This is a (non-comprehensive) list of Training Organisations that deliver “Train the Trainer” courses that allow you to get qualified – e.g. Level 3 Award in Education and Training (AET, old PTLLS)
They may also deliver First Aid Training. The list is alphabetical.
Owned and run by Maxine lock, a highly qualified and experienced Trainer. The Level 3 AET is delivered online with only one classroom observation needed to be face to face
Parts can be taken remotely. This is the Company that I qualified through (although the specific trainer has moved on). Happy to recommend the Organisation though. Very efficient and personable.
Training Organisations can get you qualified to teach First Aid. Trade Bodies and Awarding Organisations help you with your Certification.
When delivering courses there is a hierarchy of Organisations that you can choose to work through, however you can also self-certify your own qualifications. The Certificates can be equally valid for the qualification, however some Clients will insist on Accredited or Regulated Certificates as that way they know that what they are getting will be Nationally recognised. If you self-certify you may have to prove to your client that your certificate is equally valid. your Client will have to run due diligence on you to ensure that you are competent. If they obtain an Accredited or Regulated qualification that work is done for them.
Training Organisations
Training Organisations are available to provide ‘Train the Trainer’ courses. These allow you to become qualified to deliver First Aid Training to others. Sometimes the Training Organisations deliver First Aid qualifications in their own right or they choose to just deliver training courses.
Hierarchy of Training Bodies
Regulators
Regulators regulate qualifications, examinations and assessments. They do not interact directly with Training Organisations, but use Awarding Organisations as an intermediary. The exception being if a complaint has not been resolved by an Awarding Organisation (assessment decisions themselves will not get referred as far as a Regulator)
The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. This Government Organisation regulates qualifications, examinations and assessments in England.
The Scottish Qualifications Authority is the independent organisation responsible for regulating general and vocational qualifications in Scotland.
Awarding Organisations (AO)
Awarding Organisations act as an intermediary between a Regulator and a Training Company. An AO has a number of roles:
Create and have approved (by one or more Regulators) Regulated courses. These courses (e.g. First Aid at Work) are delivered and assessed to a defined standard and the Certificates can have the AO and the Regulator’s Logo on as a stamp of Approval
Approve a Training Company and its staff to deliver these courses. Approval entails ensuring that the Training Company has various Procedures (complaints, equality, privacy for example) in place and that they are current. It ensures that the Trainers are qualified & updated to deliver the courses and that the Training Company is insured and complies with current Standards.
Deal with complaints that cannot be resolved internally within the Training Organisation. It can refer upwards to the Regulator if it cannot resolve it, however Assessment decisions will not be referred.
Monitor the Training Company by audit of paperwork and visits to training courses (announced or unannounced)
Trade Bodies
Trade Bodies sit in the gap between Awarding Organisations and Training Companies. They provide an intermediary service that can be less onerous that getting a Regulated course delivered and assessed. Usually you can also obtain Regulated qualifications through them as they liaise with an Awarding Organisation.
For a list of Training Organisations, Trade Bodies and Awarding Organisations, click here
There are some great sources of inspiration from a variety of Podcasts. Here are some that I have been listening to.
Do feel free to send in your recommendations for either First Aid, Personal development or business development Podcasts. I’ll give them a try and if I like what I hear I’ll add them!
We currently use Podfollow to link to Podcasts as it will automatically redirect to the correct player. Please send us a Podfollow link when recommending.
The Apprentice runner-up, Saira Khan talks to some of the biggest names in British business, asking them about the challenges they have faced and how they overcame them. Each guest will provide listeners with guidance, insight and inspiration to help them develop the skills needed to grow a business.
Newly launched (4/2022) with a couple of podcasts. It would be better if Saira lets the guests speak more – it turns into ‘The Saira Khan’ show from time to time.
These are other Organisations that work with one or more of the above Awarding Organisations that make your registration and management of courses easier. They are not Awarding Organisations but can Certify a Course for you and also provide an Accredited or Regulated qualification via an Awarding Organisation if your client requires it.
I’m a huge bookworm. Here is a suggested reading list. They may be available in hard copy or e-book. All these books have been read by myself, many more than once so are personal recommendations. I hope you like my choice.
If you are going to teach First Aid this is one of the manuals that you should have to hand. This essential manual was written and endorsed by all three of the UK’s leading first aid providers – St John Ambulance, St Andrew’s Ambulance Association, and British Red Cross.
