsewhere, what should I do about first aid provision for them?

Employers are responsible for meeting the first aid needs of their employees working away from the main site. Employers’ assessment of first aid needs should determine whether:

those who travel long distances or are continuously mobile should carry a personal first aid box;
special arrangements need to be made for employees who work in remote areas; and
to provide other means of summoning help, such as a mobile phone, for employees who work alone.

First aid in schools

How do the Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 relate to first aid provision in schools?

Employers are responsible for the provision of appropriate first aid equipment and facilities and trained first aiders in respect of their employees – this includes schools, as they are workplaces. However, the Regulations do not oblige employers to provide first aid for anyone else. Nevertheless, HSE strongly encourages employers to consider others when carrying out their assessment of first aid needs and to make provision for them.

The Department for Education and Skills (DfES) has produced a booklet: Guidance on First Aid for Schools. This can be downloaded from the DfES website: www.dfes.gov.uk.

First Aiders

How many first aiders do I need?

There is no definitive answer. It will largely depend on the outcome of your assessment of first aid needs. The table on pages 6-7 of the leaflet First aid at work: your questions answered, provides some guidance on the number of first aiders, depending on the nature of the work carried out and number of employees.

Can legal action be taken against first aiders?

It is very unlikely that any action would be taken against a first aider who was using the first aid training they have received. HSE cannot give any specific advice on this issue as it has no expertise in this area and it does not fall within HSE’s statutory powers.

It is recommended that you seek legal advice, or advice from your employer’s insurance brokers on whether their policies cover first aiders’ liability.

Does my employee need to do any training to be a first aider?

Yes. If you have identified that your workplace needs first aiders, they must have completed a first aid at work course provided by an HSE approved training organisation.

Insurance

Does my employer’s liability insurance cover the activities of first aiders?

HSE cannot give specific advice on this issue. It is not an area in which HSE has any expertise, nor is it something which falls within HSE’s statutory powers. You could seek legal advice, or advice from your insurance brokers on whether the employer’s liability insurance policy covers first aiders’ liability.

Record keeping

Do I need to record incidents requiring the attention of a first aider?

HSE recommends that it is good practice to provide your first aiders/ appointed persons with a book in which to record incidents that required their attendance. The information kept can help you identify accident trends and possible areas for improvement in the control of health and safety risks. It can also be used for reference in future first aid needs assessments. This record book is not the same as the statutory accident book though the two could be combined.

There is a legal requirement to report accidents and ill health at work. Information on the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 is given in the HSE leaflet RIDDOR Explained [PDF 143kb].

What information should be recorded?

Useful information to record might include:

date, time and place of incident;
name and job of the injured or ill person;
details of the injury/illness and what first aid was given;
what happened to the person immediately afterwards (for example went home, went back to work, went to hospital);
name and signature of the first aider or person dealing with the incident.

Who is responsible for keeping the records?

It is usually the first aider or appointed person who looks after the book. However, employers have overall responsibility.

Tablets and medication

Are first aiders allowed to give tablets and medication to casualties?

HSE guidance in the Approved Code of Practice and Guidance: First aid at work. The Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 L74, states that first aid at work does not include giving tablets or medication to treat illness and such items should not be kept in the first aid box. However, strictly speaking, there is no legal bar to employers making such items available to employees, if the assessment of first aid needs indicates they should be provided. HSE has no objection to paracetamol or aspirin being made available in the workplace. First aiders administering these tablets should have a reasonable understanding of what is involved.

HSE has no objection to employers providing vending machines for dispensing paracetamol. It is preferable that these machines are not located in areas where the public will have access to them.

Some workers carry their own medication such as inhalers for asthma or ‘Epipens’ which contain injectable adrenaline for the treatment of severe allergic (anaphylactic) reactions, for example to peanuts. These medications are prescribed by a doctor. If an individual needs to take their own prescribed medication, the first aider’s role is limited to helping them do so and contacting the emergency services as appropriate.

Medicines legislation restricts the administration of injectable medicines. Unless self administered, they may only be administered by or in accordance with the instructions of a doctor (e.g. by a nurse). However, in the case of adrenaline there is an exemption to this restriction which means in an emergency, a suitably trained lay person is permitted to administer it by injection for the purpose of saving life. The use of an Epipen to treat anaphylactic shock falls into this category. Therefore, first aiders may administer an Epipen if they are dealing with a life threatening emergency in a casualty who has been prescribed and is in possession of an Epipen and where the first aider is trained to use it.

The use of tablets and medication in the context of first aid provision in the offshore industry is dealt with separately (see The Law).

FAQs For health & Safety and Fire Safety

Frequently Asked Questions for Health & Safety and Fire Safety coming soon!

In the meantime please don't hesitate to get in touch with Arion where one of our friendly staff will be waiting to help you.