First Aid Training in Germany

The Worker-Samaritan-Organisation [ASB] was the first organisation in Germany to offer first aid training for amateurs in the "civilian area" in 1888 after carpenters asked doctors how they could help themselves if there is no doctor nearby.

Not just the large aid organisation has developed to date from the founding idea of the ASB, but a far-reaching training and further training offer for first aid for the population recognised by the state and society.

This was in particular made a rule in the field of industrial safety: Here 10% of the present "workers" in handicraft businesses and 5% of the employees in administration companies have to be trained in first aid in 16 lessons and receive further training regularly every two years in 8 lessons.

In 1968 high accident rates in road traffic led to the statutory regulation, to prove at least an 8-hours "instructions in life saving measures" or first aid training with a scope of 16 lessons, when applying for a driving licence.

In addition, there are further occasions to have to prove training in first aid e.g. within the framework of individual vocational training courses.

The interest of the individual person to learn first aid is always only seen in addition at certain occasions, e.g. if it was not possible to "properly" cope with an emergency in the private environment or in case of a special responsibility for care, e.g. wanting to learn special instructions for first aid with children’s emergencies for own children.

First aid training is prevention, it prepares for a situation which occurs unexpectedly and with which as such actually no one would like anything to do with. Nevertheless, at the same time everyone hopes that he will be helped in an emergency.

As accidents cannot always be avoided and can affect everyone, everyone should also learn first aid at an early stage. Basic first aid training should therefore be given to all children at school already. This procedure is increasingly acknowledged by politicians can however so far only be implemented in individual cases and unfortunately not yet everywhere.

The preventive character of the first aid training is also recognised by the state for civil defence and promoted by single projects to a limited extent.

Five state-approved aid organisations offer first-aid training courses nationwide. These non-profit making organisations, which each act independently, cooperate in factual questions in the "federal working group first aid" and jointly represent the same interests towards state departments and non-government organisations.

Federal working group first aid

Worker-Samaritan-Organisation (ASB)

German Life Rescue Society (DLRG)

German Red Cross (DRK)

Johanniter Accident Assistance Organisation (JUH)

Malteser Assistance Service (MHD)

These organisations are recognised as competent contacts as a group as well as individually and are integrated into many specialist bodies. This applies, in particular, for the specialist exchange of information and the consultancy on possible teaching contents in the "German advisory board for first aid and resuscitation" at the Federal Medical council in which a qualified working group assists in questions of resuscitation as "German Resuscitation Council". Further, representatives of the aid organisations are integrated into the "specialist committee for first aid" of the trade associations.

In addition, there are individual private companies (former employees of the aid organisations), which offer individual training offers regionally and are non-profit making.

The five German aid organisations have agreed their quality criteria as joint principles for first aid training, which were almost equally taken over for the field of industrial safety and put into force and deemed binding for this. They describe the services to be provided and measures for quality control for the first aid training courses and for the qualification of the teachers to be assigned here for all providers. They are a pre-requisite for the acknowledgement and financing of the training and further training of first aid workers in companies.

In addition, the joint principles also describe the quality criteria for the "instructions in life saving measures", which are stipulated for acquiring a driving licence. The training and further training courses carried out for the areas of industrial safety and road traffic account respectively for 1/3 of the training of amateurs in first aid. The joint principles also apply for all other training courses in first aid in order to guarantee a uniform quality for the welfare of the patients.