What is a First Aid Refresher and why is It Necessary?

As first aid is a requirement for most workplaces, many people are certified in first aid training such as the First Aid at Work course or the Emergency First Aid at Work course. These training courses are designed to prepare you for emergency first aid situations and teach you what to do when it comes to treating wounds, poisonings, breathing obstructions, bone breaks and any other injuries.

When you take your first aid course, you will be required after a specified period of time (usually three years) to take another first aid refresher course to keep your training current. What exactly is a first aid refresher course and why is it necessary for your first aid training?

What is a First Aid Refresher?

A first aid refresher course will give you all of the updated information that you need to keep your training fresh, including information about first aid techniques and regulations that might have changed since your initial training. The course usually only takes around two days and afterward you will be presented with a new first aid at work certificate that will be valid for three more years.

Why is a First Aid Refresher Necessary?

Why do we have to update our knowledge with a First Aid Refresher course every few years? Why can’t we just learn everything that we need to know and then never have to learn anything more?

There are many reasons why a first aid refresher course is necessary. First of all, advances in medicine and changes to the first aid best practices and techniques happen on a regular basis. This means that it is necessary for you to learn this new information, so that you don’t continue to practice old techniques when better ones have been discovered or developed within the past couple of years.

Another important reason to take a first aid refresher is that if you took the course three years ago, it is likely that you have forgotten most of the information that you have learned. You will not have to use it on a daily basis, so the little details will have escaped from your mind. The first aid refresher course will keep the techniques fresh in your mind so that you will remember them when you need them. This is especially important if you have not had to deal with an accident in this time. Of course, another important reason to take your updated first aid refresher is for legal reasons.

Employers are required by law to provide an appropriate number of qualified personnel in order to ensure the safety of their employees and customers. If you have taken the First Aid at Work course, you are only legally valid to act as a first aider for three years. After that time period has elapsed, you must take the assessment again to be considered qualified. These are just a few of the reasons why a First Aid Refresher course is so important, so contact us to find out more about the first aid courses we have to offer.

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