07/21/2020
First Aid Training Update
Sadly, we are not able to instruct the First Aid Courses yet. We will have to renovate our office in order to do First Aid Training again here at our site, and we do not anticipate being able to do so until the fall at the earliest. Also, once we do so, we will also likely have smaller class sizes until the pandemic is over and we can then re-evaluate at that time.
Lastly, we are not at a point where we have figured out how to instruct all of the skills for the First Aid within the COVID-19 guidelines, in particular this will be more challenging for the TE and OFA Level 3 courses, which demand much more person to person contact. We need to make new safe work practices in order for that to happen (for both instructors and students), and to be honest, we have been too busy trying to get our safe work practices and training for our own crews to allow them to get back to work, and now in preparing for the fire season to spend time on that aspect of our COVID-19 planning. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions.
Below is information for anyone who has a ticket near expiry:
***Short term extensions of Occupational First Aid Certificates as per WorkSafeBC ***
*Update As British Columbia begins to open its doors, accessibility to first aid training will increase across the province. It is the expectation that those with expired certificates will seek recertification as soon as safe training is available. Meanwhile, to further accommodate physical distancing and safe practices, WorkSafeBC has extended certificates that have an expiry date between March 1, 2020 and August 31, 2020. These certificates will now be acceptable in the workplace for 180 days beyond their original expiry date.
Certificates will not be reprinted. First Aid Attendants and employers do not need to take any actions to qualify for the extensions.
WorkSafeBC will continue to monitor the COVID-19 outbreak and recommendations put forth by federal and provincial agencies, and should additional extensions be required we will release further information and direction at that time.
