The British Healthcare Trade Association (BHTA) in conjunction with the British Standards Institute (BSi) recently announced a new standard for the workplace first aid kits.
The BHTA will WITHDRAW the previous standard from 31st December 2011 and new kits MUST be used from then on. Read full guidelines and changes below.
Make sure you comply today!
The full range of small, medium and large workplace kits are now available to order online.
The Guidelines
The Health and Safety (First Aid) regulations 1981 states: “An employer shall provide or ensure that there are provided such equipment and facilities as are adequate and appropriate in the circumstances for enabling first aid to be rendered to his employees if they are injured or become ill at work”.
Why the change?
For the past 14 years, 1,10,20 and 50 person kits have adhered to the workplace standard based on BHTA (British Healthcare Trade Association) guidelines. As the current BHTA-HSE kits were first introduced in 1997 based on the HSE guidelines, these are now seen as inadequate and outdated as they do not cater for the changing risks in the modern workplace. For example, previous workplace kits contained many plasters and dressings, yet did not account for other workplace injuries which may occur such as burns or the need for resuscitation. Due to changes in training protocol, increased concern with infection management and new innovations in first aid becoming less costly, it became apparent that the BHTA guidelines drastically needed updating.
What are the changes?
With the introduction of the new standards, the following changes have been made:
- Increased quantity of gloves – these will be Nitrile type in accordance with St Johns Ambulance and NHS guidelines
- Sensible plaster quantities in accordance with customer demand
- Higher quantity of wipes – these will be sterile and meet European CE marking rules
- Reduced number of large and medium dressings
- Fewer triangular bandages in line with first aid protocol which no longer suggests the need for immobilising lower limbs
- A smaller finger dressing is introduced specifically for finger injuries that are too large for first aid plasters, dressing complete with an easy-fix adhesive tab
- Burns gel dressing has been introduced as the majority of workplaces have risk from burns from something as simple as a kettle.
- The dressing will also include a conforming bandage
- Adhesive tape has been introduced in addition to safety pins when securing dressings.
- Foil emergency blanket is now included to reduce the potentially fatal effects of clinical shock
- A mouth to mouth resuscitation device, with one way valve, has also been added to reduce the risk of infection for the first aider
What action needs to be taken?
Employers need to ensure that they have replaced any old kits with the newly introduced range by 1st January 2012 to ensure they comply with the new guidelines.
