Resuscitation training can be just as important as first aid training when it comes to teaching and informing your staff about health and safety. The decision to enact basic life support training in your workplace can literally mean the difference between life and death. This can be for staff, customers and any others who may come into your premises and be taken unexpectedly ill.
So what do we mean by ‘basic life support’? BLS is medical care provided to those suffering from life-threatening injuries or illnesses before they can be given full medical care at a hospital. These basic skills don’t require pre-existing medical training or knowledge of paramedics and emergency medical technicians. With the right basic life support and CPR training, any bystander can help save a life. These skills are appropriate in all organizations as the risks of cardiac arrest or choking happening anywhere are unavoidable.
However, they’re particularly suited to those working as teachers, nursery/ daycare staff, social workers and those working in security. When these skills are taught and applied correctly, they can prolong a person’s chances of survival by minutes. With ambulance and healthcare providers constantly fighting against the clock in such cases, those extra minutes could be the difference between life and death.
A good training provider will be able to provide training in basic life support and the use of defibrillators in cases of cardiac arrests. This will not only make your staff feel more confident and safer, but it also demonstrates the commitment that your organization has to health and safety.
The Importance of CPR In The Workplace
CPR instructor training used to be something that was just taught to the people who needed it in the workplace. However, as recognition of the time dependency behind some life-threatening conditions grows, more and more businesses feel it is their responsibility to be able to safeguard the health of their staff, non-staff and customers/clients. Plus, with Bradley University Online and other places like this, courses are delivered in much better ways.
CPR training is a perfect example. When it comes to a heart attack or a cardiac arrest, properly performed CPR – taught in classes by an instructor with certification – can massively increase the chances of someone’s survival. It can take as few as six minutes for someone’s brain to die if not being supplied by oxygenated blood. CPR can help supply such oxygen, and can, therefore, prevent serious brain injuries from occurring. Not only that, but heart attacks and cardiac arrests can happen anywhere – including at the workplace.
People are more likely to perform CPR aid on someone they know. There’s no replacement for the expertise and medical training of paramedics or medical technicians. But an employee performing CPR could be the difference between an ambulance taking away a person with a chance of survival, or a person with no chance of survival, to the hospital.
For these reasons, and more, it’s a good idea to consider introducing training in resuscitation and CPR for employees – particularly if you have a large workforce or a lot of customers on your premises. This can also be an important consideration if the premises are in a secluded location or a high-traffic area. Both factors can affect the chances of an ambulance arriving in time to save the person’s life.
Should You Have A Defibrillator On Your Business Premises?
CPR defibrillator training is something many businesses consider offering their employees every year. Of course, this training in CPR is best utilized when organizations have AEDs (Automated External Defibrillators) available for use on their premises in case of a cardiac arrest. Should you purchase an automated external defibrillator and introduce training in CPR into your business?
With the introduction of AEDs in preference to manual defibrillators, and growing public awareness of resuscitation, CPR and defibrillator devices, employers now think more seriously about providing basic medical training and equipment, as well as CPR training and attendant provisions. In fact, many businesses have expressed fears of bad publicity and accusations of negligence.
What if a member of the public suffers a cardiac arrest while on their premises and there is no AED or employees with training in CPR there to help? There have been no legal cases brought against any companies regarding a lack of AED or CPR on business premises so far. However, two airline companies were successfully sued in America because there was no AED available for passengers who suffered cardiac arrests while mid-flight. Guidelines indicate that very few workplaces are automatically expected to have an automated defibrillator and CPR provisions in place.
This is usually reserved for those working with harsh chemicals. So basic first aid provisions and training may be enough for some workplaces. Yet under Law, there is the possibility of being accused of negligence if your organization has failed to take the appropriate precautions to safeguard the health and safety of those on your premises.
Why Good Training Makes The Difference
In today’s world, many millions of people across the globe have been given CPR training. It’s a trend that has continued to grow over the past couple of decades as companies take on more of a socially responsible outlook to both their staff and their customers/non-staff’s health and well-being. Despite this, when someone collapses from a cardiac arrest, relatively few bystanders attempt to help.
It’s thought that of all the people who could be helped with CPR before paramedics or medical technicians arrive, less than one-third actually receive that assistance. Panic, recall, and worries about not doing the right thing are often up there as reasons as to why so many people suffer from the dreaded ‘bystander effect’. However, these are all effects that can be remedied with good medical training.
Training in basic resuscitation techniques on a regular basis can help staff to retain knowledge and feel more empowered when in that pressure ‘life and death’ situation. This sort of training need not be rather extensive or costly; it just needs to be done correctly and create an impact on your staff. It’s all about finding the right team of experts to train your team of learners.
