• Section 1 - Governing Policy
• Section 2 - Scope
• Section 3 - Background
• Section 4 - Roles and Responsibilities
• Staff First Aid Officers
• Staff Occupational First Aid Officers
• Local Facilities Management Staff
• People and Capability Staff
• Section 5 - Recruitment and Appointment of Staff First Aid Officers
• Section 6 - First Aid Kits
• Section 7 - First Aid Rooms
• Section 8 - Standard Precautions for Infection Control
• Section 9 - Recording Incidents
• Section 10 - Contractor Consultation
• Section 11 - Indemnification
• Section 12 - After Hours First Aid
• Section 13 - Ambulance Use
• Section 14 - Revisions made to this Procedure
• Section 15 - Further Assistance
• Section 16 - Associated Information

Section 1 - Governing Policy

(1) This Procedure is governed by the University’s First Aid Policy.

Section 2 - Scope

(2) This Procedure applies to all staff, staff representatives, students, visitors, volunteers and contractors.

Section 3 - Background

(3) The University is committed to ensuring that an effective first aid response is delivered in a timely manner. ACU maintains appropriate numbers of qualified staff First Aid Officers to support the University to maintain its safe working and learning environments. This commitment extends to ensuring that relevant resources are appropriately located such as first aid kits, defibrillators and first aid rooms. Security Officers, as qualified First Aiders, are normally first responders where an incident has been alerted to the ACU National Security Centre.

Section 4 - Roles and Responsibilities

(4) Everyone involved in the management or delivery of a first aid response should familarise themselves with their role so they can provide an appropriate level of care to those people that require assistance.

(5) Whenever an ambulance is required, staff should activate the Safezone App or either dial 8888 or 1300 729 452. If it is an emergency, they should dial (0) “000” and inform Security that an ambulance has been called.

Staff First Aid Officers

(6) Staff First Aid Officers provide an essential and important service to the broader University community and make themselves available during normal business hours to attend to and support unwell or injured staff, students, visitors, volunteers and contractors.

(7) Staff First Aid Officers:

1. hold a current first aid qualification, which is renewed after (3) three years following a refresher course and attend annual CPR refresher training;
2. are paid a First Aid Allowance consistent with the ACU Staff Enterprise Agreement 2022-2025;
3. make themselves familiar with the location of First Aid Kits, Defibrillators and First Aid Rooms which are located on Campus maps;
4. advise local Facilities Management teams of any first aid stock needed to replenish first aid kits;
5. support staff, students, visitors, volunteers and contractors who access first aid support to complete an online Riskware report, or log a report on their behalf if required;
6. provide Riskware information cards to those people who require first aid assistance and promote the benefits of using the Safezone App;
7. share learnings to contribute to continuous improvements in the University’s first aid responses;
8. complete a First Aid Treatment Record;
9. maintain and respect privacy and observe confidentiality; and
10. apply safe working practices in infection control.

Staff Occupational First Aid Officers

(8) Staff Occupational First Aid Officers hold a higher first aid qualification, which is renewed every year. There is normally one staff Occupational First Aid Officer per campus.

(9) Staff Occupational First Aid Officers are expected to:

1. manage patient care during complex incidents and emergencies until an ambulance arrives;
2. manage first aid rooms in collaboration with local Facilities Management teams;
3. provide advanced resuscitation (if needed); and
4. consult with other First Aid Officers, on their campus, and convene meetings (at minimum annually) in collaboration with People and Capability's WHS staff to discuss learnings from administering first aid responses.

Local Facilities Management Staff

(10) Local Facilities Management staff:

1. work with People and Capability WHS staff to conduct risk assessments to identify gaps in first aid provision;
2. assist Staff First Aid Officers to be familiar with the location of First Aid Rooms, First Aid Kits, and Defibrillators;
3. ensure Security Officers are briefed about how to contact Staff First Aid Officers whenever additional support needs to be provided to an ill or injured person;
4. advise the Campus Dean of the provisions required in relation to first aid and associated resource requirements for the Campus;
5. ensure appropriate signage of a first aid room in accordance with relevant Australian Standards for Safety Signs;
6. maintain and allocate appropriate first aid equipment;
7. ensure appropriate access for emergency vehicles onto the campus;
8. contribute to the review of first aid responses; and
9. ensure Security Officers have current first aid qualifications, attend annual CPR refresher training courses and are knowledgeable about first aid and critical incident management procedures.

People and Capability Staff

(11) People and Capability staff:

1. recruit First Aid Officers;
2. verify staff members hold a current First Aid qualification;
3. promote the use of the Safezone App;
4. provide current listings of Staff First Aid Officers to campus Facilities Management and list Staff First Aid Officers on the ACU website;
5. work with local Facilities Management staff to coordinate first aid training for Staff First Aid Officers and fill any gaps in first aid coverage of campuses;
6. review the effectiveness of first aid responses in collaboration with Facilities Management and feedback from First Aid Officers;
7. monitor the University's first aid compliance; and
8. maintain statistics in relation to first aid incidents using Riskware.

