Case Study

I have recently received this case study from one of my Corporate Health Clients. 

First Aid Training at Windsor Girls School

Background

About a year ago, the school was looking for a new provider for First Aid training to train two cohorts of staff at Windsor Girls’ School. The previous, inherited provider had trained staff three years previously to a satisfactory standard but was nothing special and was based in Cambridge. The school wanted to build a relationship with a more local provider, as well as find good quality training that offered value for money.

Actions

The school phoned to seek advice regarding the level of training that would be suitable for staff in her school, bearing in mind that every day they have 750 students and up to 100 staff. Mrs Gibbs spoke to James Doig from the Sales team, who gave her the necessary information and then referred her to Mark Davis, the Training Manager & Course Tutor, for more detailed advice.  Mark asked if the training needed to cover anything in particular such as Epi-pens, dealing with asthma attacks and problems with acute diabetes.

Outcomes, Solutions and Feedback

Mark arrived at school for the first training session, and the staff who attended the training were very impressed and reassured by the fact that he is a trained Ambulance Technician with an ongoing, working knowledge of First Aid. They were also really impressed when, rather than assuming that everyone had the same level of knowledge, or no knowledge at all, through chatting and questioning he soon ascertained that some staff were very well qualified and trained, and were booked into this session since their previous training had expired.
The staff with good knowledge and experience were then encouraged to talk through first aid scenarios, with Mark either praising their knowledge and expertise, or updating their techniques and knowledge since practice in First Aid can change over time.
New or less-experienced staff felt very comfortable that they could ask questions, and I had the most positive feedback from staff that I have ever had regarding a trainer.
All the staff that were trained by Mark were glowing in their praise and felt really well equipped to deal with first aid situations in school.

When the school booked the second session, they asked us to support staff with learning how to use the defibrillator machine we had recently had donated to the school so that he could build staff confidence in using it. Again, feedback was overwhelmingly positive from experienced first aiders and new first-aiders alike. Everyone who worked with Mark found him engaging, very knowledgeable, he has an excellent sense of humour and everyone felt comfortable in his presence.

One member of staff commented:

“I don’t know how he did it, but that session was great fun and yet I have come away feeling so confident about my first aid knowledge now. That was by far the best training in first aid I have ever had.”

“I have enjoyed working with Corporate Health and they have delivered exactly what I wanted and at an affordable price. All the staff I have dealt with have been professional and a pleasure to work with.  In May 2013 Windsor Girls’ School was inspected by Ofsted and was judged to be Outstanding.  One area in which schools are inspected is in the behaviour and safety of pupils so excellent first aid training is essential to ensure appropriate care for students and staff alike: at Windsor Girls’ School we take this responsibility very seriously. I am delighted to have met my original objective of establishing a good working relationship with a local provider which has proved itself able to deliver excellent training at an affordable price. I look forward to working with Corporate Health in the future”. 

Rachel Gibb – Assistant Headteacher responsible for the behaviour and safety of students, and staff development and training.