Millions of people around the world have improved their lives based on the teachings of Dale Carnegie. In How to Win Friends and Influence People, he offers practical advice and techniques, in his exuberant and conversational style, for how to get out of a mental rut and make life more rewarding.
Raving Fans, in a nutshell, is the advice given to a new Area Manager on his first day – in an extraordinary business book that will help everyone, in every kind of organisation or business, deliver stunning customer service and achieve miraculous bottom-line results.
What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! The book explodes the myth that you need to earn a high income to be rich and explains the difference between working for money and having your money work for you. A really good read for anyone wondering about how to earn and keep their money. Good advice delivered effectively.
There is a lot of overlap in Richard Branson’s various books but you should read at least one. I have found myself dithering about a decision and this book’s title has popped into my head, prompting me to click the
Governing Body First Aid requirement specifications
Here is a list of Organisations and their First Aid requirements. It is non-exhaustive so if you wish to add any or you find a broken link please do let us know. All of these are minimum requirements.
Non-commercial (Survival Instructors, Offshore Personal Survival Instructors and non-commercially endorsed practical instructors) – 1 day / 6 hours syllabus defined
Commercial has to be the RYA First Aid, STCW Elementary First Aid or Sea Fish first aid.
The Medical field is full of Terms and Acronyms. Here we have compiled a list to help you understand some of the terminology, both medical and slang.
Clearly it is a work in progress as new terms are coming along all the time, but we hope that it will be of use to you.
Some of the slang terms may sound a bit callous, but consider the different traumas that frontline personnel will see on a regular basis. They need to develop a coping mechanism otherwise they would not be able to do their job effectively. Black humour is a way of coping.
0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
111
The non-emergency Ambulance number in the UK. if you want medical advice, but don’t think that it warrants an Ambulance response.
999 / 112 / 911
The emergency Ambulance number in the UK. For any medical emergency. 999 is the main number, 112 is the European equivalent and 911 is the North American equivalent, both of which are treated as though the person dialled 999.
These numbers may be dialled from a mobile ‘phone keypad even if keylock is activated.
ABC
Airway, Breathing, Commence CPR. The first thing to be done once the area is safe. If the patient is not breathing, this needs to be dealt with before anything else. See also DR ABC
AED
Automated External Defibrillator – see Defibrillator
Analgesia
Pain relief – Paracetamol, Entonox, Morphine, Ketamine etc.
Asystole
Medical – lack of electrical activity in the heart (flatline)
AVPU
Acronym that measures a patient’s level of response – Alert, Responds to Voice, Responds to Pain, Unresponsive. Especially useful for monitoring trends over time.
Awarding Organisation (AO)
Also referred to as an Authoritative Body. The AOs create Courses and submit some of them for approval by the Regulator to become a Regulated course. Once Approved, they can offer them to Centres to deliver and can add the Regulator’s logo to Certificates of successful students.
Cardiac Arrest
A condition where the heart stops beating effectively, leading to a rapid deterioration and eventually death if not reversed. Not to be confused with Heart Attack (qv)
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation / CPR
A lifesaving technique involving compressing the chest to assist blood circulation and blowing air into the mouth to deliver oxygen to the patient
Centre
A Training Company that may be registered with one or more AOs and delivers the AO’s Accredited and/or Regulated courses according to the specifications laid down by the AO. It is monitored on behalf of the Regulator by the AO for Regulated courses. It also performs internal monitoring for its own Accredited, but non-Regulated courses.
CFR / Community (First) Responder
A volunteer trained up by the Ambulance Service to assist with the more serious 999 ambulance calls.
Co-Responder
A person from an alternative Service (e.g. Police, RAF) trained to assist with the more serious 999 ambulance calls. They may or may not do it in a voluntary capacity.
CRB
Criminal Records Bureau report. Now superseded buy DBS (qv)
CTD
Slang – Circling the drain, in other words, close to death.
DBS
Disclosure and Barring Service (replaces CRB) report, that checks the criminal background of a person.
Defibrillator
A device that delivers a controlled electric shock across a heart in an attempt to reset it and get it beating on its own again.
DR ABC
Acronym to remember the order when dealing with serious incidents. Check for: Danger, Response, Airway, Breathing and C=Commence CPR if not breathing (and 999 has been dialled).
