First Aider
Provides immediate first aid, maintains the first-aid log, and refreshes training every two years. Appointed in sufficient numbers per the headcount and risk class of the workplace.
DGUV Vorschrift 1 § 26 · ASR A4.3
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What does a First Aider do?
A First Aider (Ersthelfer) is an employee designated by the employer to provide immediate first aid at the workplace until the emergency services arrive. The legal basis is DGUV Vorschrift 1, the accident prevention regulation of the statutory accident insurers, in particular § 24 and § 26, read together with § 10 ArbSchG, which obliges every employer to organise first aid. The First Aider does not replace the rescue service; the role bridges the minutes before it gets there.
The core competence is acting correctly in an emergency: securing the accident site, the recovery position, resuscitation, controlling bleeding, treating shock and placing the emergency call. Beyond acute care, the First Aider contributes to the record that § 24 (6) DGUV Vorschrift 1 requires for every instance of first aid: it has to be kept available for five years and treated confidentially. In practice that record is the Verbandbuch. It matters if an injury is later recognised as an occupational accident by the accident insurer: someone reporting symptoms months afterwards depends on the entry.
The required number follows DGUV Vorschrift 1 § 26 (1): one First Aider where 2 to 20 insured persons are present, and where more than 20 are present, 5 percent in administrative and commercial operations and 10 percent in all other operations. The decisive word is present. The quota has to hold across the whole of working time, so late shifts, standby duty and field locations count as well, which is why most employers train more people than the arithmetic minimum. ASR A4.3, the technical rule for workplaces, covers the physical side: first-aid rooms, signage, and the contents and inspection of first-aid kits to DIN 13157 and DIN 13169.
Training is delivered by a body authorised by the accident insurer, and § 26 (3) DGUV Vorschrift 1 requires refresher training as a rule every two years, with the employer obliged to obtain the certificates. This is where practice fails most often: the initial course is done, the refresher slips past unnoticed, and the employer believes cover is in place. An inspection therefore asks for more than names: attendance certificates with dates, the allocation of each First Aider to site and shift, and the first-aid record.
Core duties of a First Aider
- Make yourself available for first aid after training and act immediately in an emergency (§ 28 (1) DGUV Vorschrift 1).
- Trigger the emergency call and guide responders to the accident site.
- Contribute to the record of every instance of first aid, which § 24 (6) DGUV Vorschrift 1 requires to be kept available for five years and treated confidentially.
- Check that first-aid kits per DIN 13157 / DIN 13169 are complete and within their expiry dates.
- Know the location of first-aid material, first-aid rooms and rescue equipment under ASR A4.3.
- Support the rescue chain and cooperate with the company doctor and safety specialist.
- Complete training at an authorised body and take refresher training as a rule every two years (§ 26 (2) and (3) DGUV Vorschrift 1).
- Report every accident without delay to the responsible internal point of contact (§ 28 (2) DGUV Vorschrift 1).
- Take part in evacuation and emergency drills as a designated responder.
Appointment and required numbers
Under § 26 (1) DGUV Vorschrift 1 the employer must ensure that First Aiders are available in the prescribed number, and under paragraph 2 may only deploy people trained at a body authorised by the accident insurer, or people holding paramedic, rescue-service or completed healthcare training. The regulation prescribes no written form for the designation. Without a documented allocation to site and shift, though, the quota cannot be evidenced at an inspection, which is why a written designation is standard practice. The quota has to be met during all working hours, including shifts, standby and field locations.
The required number sits in § 26 (1): one First Aider where 2 to 20 insured persons are present; where more than 20 are present, 5 percent in administrative and commercial operations and 10 percent in all other operations, including production and construction. Childcare facilities and universities have their own figures. The percentages may be departed from only by agreement with the accident insurer, taking account of how the internal rescue organisation is set up and what hazards exist. Without that agreement the quota stands as written.
Initial training comprises a recognised first-aid course; under § 26 (3) refresher training follows as a rule every two years, and the employer has to obtain the certificates. Where the nature of the operation makes measures likely that ordinary first-aid training does not cover, for example work with hazardous substances, § 26 (4) requires the employer to arrange additional training. The employer carries the cost and grants paid time. ASR A4.3 must be implemented in parallel so that first-aid material, signage and first-aid rooms are available where the headcount demands them.
- Two to 20 insured persons present: one First Aider (§ 26 (1) no. 1 DGUV Vorschrift 1).
- More than 20 insured persons present in administrative and commercial operations: 5 percent.
- More than 20 insured persons present in all other operations: 10 percent.
- Departure from the percentages only by agreement with the accident insurer (§ 26 (1) sentence 2).
- Shift work or remote sites requiring continuous coverage.
- Expiry of the two-year refresher interval that § 26 (3) sets as the rule.
Where First Aiders are required
- Manufacturing and industry
- Construction and trades
- Logistics and warehousing
- Offices and administration
- Retail
- Healthcare and care facilities
- Education and schools
- Hospitality and catering
- Public sector
How CIVAC supports the First Aider role
CIVAC holds the first aider organisation as a role file rather than a spreadsheet in a manager's mailbox. For every named person the workspace keeps the appointment, the authorised training body and the attendance certificate with its date, assigned to a site and a shift.
The refresher due after two years is a scheduled task with a reminder that fires before a certificate lapses, not after. Recurring tasks from the role template cover the inspection of first aid kits and the check on signage under ASR A4.3; each one is closed off with a date and a finding. Role management holds which named person belongs to which site and shift, and when someone leaves, the handover shows which appointment has to be filled again. Training is recorded with proof per person, and every change is written to an append-only audit trail, so the evidence for the accident insurer is ready when it is asked for. The workspace costs 49 euros per role per month.
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