First Aid

Training snapshot

Overall, the number of First Aid subject enrolments grew between 2017 and 2021, from approximately 2,956,570 to 3,798,140. The decline across all First Aid-related subject enrolments in 2020 was likely due to the health measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Most students enrolled in First Aid-related subjects were located in eastern Australia, specifically in Queensland (25%), New South Wales (24%) and Victoria (19%).

Nearly three-quarters of subject enrolments in 2021 were concentrated in the First Aid units of competency for providing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (44%) and providing first aid (30%). A further 19% of subject enrolments were in units of competency to provide basic emergency life support. More than nine out of ten (92%) of enrolments were in subjects delivered that are not part of a nationally recognised program in 2021, with only 6% of enrolments in training package qualifications.

Subject enrolments in First Aid units of competency were concentrated in the Community Services training package, followed by Sport, Fitness and Recreation and Health training packages.

In 2021, three-quarters (75%) of the First Aid training was delivered by private training providers, followed by community education providers (21%). Overall, most of First Aid training (96%) was funded by domestic fee for service, although the proportions varied significantly depending on provider type.

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Industry insights on skills needs

The First Aid IRC’s Skills Forecast – 2020 Update (hereafter the 2020 Annual Update) was the most recent industry skills forecast published by the IRC, as of September 2022. It identified the top five short-to-medium term skills as problem solving and critical thinking, communication, teamwork, capacity to learn, and digital skills.

According to the job vacancy data, the top occupations seeking First Aid skills were:

• Early Childhood (Pre-primary School) Teachers
• Child Carers
• Pharmacists
• Aged and Disabled Carers
• Other Education Managers.

Many of the workforce challenges and developments raised in the First Aid IRC’s 2019 Skills Forecast continued to be significant issues in the 2020 Annual Update. However, the latter also identified COVID-19, variations in state/territory legislate requirements and shortage of skilled staff. These are summarised below.

Variations in state/territory legislative requirements

At the national level, Safe Work Australia set the workplace requirements with the First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice. However, the regulation of Work Health and Safety practices occur at the state and territory level. As such, there are variations in requirements from one jurisdiction to another. While the First Aid Training Package Products aim to encompass these differing requirements across jurisdictions, some employers find it difficult to determine the appropriate qualification or skill set required for their organisation to comply with the Safe Work Australia Code, according to the 2020 Annual Update.

It is also reported that legislation pertaining to the amount of training required and the need to keep skills up to date can be cumbersome, time consuming and costly for employers, with further confusion arising from differences in requirements in different jurisdictions and across organisation types.

Indeed, the requirement to maintain skills and undertake ‘refresher’ programs appears to drive enrolments in VET subjects. The NCVER report An analysis of enrolments in ‘micro-credentials’ in VET (whose subjects not part of a nationally recognised program) shows that first aid and related subjects (cardiopulmonary resuscitation, for example) are the top two most undertaken ‘subject bundles’.

Shortage of skilled staff

The 2020 Annual Update reported a lack of qualified staff was one of the challenges faced by administering first aid in the workplace, with difficulties in recruiting and retaining staff who had the required skills and knowledge. In many cases, the ability to administer first aid is in addition to the employee’s primary role and this may lead to an increased or heavy workload. It may also require employees to be flexible and to be able to undertake different types of work as it arises. Further, changes in first aid compliance requirements and increases in record keeping have increased the time required for first aid duties, also increasing the workload of these staff members.

Below is a list of industry-relevant research, organisations and associations. Hyperlinks have been included where available.

IRC and skills forecasts

• First Aid IRC’s Skills Forecast – 2020 Update

• First Aid IRCs Skills Forecast 2019

• IRC membership

• SkillsIQ – Skills Service Organisation

Relevant research

An Analysis of ‘Micro-credentials’ in VET – Bryan Palmer

The impact of COVID-19 on industry innovation, skills and the need for training – Lisel O’Dwyer

Government departments and agencies

Australian Government Department of Defence

NT WorkSafe

Safe Work Australia

SafeWork NSW

SafeWork SA

WorkSafe Queensland

WorkSafe ACT

WorkSafe Tasmania

WorkSafe Victoria

WorkSafe WA

Peak and industry associations

Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA)

Australian Resuscitation Council

National Institute of First Aid Trainers (NIFAT)

The Council of Ambulance Authorities (CAA)

Employee associations

Health Services Union (HSU)

Large and small employers, including:

Australian Red Cross

Royal Life Saving Society Australia

St John Ambulance Australia

Surf Life Saving Australia

Training data has been extracted from the National VET Provider Collection, Total VET Students and Courses from the following units of competency:

• HLTAID001 and HLTAID009 - Provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation
• HLTAID002 and HLTAID010 - Provide basic emergency life support
• HLTAID003 and HLTAID011 - Provide first aid
• HLTAID004 - Provide an emergency first aid response in an education and care setting
• HLTAID005 - Provide first aid in remote situations
• HLTAID006 - Provide advanced first aid
• HLTAID007 - Provide advanced resuscitation
• HLTAID008 - Manage first aid services and resources
• HLTAID012 - Provide First Aid in an education and care setting
• HLTAID013 - Provide First Aid in remote or isolated site
• HLTAID014 - Provide Advanced First Aid
• HLTAID015 - Provide advanced resuscitation and oxygen therapy
• HLTAID016 - Manage first aid services and resources.

Data covers a range of selected student and training characteristics in the following categories and years:

• 2017 to 2021 subject enrolments.

Total VET students and courses data is reported for the calendar year. Program enrolments are the qualifications, courses and skill-sets in which students are enrolled in a given period. For students enrolled in multiple programs, all programs are counted. Program completion indicates that a student has completed a structured and integrated program of education or training. Location data uses student residence. Subject enrolment is registration of a student at a training delivery location for the purpose of undertaking a module, unit of competency or subject. For more information on the terms and definitions, please refer to the Total VET students and courses: terms and definitions document.

Low counts (less than 5) are not reported to protect client confidentiality.

Percentages are rounded to one decimal place. This can lead to situations where the total sum of proportions in a chart may not add up to exactly 100%.

Job vacancy data have been extracted from Lightcast 2022, Labor Insight Real-time Labor Market Information Tool, Boston, viewed August 2022, https://lightcast.io/apac.

Data shown represent most requested occupations according to internet job postings in Australia between July 2019 and June 2022 filtered by skills listed below.

Skills have been used as industry filters because they provide more relevant job vacancy data for this sector.

• Generic skills / Occupations / Employers
  
  • First Aid.