Education | Welcome to The Academy for First Aid and Safety: WSIB approved first aid CPR BLS in Toronto, Brampton, Hamilton, Barrie, and Scarborough

strokes-how-to-care-for-a-stroke

Posted on September 30, 2019 by admin

Caring for someone that is suffering from a stroke is much different from caring for someone that is having a heart attack. With the wrong intervention, believe it or not, you can make the situation much, much worse.

A stroke can either be a ischemic stroke, a hemorrhagic stroke, or a stroke due to a tumor. All 3 types of strokes bear the same signs and symptoms.

Kien Hoang: Canadian Red Cross First Aid & CPR Instructor: Tweet

Take a look at the left diagram where an ischemic stroke is illustrated: It clearly shows that a lack of blood flow to the brain occurred due to narrowed arteries, which eventually forms a clot in the arteries that feed the brain. Contributing are smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise, and stress. The right diagram shows a rupture in an artery that feeds the brain blood. Ruptures commonly happen due to high blood pressure, which pushes against the walls of the artery, eventually causing it to fail and rupture. Instead of blood reaching the brain, it leaks out of the artery, failing to feed the brain the blood it needs to function.

Asprin is to be avoided during a stroke. Many may assume that the stroke is due to clogged arteries (ischemic stroke). Let’s just say for a moment that it is true: The patient is suffering from an ischemic stroke. If you had administered Asprin, you would of likely saved their life: The Asprin thing out the blood, and reduces clumping action at the clot, allowing more blood to pass through the clot to feed the brain.

However, if it was a hemorrhagic stroke, Asprin can be fatal. Thinning out the blood when there is no clot, but a rupture can (and will) make the situation much, much worse. Because an aneurysm is due to a rupture in the artery wall, Asprin will simply cause more bleeding. And because a first aider cannot distinguish between a hemorrhagic stroke and ischemic stroke, The Canadian Red Cross strongly advises NOT to administer Asprin. Instead, call 9-1-1 to get them to the hospital ASAP for the quickest intervention possible.

Want to learn more on how to save a life? Call The Academy for First Aid and Safety now at 1-877-659-3215 or visit www.academyfor1staid.ca and join one of our many first aid and CPR classes! We have weekday and weekend classes, and are WSIB approved!

The Canadian Red Cross Moves to Digital Certifications:

Posted on August 24, 2017 by admin

Digital certifications are coming as of October of 2017!

The Academy for First Aid and Safety is proud to announce an exciting change from the way the Canadian Red Cross issues its certifications:

In October 2017, The Academy for First Aid and Safety will transition from a physical wallet card based certification to a digital certification. Each certification will have a unique serial number in which the student can verify its validity. Furthermore, the student would not need to pay for a replacement card anymore since it is in digital format and is stored on the student’s phone, computer, and the Canadian Red Cross’ mobile app.

In order to remain in compliant with Regulation 1101 of the Workplace Safety Insurance Act with keeping proper records of all certifications, our academy (who is in partnership with the Canadian Red Cross Society) will implement these changes. This will be a national wide change and every Canadian Red Cross training partner will undergo the same transition, regardless of which Canadian Red Cross training partner you obtain your certification from.

What will this mean for all students who take a first aid and / or CPR course from our Academy?

A physical wallet sized card will no longer be issued. Instead, a digital card will be e-mailed to your inbox.
If you lose your certification, there would be no need to make a payment to obtain a replacement card.
A paper copy of the first aid and CPR training booklet that you would traditionally receive at our classes will be replaced by a digital copy sent to your e-mail. The digital booklet can also be accessed through the Canadian Red Cross Society's mobile app.
Should you require a paper copy of the first aid and CPR booklet, they will be available for purchase for a small fee of $7.00.
Every digital certification will contain a unique serial number which can verify your certification's authenticity and personal details.

With the upcoming changes to the way we issue Canadian Red Cross certifications, we look forward to delivering you high quality, fun, and interactive first aid and CPR training programs in the greater Toronto area. We anticipate that these changes will simplify the way certifications are held, stored, and retrieved in the unfortunate event of it becoming lost or stolen.

– The Academy for First Aid and Safety of Toronto

Delivering interactive, fun, amazing, and futuristic first aid and CPR training courses!

The Academy for First Aid and Safety is a registered and certified training partner with the Canadian Red Cross Society. We deliver hands on, comprehensive first aid training courses (including CPR, AED use) which meet the provincial requirements as outlined from WSIB of Ontario and the Ministry of Labour. Our academy services the greater Toronto area including Mississauga, Brampton, Hamilton, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, and Markham.

EVA foam flooring at The Academy For First Aid and Safety of Toronto!

Posted on March 16, 2017 by admin

March 17, 2017:

It’s official: The Academy For First Aid and Safety of Toronto located at 2428 Islington Avenue is the first and only first aid training facility in the greater Toronto area to employ EVA foam flooring, making it extremely comfortable for students to perform CPR exercises.