Section 5 - Recruitment and Appointment of Staff First Aid Officers

(12) The number of staff First Aid Officers for each campus is risk assessed, having regard to:

1. the size and layout of the campus;
2. the number of available Security Officers on that campus who provide first aid support;
3. location of the campus and off-campus facilities;
4. the number, distribution and needs of staff, students, visitors, volunteers, and contractors;
5. variations in campus populations throughout the year;
6. the spread of opening hours of the campus;
7. nature and hazards of the work or learning activities;
8. the need to service ‘off campus’ activities with support;
9. statistical information on illnesses or incidents; and
10. the distance between the campus to the nearest available and appropriate medical service.

(13) Additional staff first aid officers may be recruited to account for the following factors:

1. nature of identified risk factors which are associated with specific work areas. For example, laboratories or fieldwork locations etc.; and
2. the number of contractors on the campus and the nature of the work being conducted.

Section 6 - First Aid Kits

(14) The University will ensure the provisions of and locations of first aid kits (listed in Guide for First Aid Provisions at ACU) are consistent with the Model Code of Practice: First Aid in the Workplace (Cth).

(15) Portable first aid kits must also be available for use for Staff First Aid Officers, and for off-campus activities. These kits will be maintained by Facilities Management and provisioned by their vendors. First Aid kits will not contain medication or pharmaceutical drugs.

(16) First aid kits at ACU are typically located at concierge desks, in plant rooms and staff kitchens. Whenever ACU has a joint tenancy with another organization, it will make first aid kits available for ACU Staff First Aid Officers.

Section 7 - First Aid Rooms

(17) The provision of a first aid room for each campus is in accordance with the relevant standard/code of practice and a campus risk assessment. Facilities Management have responsibility for the management and maintenance of First Aid Rooms, in collaboration with Occupational First Aid Officers.

(18) The First Aid Room shall be positioned close to vehicle access and be signed in accordance with the Australian Standard Safety Signs for the Occupational Environment.

(19) In all cases a notice shall be attached to the outside and inside of the door of a First Aid Room which clearly lists the following:

1. the name, telephone, room location of the local Facilities Manager;
2. the name, telephone, room location of all Staff First Aid Officers;
3. the contact number for the ACU National Security Centre;
4. the emergency contact number for the campus; and
5. an ‘after hours’ emergency contact number.

Section 8 - Standard Precautions for Infection Control

(20) First Aid Officers should reduce the risk of infection by washing their hands with soap or water or apply alcohol-based hand rub before and after administering first aid.

(21) Disposal gloves should be worn to prevent contact with blood and body substances. Eye protection, a mask and protective clothing may be also be used, when necessary. If any part of the body is exposed to blood or bodily substances, it should be immediately washed.

(22) Prompt medical advice should be immediately provided by ACU in these circumstances and whenever Staff First Aid Officers sustain a sharps injury or are exposed to a person known to have a contagious illness. They should advise their supervisor and seek medical advice from a registered medical practitioner.

(23) All items that are soiled with blood or body substances should be placed in plastic bags and tied securely. Sharps, including scissors and tweezers, that have been contaminated with blood and body substances should be disposed of in a rigid-walled, puncture-resistant sharps container by the user.

Section 9 - Recording Incidents

(24) Any incident, illness or injury requiring a first aid response should be reported on Riskware (ACU’s incident and hazard reporting system) and a First Aid Treatment Record should be completed.

Section 10 - Contractor Consultation

(25) Facilities Management staff should consult with contractors on the provision of first aid. They should ensure that adequate first aid kits and First Aid Officers, employed by either ACU or contractors, are available to respond to contractor emergencies.

Section 11 - Indemnification

(26) Staff members who hold a current first aid qualification and who are appointed by the University as Staff First Aid Officers are indemnified by the University in respect of legal actions taken against them, provided that their first aid assistance or lack of assistance is not proven to be the result of willful negligence.

Section 12 - After Hours First Aid

(27) Outside of normal business hours Security Officers, holding a first aid qualification, are normally the first responders to an incident and provide first aid assistance. These officers can contacted by activating the Safezone App or calling the ACU National Security Centre on 1300 729 452 or 8888 (from an internal phone).

Section 13 - Ambulance Use

(28) An ambulance service should be requested via the ACU National Security Centre on 8888 (1300 729 452) or, in an emergency, dial (0) “000” and inform Security that an ambulance has been called. This service will also be used in circumstances when the ambulance service is requested by Staff First Aid Officers, including Security Officers, who have assessed there is a sufficient health risk to the patient.

(29) In circumstances where First Aid Officers or Security Officers call for an ambulance for a member of staff or student, and the circumstance is not a workplace injury or illness to a staff member, nor does the staff member or student have ambulance cover (such as through private health insurance or ambulance membership), the cost of the ambulance will be borne by the University (centrally funded). If the staff member or student has ambulance cover, they will be expected to use this cover to pay for the cost of the ambulance.

Section 14 - Revisions made to this Procedure

(30) The revision table includes revisions up until this document was migrated into the current policy platform. Any later changes will show in the Status and Details tab. 

Section 15 - Further Assistance

(32) Any staff member or student who requires assistance in understanding the procedure should first consult their Nominated Supervisor. Staff should visit Service Central if further advice is required.

Section 16 - Associated Information

(33) For related legislation, policies, procedures and guidelines and any supporting resources please refer to the Associated Information tab.