What Professions Require CPR Training?

Workplace safety is a major issue in all professions. In fact, all employers should have someone on site who has first aid training to keep all workers safer during an emergency. Sadly, this is not the case. In fact, having a CPR-trained employee is the exception and not the rule. However, there are some professions for which CPR (Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation) training is a requisite for employment.

We asked the experts of First Aid Training Calgary which professions require CPR training. They provided us with some answers to that question and others. We pass on the important realities of CPR training for professionals below.

Who Requires Professionals to Have CPR Training?

For professions required to have safety training, such as in CPR and first aid, the mandating organizations in Canada include:

• Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S)
• Workplace Safety Insurance Board (WSIB)

These two organizations require employers to provide adequate first aid training to all workers. Excellent online courses for healthcare professionals exist for certification.

Still, only 13 percent of Canadian businesses are first aid-ready. Some companies have gone so far as to stock automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in their buildings, in case an employee shows signs of a heart attack. These are becoming more popular in public venues and should be in all offices, warehouses and other work sites, as well.

What CPR training or first aid should an employee take?

One of the biggest questions from people interested in learning CPR or first aid, or those employees sent by their employer for this training, is which courses are necessary. The exact requirements vary from province to province and territory to territory, as well as according to workplace needs and the number of employees.

In Alberta, for example, the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act provides minimum standards for health and safety in Alberta workplaces. To start, Section 48(2) of this Act requires anyone responsible for attending to ill or injured workers as part of employment to comply with various rules. These rules include disclosing first aid reports to a Director of Medical Services as requested. Workplaces must also follow the guidelines of OHS Code Section 178(1) for which services, supplies and equipment to provide for first aid.

Some of these requirements include:

• Having a minimum number of trained and qualified first aiders
• Ensuring first aiders receive training from an approved agency
• Recording all injuries and illnesses as specified by OHS Code Section 183(2)
• Managing all first aid records in accordance with Section 184
• Providing Safety Data Sheets and other key information about products to medical professionals treating injured workers
• Making appropriate transportation available to take ill or injured workers to a health care facility
• Ensuring access to communication systems for summoning of EMT transports when needed

Available classes for Alberta workplace first aiders include:

• Emergency first aid
• Standard first aid
• Wilderness and remote first aid
• Advanced first aid
• CPR
• Basic life support
• Automated external defibrillation (AED)

To learn which courses your job requires, talk to your employer. It is important to receive the right level of training and certification to meet OHS standards.

Professions Requiring First Aid and CPR

Occupations requiring first aid and CPR training and certification include:

• Law enforcement officers
• Firefighters
• Personal support workers
• Teachers
• Teaching assistants
• Nurses
• Dentists
• Doctors
• Dental hygienists
• Childcare workers

Security guards, taxi drivers, truck drivers, construction workers and others are also more commonly taking emergency first aid and CPR courses. With the exception of healthcare workers' requirements, there is no single Canada-wide standard for required courses. This is why it is important to talk to your employer to learn which type of training and certification you need.