First aid and the first aid box in the workplace contains.
This always a difficult topic to deal with, anyone who is a mother will have a “first aid box” that will make any pharmacy in Timbuktu proud. As a doctor my emergency bag is vastly different from most people’s “first aid box”. So what should a first aid box in the workplace contain?
What use though, is a first aid box if you do not have staffed trained on how to make use of it? The regulation is specific and thus states that ‘‘an employer shall take all reasonable steps that are necessary under the circumstances, to ensure that persons at work receive prompt first aid treatment in case of injury or emergency.’’ In other words there should be first aid trained personnel in the workplace in order to provide “prompt first aid treatment”.Therefore, employers are obliged to provide training for staff in first aid by an accredited organisation.
Once a company has trained first aid staff, a first aid box becomes an instrument of gold. First aid boxes must be provided where there are more than five employees at a workplace. These first aid boxes must be easily “available and accessible” in case of an emergency. Each industry has different risks and the number of first aid boxes required depend the type of injury foreseen as well as the total number of employees. I recommend to have a company that specialises in this field to assess the risk and advise on this subject.
The minimum contents for a first aid box is listed the Annexure at the back of the General Administrative Regulations.Government Notice R.2245 of 7 August 1992.Shops and offices, the quantities stated under items 1, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 17, and 18 may be reduced by half. As per regulation 3, a first aid box may not have any medication, such as painkillers, in it. A first aider may not administer medicine to a patient as they are not qualified to do so.
As with most things in the workplace, contents in first aid boxes like to disappear and as such many companies opt to lock the first aid box with a key. This is not permitted as the contents are no longer available and accessible. The best option is to invest in safety tags that are numbered and easily removed in case of emergencies. This then must be followed up by regular inspections of the first aid boxes to ensure that the boxes contain the minimum prescribed contents as well as to ensure that expired products be discarded and replaced immediately.
A first aid register for the purpose of recording all incidents where first aid had to be provided must be kept as well as a list of the names of certified first aiders in the company and kept in or near the first aid box.
Contrary to what most people believe, the first aid box is not a fix for all medical ailments in the company but a container that contains specific items as required by law to treat emergencies.
First aid and the first aid box in the workplace contains.
This always a difficult topic to deal with, anyone who is a mother will have a “first aid box” that will make any pharmacy in Timbuktu proud. As a doctor my emergency bag is vastly different from most people’s “first aid box”. So what should a first aid box in the workplace contain?
What use though, is a first aid box if you do not have staffed trained on how to make use of it? The regulation is specific and thus states that ‘‘an employer shall take all reasonable steps that are necessary under the circumstances, to ensure that persons at work receive prompt first aid treatment in case of injury or emergency.’’ In other words there should be first aid trained personnel in the workplace in order to provide “prompt first aid treatment”.Therefore, employers are obliged to provide training for staff in first aid by an accredited organisation.
Once a company has trained first aid staff, a first aid box becomes an instrument of gold. First aid boxes must be provided where there are more than five employees at a workplace. These first aid boxes must be easily “available and accessible” in case of an emergency. Each industry has different risks and the number of first aid boxes required depend the type of injury foreseen as well as the total number of employees. I recommend to have a company that specialises in this field to assess the risk and advise on this subject.
The minimum contents for a first aid box is listed the Annexure at the back of the General Administrative Regulations.Government Notice R.2245 of 7 August 1992.Shops and offices, the quantities stated under items 1, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 17, and 18 may be reduced by half. As per regulation 3, a first aid box may not have any medication, such as painkillers, in it. A first aider may not administer medicine to a patient as they are not qualified to do so.
As with most things in the workplace, contents in first aid boxes like to disappear and as such many companies opt to lock the first aid box with a key. This is not permitted as the contents are no longer available and accessible. The best option is to invest in safety tags that are numbered and easily removed in case of emergencies. This then must be followed up by regular inspections of the first aid boxes to ensure that the boxes contain the minimum prescribed contents as well as to ensure that expired products be discarded and replaced immediately.
A first aid register for the purpose of recording all incidents where first aid had to be provided must be kept as well as a list of the names of certified first aiders in the company and kept in or near the first aid box.
Contrary to what most people believe, the first aid box is not a fix for all medical ailments in the company but a container that contains specific items as required by law to treat emergencies.