New Safe Hands' Initiative to Tackle Shocking Lack of First Aid Provision in Dubai's Workplaces

What would you do if someone had a workplace accident and needed first aid training?  Who is the designated first aider in your office?  If you aren't sure, you aren't alone. “

The American Health and Safety Institute states that, at work, injuries and illnesses kill about 2.2 million people, worldwide, each year and, on average, 15 US workers die each day from traumatic injuries.

In the UK, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) recommends that one member of staff for every 25, working in a low-hazard office environment, should be trained and qualified in first aid.

Rather shockingly, here in Dubai, to meet current legislation, only one person out of 100 staff in an office environment needs to be a qualified first aider.

Our very own Burj Khalifa holds up to 35,000 workers at one time and this presents a stark example. If the current Dubai legislation is satisfied only 350 people in the building's 3,331,100 sq ft of floor space will need to be trained and qualified in first aid.

This means that at times of need, say a fellow worker has a heart attack or chokes on a piece of food, they could be several floors away from someone who has sufficient training to save their life.

As Danielle Suchley, Global Operations Director, Fund Advisers explained“ We knew that there was a big problem with the lack of trained first aiders looking after our children here in Dubai but, we were amazed when we discovered that there are very few trained first aiders in our offices.”

Following the overwhelming success of its Child Safeguarding Workshops initiative, Safe Hands, the Dubai-based family services company led by a Paediatric nurse and run by UK-qualified professionals, is again teaming up with Dubai-based wealth managers Fund Advisers, to combat this abhorrent lack of first aid provision in many of Dubai's workplaces.

In a bid to make Dubai's workplaces safer this Safe Hands-run initiative now invites all of Dubai's businesses to claim a free first aid course courtesy of Safe Hands and Fund Advisers. Office-based businesses in Dubai will be given a straightforward and comprehensive first aid course and CPR training without even leaving their workplace.  Safe Hands will come to your place of work and run company-wide courses leaving you in a safer working environment.

Rebecca Smith from Safe Hands said “We were so happy with the amount of schools and children's club that got on board with our children's first aid initiative.  We are running free first aid courses every week.  However, the problem with the lack of first aiders is not limited to schools and activity clubs.  We should have a duty of care to our colleagues and as employers, to our staff.  With free first aid training now available, we are hoping to make Dubai's offices a safer place to work. Once again, we are delighted to have Fund Advisers sponsorship and funding  for this necessary training.”

If you want a safer workplace or further information about Safe Hands' and Fund Adviser's new first aid initiative, please contact Rebecca Smith by calling 0 55 3031 728 or emailing  rebecca.smith@safehandsuae.com.  Further details can be found on the Safe Hands website www.safehandsuae.com