Tag: First Aid

Back to Basics: Workplace Medical and First Aid

Back to Basics is a weekly feature that highlights important but possibly overlooked information that any EHS professional should know. This week, we examine OSHA’s requirements for medical and first aid in the workplace, and medical and first aid programs. While it is the job of the safety professional to reduce incidents and provide a safer […]

First Aid Kits: Update Yours to Meet New Industry Standard

A first aid kit can be easy to ignore. It’s quiet, unobtrusive, and often hiding in plain sight. But it’s more likely to be used than you might think. There were 2.7 million workplace nonfatal injuries and illnesses reported by private industry employers in the U.S. in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor […]

Automated External Defibrillator, AEDs

What State Plan States Require AEDs in the Workplace?

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards do not specifically address automated external defibrillators (AEDs). However, exposures to first-aid hazards and the requirement that persons be properly trained to render first aid, which in some instances requires CPR training, are addressed in specific OSHA standards for the general industry. The regulations in state […]

First aid kit

Was That Incident Recordable … or Just First Aid?

Many EHS professionals wonder whether they are in proper compliance with all of the recordkeeping requirements issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). One question they often have, especially in the immediate aftermath of an incident in the workplace, is if the occurrence was a recordable injury (i.e., one that must be included […]

Let’s Play ‘First Aid or Medical Treatment?’

On December 11, 2010, boxmaker Beverly Brown was walking down a vertical staircase at a Wayne Farms chicken processing plant in Decatur, Alabama, when she lost her balance and fell. Her only obvious injury was a cut on her lip, so Brown was taken to the plant’s medical room, where she was given an antibiotic […]

First Aid for Winter Injuries, Part II

Most people who work in cold conditions are aware of their risk of frostbite and hypothermia, but they may be less aware of their risk of dehydration, overexertion, and trench foot caused by cold exposure. Here’s how workers can identify these conditions and treat them appropriately. Here are signs, symptoms, and first-aid recommendations for these […]

First Aid for Winter Injuries

The polar vortex and the Arctic blast may sound like the names of frozen treats from your local ice cream shop; sadly, you’re not likely to top off the real thing with whipped cream and colorful sprinkles. These blasts of frigid air and accompanying winter weather can do real damage—some of which might require a […]