The Student Room Group

FREE first aid COURSE?

Hey so I am looking to sign up for a free first aid course and get proof of my qualification, where can I do this for free?? Everywhere I look is expensive. I know the basics in first aid but only read about it and never had any practice.
Nowhere? And it's not exactly an impressive thing to put on your PS anyway.
Original post by PrazzPrazz
Hey so I am looking to sign up for a free first aid course and get proof of my qualification, where can I do this for free?? Everywhere I look is expensive. I know the basics in first aid but only read about it and never had any practice.


This is not something especially advantageous for medical school admissions, just fyi.

If you just want to do it anyway, St John Ambulance might be worth looking at? My experience of first aid organisations is that they're basically a waste of everyone's time, so I personally would do something else but maybe you could give it a go and see what you think.
Original post by Democracy
This is not something especially advantageous for medical school admissions, just fyi.

If you just want to do it anyway, St John Ambulance might be worth looking at? My experience of first aid organisations is that they're basically a waste of everyone's time, so I personally would do something else but maybe you could give it a go and see what you think.


I mean, I did SJA and I sort of agree, it was not a productive use of time, especially at events.

But surely from a medical schools point of view, learning to take obs and following protocols in a healthcare environment must be semi-legit, right?
Original post by ferrus_manus
I mean, I did SJA and I sort of agree, it was not a productive use of time, especially at events.

But surely from a medical schools point of view, learning to take obs and following protocols in a healthcare environment must be semi-legit, right?


Which protocols are they following and what exactly is the healthcare environment? :tongue:

In any case, I would still disagree. Medical school is there to teach you about obs etc. It's certainly not going to hurt your application but I can't see it being much of an advantage either, especially compared with something like hospital volunteering. As you say, it's mostly just being dressed up and a lot of standing around. Where's the value?
Original post by Democracy
Which protocols are they following and what exactly is the healthcare environment? :tongue:

In any case, I would still disagree. Medical school is there to teach you about obs etc. It's certainly not going to hurt your application but I can't see it being much of an advantage either, especially compared with something like hospital volunteering. As you say, it's mostly just being dressed up and a lot of standing around. Where's the value?


Learning how to write down observations on the sheets, about 'patient' confidentiality, communications, interpersonal skills are all things I was surprised people didn't know how to get right when I went to a few sessions. It was god awfully boring but about as useful as hospital experience.

At a higher level, understanding the use of medical gases and moving patients are still somewhat useful skills, even if they're more relevant for paramedics, but having some understanding that medicine can be nitty gritty must be reinforced somehow by SJA, right?

On the other hand, it's a shame that SJA & RC aren't accepted as work experience anymore. I think a cap would've been appropriate (maybe maximum of 5-10 hours counts towards volunteering experience), but I can also see how medical schools needed to curb it considering how so many past and current medical students took advantage of SJA as a easy way of bulking up work experience without having done anything meaningful.

Quick Reply