First aid training

What’s new

The approval process for workplace first aid training agency course(s) has been updated.

New first aid training agency and course approval requests will now be accepted as part of the new approval process.

Overview

According to Part 11: First Aid of the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Code, the employer is responsible for ensuring individuals who provide first aid services to workers at a work site are appropriately trained.

Workers successfully completing an approved first aid course are issued a first aid certificate by an approved first aid training agency. This card needs to be shown to the employer when individuals are asked to provide proof of their first aid qualifications.

How agencies become approved

Alberta Labour and Immigration has adopted the CSA Standard Z1210-17 First aid training for the workplace — Curriculum and quality management for training agencies as well as additional, Alberta specific training standards (“Alberta Plus”), into its first aid training approval process. The new process is used for all workplace first aid training course approvals.

Agencies applying to teach new workplace first aid courses in Alberta must align their course curriculum with the requirements outlined in the bulletin, entitled “Workplace First Aid Approval: Alberta Plus Quality Management Plan (QMP)”. This bulletin provides an overview of the workplace first aid approval process and “Alberta Plus” requirements.

Agencies are advised to review first aid forms prior to developing new workplace first aid courses.

If your agency is planning to develop and submit new first aid training courses for approval:

have your medical advisor review your course(s) to verify that the CSA Standard Z1210-17 requirements are met, and
submit a first aid form and mandatory supplemental information according to the Alberta Plus QMP requirements.

Agencies and courses that are currently approved will continue to maintain their approval status and are expected to update their first aid training to the new Alberta Plus QMP requirements by January 15, 2020.

Certification term

The term for first aid training certification is a maximum of 3 years. After a certificate expires, retraining is required.

Approved training courses

The list of approved first aid agencies that provide workplace first aid courses is updated quarterly. If you want to know whether a particular agency and course not appearing on the list is approved, call OHS at 1-866-415-8690.

This list of approved courses is useful if you’re looking to take a specific course and wondering if it’s approved, or want to verify whether a course you’ve already taken is approved and taught by an approved agency.

Some consultants and service providers have first aid courses but their names do not appear in the list of approved courses. Rather than developing their own materials and going through the agency approval process, the consultant or service provider uses course materials developed by a listed approved agency. An instructor certified by the listed agency delivers the course.

If the name of the consultant or service provider conducting a course is not on the list of approved courses, ask which approved agency developed the course. Also ask if a certified instructor will deliver the approved workplace first aid course. A call to the approved first aid training agency can confirm this information. In addition, approved agencies receive a signed approval letter from a Director of Medical Services, Alberta Labour and Immigration. Ask to see an agency’s letter to verify their approval status.