Ethylene vinyl acetate (or EVA in abbreviation) is a 1/2 inch thick piece of soft foam and is commonly used in gymnasiums, rec centres, and martial arts training centres. The Academy For First Aid and Safety of Toronto decided to incorporate EVA foam flooring after feedback from students who complained that the hard tiled flooring was hard on their knees when performing CPR exercises on the ground.

We listened to our students and as a result, we went the extra mile, bypassing traditional carpeting in favour of a more luxurious EVA foam flooring for maximum comfort when performing ground exercises, such as CPR compressions.

– Kien Hoang: Canadian Red Cross First Aid Instructor

The Academy For First Aid and Safety of Toronto is extremely proud to be the first and only first aid training centre in the greater Toronto area to have EVA foam flooring at a facility which is 100% completely owned and operated by the business itself. The academy does not rent out temporary rooms by the hour or day, and the future is bright to expand to more locations and have EVA foam flooring at all of our facilities.

This is just another example of why you should choose The Academy For First Aid and Safety for your first aid & CPR training needs! Book a class now to see why!

First aid requirements for Security Guards in Ontario

Posted on March 12, 2017 by admin6 Comments

The Ministry of Private Security of Ontario says this, but the Ontario WSIB says something different:

If you are a security guard in the Province of Ontario, or are in the middle of obtaining one at an authorized training provider by the Ministry of Private Security & Investigative Services Branch, the laws and requirements for valid first aid & CPR are a bit confusing. Case in point, the PSISB which governs the secuirty guard and investigativer services industry in Ontario is saying one thing, but the Ontario WSIB on the other hand is saying something different:

Security guard basic training courses must be at least 40 hours long, including certification in Emergency First Aid/CPR.

– Ministry of Private Security and Investigative Services Branch of Ontario

However, Regulation 1101 from the Workplace Safety Insurance Act of Ontario makes things more complicated and confusing. They specify the following:

9. (1) Every employer employing more than five workers and not more than fifteen workers in any one shift at a place of employment shall provide and maintain a first aid station with a first aid box containing as a minimum:

(a) is the holder of a valid St. John Ambulance Standard First Aid Certificate or its equivalent; and
(b) works in the immediate vicinity of the box. R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 1101, s. 9 (2).

– R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 1101: First aid requirements, Workplace Safety Insurance Act Ontario

So, the Private Security and Investigative Services Branch is saying that you need Emergency first aid & CPR, but the Ontario WSIB says you need Standard first aid & CPR. Confusing? Let’s clarify some things here:

Emergency first aid & CPR is required by the Ontario PSISB for LICENSING PURPOSES ONLY, not for employment purposes. This is the minimum requirement in order to become licensed as a security guard in the Province of Ontario.
Considering that you are licensed as a security guard and are on the job, as long as your job site location is between 1-5 people per shift and location (not in total), your emergency first aid & CPR will satisfy Regulation 1101.

Now here is where the confusion begins: As soon as your team on your shift and location exceeds 5 persons, your emergency first aid & CPR will no longer satisfy Regulation 1101, because the Act states that any shift more than five workers must need Standard first aid & CPR. This is a serious note to acknowledge, especially in the event of a workplace accident. Not only is the employee and employer not in compliance with Regulation 1101, the consequences for not being in compliance can result in:

Fines issued to the employee and employer for not being in compliance with Regulation 1101.
WORKPLACE INJURY CLAIMS DENIED BY WSIB: This part is the scariest part of not being in compliance with Regulation 1101 for both the employee and employer. In the event of a workplace injury, both employee and employer face the same responsibility for not being in compliance. If a WSIB claim is denied due to insufficent first aid certification, the legal claims arising between the employee and employer can get very messy and ugly. To pretty much sum up what will happen if an employee took an employer to court for a workplace injury claim, both sides will be pointing the finger at each other.

1-5 persons per shift and location: Emergency first aid is sufficient.

6-15 persons per shift and location: Standard first aid and CPR is required.

Example 1: You are working as a security guard at a construction site overnight. Your certification level needed is Emergency first aid.

Example 2: You work as a site supervisor at a condominium. There are 9 employees total working at the same location, but only 3 per shift (days,afternoon, nights). Regulation 1101 specifies what certification level you need based on workforce size, shift, and location. So even though the total workforce size is 9 employees, there are 3 per shift, so Emergency first aid is sufficient in this case.

Example 3: You work as a security guard at a shopping mall with a team of 8 per shift, 40 security guards total per day. Regulation 1101 states that anything over 5 employees per shift at the location now required Standard first aid & CPR. Meaning, your emergency first aid you received during your licensing process is insufficient for employment purposes.

In conclusion:

Ontario Regulation 1101 may cause some confusion for the security guard industry, and it is absolutely crucial for all security guard companies and employees in Ontario to be aware of contradiction information that is being given by the Ontario Private Security and Investigative Services Act and The Workplace Safety Insurance Act of Ontario.