Many people would consider Australia as one of the greatest and safest countries to live and work in. And of course they wouldn’t be completely wrong, however Australia still has a record of WHS incidents that is way too high.
Our country is built on many industries that are inherently high risk, and yet our WHS system is well and truely behind the ball.
Too many high-risk industries rely on off-the-shelf first aid kits and outdated training methods that simply wouldn’t save lives in real emergencies.
Catastrophic trauma risks are very real, especially on construction sites, mining sites, transport depots and agricultural workplaces. Yet these industries are still being supplied with basic first aid kits designed for minor injuries like paper cuts and sprained ankles.
The harsh reality is that when serious injuries occur, without the right equipment, you have much less time than you think.
→ Catastrophic haemorrhage? Death can occur in under 3 minutes.
→ Penetrating chest wounds? Fatal within 10 minutes or less.
→ Most First Aiders? Undertrained and underequipped.
Too often, training is delivered by individuals lacking genuine pre-hospital trauma experience, using unrealistic props like pool noodles for limbs. The scenarios often bear little to no resemblance to actual workplace conditions and emergencies. This simply isn’t effective training.