All classroom training can now continue across the UK, here is the latest FAA guidance.
Training must only take place where this is permissible in accordance with the UK Government and devolved administrations or regional restrictions. Should you choose to resume classroom training then it is critical that the guidance contained within this document is closely followed for your safety and the safety of learners. Please note that Government guidance must be strictly adhered to at all times and that imposed Government restrictions overrule any guidance from us, and it is your responsibility to ensure that the threat level has dropped appropriately in your home nation.
Prior to training commencing
1. You must risk assess the venue and delivery of your course and mitigate all possible risks identified. This includes considerations such as:
• Access to the toilets and limiting numbers depending on access routes and size
• Size of training room and effect on maximum number of learners
• Learner arrival at the venue and ensuring social distancing is maintained
• Movement around the venue and building has been considered and suitable measures taken
• Areas available for breaks and lunch that will enable social distancing to be maintained
• If catering is provided then it must be individually plated and not in a buffet style
2. You must send clear communication to your clients and learners that they should not attend training should they, or a member of their household, have symptoms of COVID-19 or have had symptoms of COVID-19 in the past 14 days.
The symptoms include a new and persistent cough, fever, and loss of smell and/or taste.
3. Learners should be asked to comply with the NHS Track & Trace programme and notify appropriately should they develop symptoms of COVID-19.
Alternatively, you can ask learners to contact you if they, or a member of their household, display symptoms of COVID-19 within 14 days ofcompletion of training. You must then notify all other learners of the situation and ask them to follow the appropriate Governmentguidance.
4. You must layout your classroom to ensure that social distancing is respected by all persons in the training room. Desks must beplaced a minimum of 2 metres apart and the room must allow for exit and entry whilst still adhering to these measures.
With regards to first aid, we will detail adaptions to the assessment process below, that will allow valid assessments whilst still respecting social distancing.
5. You must ensure you have adequate resources to run the course whilst meeting these requirements. The resources required aredetailed below, please note that some resources only relate to first aid training:
• Handwashing facilities and/or alcohol hand sanitiser
• Gloves
• Tissues
• Ample manikin lungs/airways/valves
• Adequate number of manikins
• CPR face shields
• Adequate supplies of bandages to allow one per learner for all activities
• Adequate supply of disinfectant/alcohol wipes to clean equipment between use
During training
1. You must, upon arrival, prevent any person who has symptoms of COVID-19 from entering the classroom. This should ideally be completed by temperature screening with a thermal thermometer. If this is not available the learner should be questioned to ensure that neither they, nor any person from their household, has displayed symptoms of COVID-19 in the last 14 days.
If any learner shows symptoms of COVID-19 or confirms that they, or a member of their household, have shown symptoms of COVID-19 in the last 14 days then they must be refused entry to the classroom and advised to attend training once they have been clear of all symptoms for 14 days.
Should any learner develop symptoms of COVID-19 during training then they must leave the classroom. All persons who have been in the classroom must also follow Government isolation guidelines to prevent the further spread of the disease.
2. All learners, including the Trainer/Assessor, must thoroughly wash their hands upon each instance of access and egress to theclassroom using the handwashing facilities provided.
Learners should also be advised to sneeze and cough into tissues provided and immediately dispose of them and wash their hands immediately. If a tissue is not immediately available, then learners should be encouraged to cough or sneeze into the bent elbow.
Learners should also be advised of the social distancing measures taken within classroom and building and to ensure they alwaysmaintain a distance of 2 metres.
3. During training you must teach rescue breaths, as normal, but you must also cover the protocols for first aiders when dealing with‘live’ casualties during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Please click here and view the ‘Guidance for First Aiders’ section for the latest COVID-19 protocols from the HSE.
The following adaptions have been made during this period to allow effective assessment of learners whilst respecting social distancingmeasures:
Adaptions to the assessment of first aid qualifications
CARDIOPULMONARY RESUSCITATION (CPR)
The Resuscitation Council still require regulated training providers to teach rescue breaths. Individual manikins should ideally be provided foreach learner. Where this is not possible manikins should be shared between small groups and thoroughly cleaned between each use as per theguidance below from the Resuscitation Council:
• Replace and dispose of manikin lungs and airways after each training session
• Wipe the face of the manikin with 70% alcohol wipes after each learner uses it and allow the surface to dry naturally before thenext learner takes their turn
• Students may use individual face shields, if they so wish, and they should be disposed of safely at the end of the session. The manikin chest, forehead and face should still be wiped to reduce the likelihood of hand to hand contamination.
• Where appropriate, learners can use a pocket mask for ventilation practice which must be fully cleaned or discarded after the session(one - way valves may be removed. If kept in place, it must be discarded at the end of the session). If using pocket masks, these mustbe for individual use only.
• General infection control measures must be observed, and where appropriate, the learner can be given their own manikin or canpractice rescue breaths last in the group. If the course runs over a number of days, it may be possible that once the skill has been assessed as satisfactory, they do not need to demonstrate this during the remainder of the course.
RECOVERY POSITION
Where adequate PPE is available, and learners are willing, they should demonstrate placement of a casualty into the recovery position atleast once during the course. Gloves, face coverings and hand sanitiser must be used to maximise the safety of learners.
Where PPE is not available, or the learners are unwilling, then they should demonstrate the recovery position by placing themselves into theposition, but they must also verbally state all steps they take to do so.
SECONDARY ASSESSMENT
Learners will be required to verbally explain all steps they would take when completing a secondary assessment.
A casualty can be used, ensuring social distancing is kept, and the learner can talk through the assessment and ask the casualty any questions as needed.
CHOKING
Learners are able to demonstrate the procedure for assisting a choking casualty on a manikin.
Learners can demonstrate the action for back blows and abdominal thrusts ensuring they are positioning their hands at the correct point on themanikin and carrying out the motion.
You must ensure that all equipment is thoroughly cleaned between uses.
BANDAGING AND SLINGS
Where adequate PPE is available, and learners are willing, they should demonstrate the application of bandaging and slings on anotherlearner, or the Trainer/Assessor. Gloves, face coverings and hand sanitiser must be used to maximise the safety of learners. Learners should be provided with their own bandages and slings and these must not be shared between learners and should be disposed of after each course.
Where PPE is not available, or the learners are unwilling, then they should demonstrate the application of a bandage and sling on themselves.With regards to bandaging it will be simpler for each learner to demonstrate appropriate bandaging of their own leg and to explain any other forms of bandaging verbally. For slings, whilst they will not be able to physically tie the sling, they can verbally explain each step and confirm that the sling would be tied in the correct spot.
DEMONSTRATION OF THE USE OF AN ADRENALINE AUTO-INJECTOR
Learners should demonstrate use of the training auto-injector on their own thigh, again verbally explaining any supporting information needed by theTrainer.
You must ensure that all equipment is thoroughly cleaned between use.
Post training cleaning and disinfectant
Once all learners have left the training room it must be thoroughly cleaned using a suitable disinfectant such as Dettol. Cleaning should include:
• All chairs and desks
• All surfaces touched by any person in the room, including light switches, door handles, etc
• Any cups, glasses, plates, etc used by any person in the room
• Any resources provided such as pens, etc.
All litter, including used tissues, should be immediately disposed of and the bin thoroughly cleaned.
All non-disposable resources must also be thoroughly cleaned after each day with a suitable disinfectant. This includes:
• Manikins
• Manikin faces
• Training auto-injectors
• White board pens, etc