FAQ’S

The PHECC First Aid Response (FAR) course is the only course recognised by the Health & Safety Authority for workplaces.

No, A QQI/FETAC certificate is no longer required. You will receive one certificate jointly issued by the recognised training provider and PHECC.

Since 1st June 2018, the Health & Safety Authority no longer recognise the Occupational First Aid Course, deciding to recognise the PHECC First Aid Response course instead.

The decision to make this change was taken by the Health and Safety Authority (HSA), which has overall responsibility for the enforcement of health & safety at work in Ireland and for the regulations that require employers to have a sufficient number of trained first aiders in the workplace. The reasons given by the HSA are: 1. They are no longer required to administer the approval of training providers and are not involved in the delivery of any other health and safety training e.g. Manual Handling 2. It makes sense to have just one statutory body involved in training delivery rather than three (i.e. QQI, HSA, PHECC) 3. PHECC is the statutory body for pre-hospital emergency care and expert in maintaining and updating standards

• The full course still takes 3 days to complete though the days can be slightly shorter • The refresher course now takes 2 days to complete • The maximum grace period allowable is 30 days to recertify (previously 90 days) • A multiple choice question paper has replaced the short answer paper (60% Pass Mark) • A detachable wallet-sized certification card is included with the First Aid Response certificate • The instructor student ratio has decreased from 1:10 to 1:8 • Instructors must be holders of a valid First Aid Response Instructor certificate and registered with a PHECC Recognised Institution

The Health & Safety Authority will recognise Occupational First Aid Certificates up to their expiry date.

Under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007, there is a requirement on employers and the self-employed to provide first-aid equipment and, based on a risk assessment, to have a sufficient number of adequately trained first-aiders in the workplace. The specific requirements for first aid provision at work depends on several factors including: • the size of the workplace, • the numbers employed, • the hazards arising, • dispersal of employees (including remote working & isolated locations) • access to medical services Different work activities involve different hazards and, therefore, different first-aid equipment is necessary. Some places of work (e.g. offices, libraries) have relatively low hazards whereas others (e.g. factories, construction sites) often have a greater degree of hazard or specific hazards. The HSA does offer guidance on the indicative number of first aiders required for different types of workplaces and recommended contents of first aid boxes. Employers must ensure that there is an adequate number of trained occupational first aiders to cover the foreseeable absences or leave, if the need for an occupational first aider in the workplace has been identified.

Every two years.

Refresher training should be completed on/before the expiry date of your previous certificate. The maximum grace period allowable is 30 days.

16 years of age

Yes, we provide training for teachers. Contact us for more details.

Yes. The 2-Day Refresher course is open to anyone who currently holds a valid Occupational First Aid or First Aid Response Certificate which is due for renewal – even if the previous training was not provided by us. Please provide a copy of your certificate at time of booking for validation purposes.

Nationwide. For courses in Dublin, call our sales team on (01) 6140035. For courses outside of Dublin, please contact your local Unit of the Order of Malta Ambulance Corps.

Our Training Centre in Ballsbridge offers modern training facilities in a central location with limited free parking spaces too.

Yes. For courses outside of Dublin, please contact your local Unit of the Order of Malta Ambulance Corps.

The Department of Children & Youth Affairs and Tusla recommend that early years staff who are availing of first-aid training for the first time should undertake the PHECC First Aid Response (FAR) training course from a PHECC Recognised Institution. Order of Malta Ireland is one such institution. Also, as the owner or manager of a pre-school service is responsible for the welfare of their employees under Health & Safety Legislation they must have adequate training in place for accidents that may occur in the workplace – the First Aid Response standard is recognised by the Health & Safety Authority for such purposes.