First Aid Kits & Reporting
First Aid Kits & Reporting
The Health & Safety (First Aid) Regulations (1981) state that an employer must provide adequate and appropriate equipment, facilities and personnel to ensure their employees receive immediate attention if they are injured or taken ill at work.
First Aid Kits
First Aid Kits should be easy to access and clearly identified by a white cross on a green background.
The size of the first aid kit required is calculated by a combination of the level of risk and the number of employees in the workplace.
It is important to replace any used items and to check the expiry dates. First Aid kits should not include any type of medication. Any medication required by an individual must be stored separately.
British Standard workplace first aid kits have the same standard contents and come in a variety of sizes. Each kit contains:
- First Aid guidance leaflet & contents
- Disposable gloves, resuscitation face shield
- Assortment of plasters (hypo-allergenic for children)
- Burn dressing
- Medium & large sterile dressings
- Eye pad & finger sterile dressings
- Triangular bandage (sling), conforming bandage (stretch & mould to the body)
- Alcohol- free moist cleansing wipes
- Safety pins, adhesive tape
- Foil blanket
- Eye wash
- Scissors
The British Standard (BS-8599) kits follow the following recommendations for high-risk settings:
- Small kit – for less than 5 people
- Medium kit- for 5 – 25 people
- Large kit – for over 25 people
The British Standard (BS-8599) kits follow the following recommendations for low-risk settings:
- Small kit – for less than 25 people
- Medium kit – for 25-100 people
- Large kit – for over 100 people
Accident Reporting
An accident book helps employers keep track of incidents and could help them identify trends that can be addressed via health and safety measures. It is also a legal document and can help all parties if the incident leads to legal action or insurance claims.
Accident books are usually filled in by the first aider but could be completed by the casualty, especially if the incident was relatively minor.
- Complete the accident book as soon as you can safely do so, while it is still fresh in your mind. Fill in all the details using pen (or complete electronically).
- Personal details must be kept confidential. It should be possible to remove completed records and keep separately in a secure location. A member of staff should be given responsibility for the safekeeping of the records.
- The casualty may wish to take a copy of the form before it is handed in.
Accident book templates are available to buy. They should include:
- Name, address and occupation of casualty.
- Date, time and location of the incident.
- A report of what happened and any treatment given.
- Details of any injuries.
- Name, address, occupation of person completing the report.
RIDDOR
Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) is legislation that requires employers, the self-employed and people in control of work premises to report certain serious workplace accidents to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) (or HSE NI in Northern Ireland).
These incidents include:
- Death
- Certain specified injuries (detailed list available on hse.gov.uk/riddor)
- Incidents which result in a person being unable to work normal duties for more than seven consecutive days
- Occupational diseases
- Dangerous occurrences – which are certain, specified near-miss events.
Timescales for reporting are also stipulated in the guidelines available on the HSE website.