Entonox
An Analgesic (painkiller). Consists of a 50:50 mix of Oxygen and Nitrous Oxide. Also called ‘Laughing gas’ and is used for pain relief during injury treatment as well as for childbirth.
External Quality Assurer (EQA)
An EQA works for one or more Awarding Organisations (AO) and liaises between the AO and the Centre ensuring that the Centre is delivering courses that meet the definition laid down by the AO and that is is following its published procedures. This can be through monitoring of submitted course paperwork, trainer/assessor qualifications and visits.
They are an External Quality Assurer as they are External to the Centre.
Guided Learning Hours
The amount of time a learner spends being taught or instructed. e.g. for an Emergency First Aid at Work qualification, this is 6 hours.
Heart Attack
A condition where part of the heart’s blood supply gets blocked, depriving part of the heart of oxygen and causing it to start to die. Not to be confused with Angina nor Cardiac Arrest (qv).
HSE
The Health and Safety Executive. Oversees Health and Safety in the UK.
Hyper
Hyper is from the Greek meaning ‘high’. Can refer to anything being abnormally high such as hyperthermia (too hot) or Hyperglycaemia (Blood sugar levels too high)
Hypo
Hypo is from the Greek meaning ‘low’. Can refer to anything being abnormally low, but often used in a Diabetic context to mean low blood sugar level.
Internal Quality Assurer (IQA)
A qualified Internal Quality Assurer who carries out Monitoring and Quality Assurance tasks on behalf of a Centre.
They are an Internal Quality Assurer as they are Internal to the Centre – either directly employed or brought in on an ad hoc basis.
Level
This is essentially a measure of the level of difficulty that a qualification has. It has a close relationship with the time needed to complete the qualification. E.g.
Level 1 – GCSE Grades 1,2 or 3
Level 2 – GCSE Grades 4-9, Music Grades 4 and 5
Level 3 – A-Level
Level 4 – Higher National Certificate
…and so on up to Level 9
LIONEL
An acronym used to help a First Aider remember the information needed when dialling 999.
Location (where)
Incident (what has happened – fact, not guesswork)
Other Services required (Fire. Police etc.)
Number of Casualties
Extent of injuries
Location (reiterate)
LOL
Slang – Little old Lady
MHFA
Mental Health First Aid
MOP
Member Of the Public. Often a derogatory term
Myocardial infarction (MI)
A blockage in one of the blood vessels that supplies the heart. Also known as a Heart Attack. If there are no external symptoms it is known as a ‘Silent MI’
Normal Sinus Rhythm / NSR
Normal regular heartbeat. Patient is healthy and a defibrillator, if monitoring will not allow a shock to occur
OfQual
The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual) regulates qualifications, examinations and assessments in England. Ofqual is a non-ministerial department
OfSted
Office for Standards in Education. The Government Body that oversees education standards in England
Purple Plus
Slang – Dead
Regulator
The Regulator defines the framework for the qualifications and approves Awarding Organisations and their courses.
A device that controls the flow of gas (e.g. Entonox) to a patient
RICE
An acronym standing for Rest, Ice, Comfortable Support, Elevation. Used in the treatment of Strains or Sprains.
Sprain
An overextension of a ligament
STEMI
Acronym standing for STElevation Myocardial Infarction. A type of Heart Attack. The ‘ST’ refers to part of the heart’s electrical waveform.
Strain
An overextension of a muscle or tendon
TIA
An acronym for a mini-stroke – one that is temporary
Transient (not permanent)
Ischaemic (Blockage)
Attack
Total Qualification Time
The amount of time that a learner is estimated to take to achieve a qualification e.g. for an Emergency First Aid at Work qualification, this is 7 hours.
Trainer
Often a shorthand for Trainer/Assessor. Someone who teaches a topic and also assesses it on behalf of a Centre. In 2013 the HSE did away with having a separate Assessor (examiner) and Trainer for a course.
Ventricular Fibrillation / VF
Random electrical activity in the heart, preventing it from beating properly. One of the rhythms shockable by a defibrillator.
Ventricular Tachycardia / VT / Pulseless VT
A condition where the heart is beating too fast and not allowing enough time for it to refill with blood, preventing it from beating properly. One of the rhythms shockable by a defibrillator.
