Four Reasons Why Every Business Should Provide Employees With First Aid Training

In today's society, it is vital for business owners to provide their employees with first aid training for a variety of reasons. Regardless of industry, implementing a first aid training program for employees ensures that they are ready to respond to any medical crisis when needed. This is important for the safety of customers as well as the employees themselves.

When a person suffers a medical crisis such as a heart attack, it is often the first aid or CPR administered at the scene that ultimately saves their life. The American Heart Association reports that effective CPR, started immediately after cardiac arrest, can double a victim's chance of survival.

Here are four important reasons why a business can benefit from first aid training its staff members:

It's The Law

Based on the industry in which a business operates, first aid training may be required by law. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) oversees the first aid and CPR training requirements for the workplace. OSHA requirements typically concern industries that put their employees in harms way such as electrical power, health care, and construction. However, even general industry businesses such as manufacturing, wholesale and retail have OSHA first aid training requirements to follow.

Knowing where a business falls within the OSHA requirements is a first step in determining the type of first aid and CPR training to give employees. Even businesses that are not required to administer training through OSHA can benefit from having employees on staff that can provide a broad range of first aid at any given moment.

Employee Safety

Thousands of employees are hurt on the job every year in this country. This results in loss of work and less productivity. Some industries such as construction and manufacturing have higher instances of injury than other less dangerous businesses. Still, first aid training for all employees ensures that if anyone is injured on the job immediate action can be taken.

It typically takes several minutes for paramedics to respond to a call. If employees are trained in general first aid and CPR, treatment can be administered in those crucial first few minutes before medical help arrives. This can have a huge impact on the overall outcome or survival of the victim.

Customer Safety

People get hurt or suffer cardiac arrest in the most inopportune places. If injury happens at a place of business, they expect employees to be trained to help them. Businesses typically want to do everything in their power to ensure customers have a good experience. Providing them with a safe environment is the ultimate way to show you care!

On a secondary note, the publicity a business receives as a result of a medical emergency handled properly is excellent marketing. The general public knows that a business that takes the time and money to properly train their employees in first aid and CPR techniques really cares about people. The public will want to reward that company by doing business with them! It is a win-win situation. The victim suffers less with proper first aid care and the business wins accolades in the media.

Insurance Premiums

Every insurance company is different, but many offer premium discounts for businesses that have offered first aid and CPR training to their staff. Liability insurance is sometimes one of the largest expenses a business faces. The ability to lower this cost while providing a community service to employees and customers is a huge advantage.

There are many reasons to provide first aid training to employees, but one of the most important is simply the fact that they can be good stewards in the community and use their training to help others no matter where they are. If more citizens were knowledgeable about proper first aid and CPR training, thousands of lives could be saved each year. The American Heart Association reports that 75 to 80 percent of all out-of-hospital cardiac arrests happen at home. A person who received on-the-job first aid training could very well wind up saving the life of a loved one!