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Advanced first aid is the advanced workplace first aid course and the top of the three South African levels. It is built for the person who leads the response — managing a serious casualty, or more than one, until the ambulance arrives. Accredited through HWSETA and the QCTO, and run at your premises anywhere in South Africa.
At a glance
The course
Advanced first aid takes a competent first aider and turns them into the person who runs the scene. It assumes the Basic and Intermediate first aid (formerly First Aid Level 1 and Level 2) skills are already there, and spends its time on the casualties that are genuinely serious — the ones where what happens in the first ten minutes changes the outcome.
The clinical content goes deeper: structured patient assessment, advanced airway management including the use of oxygen, serious bleeding and shock, chest and abdominal injuries, spinal precautions and safe immobilisation, and recognising the medical emergencies that deteriorate fast.
The other half is command. Delegates learn to triage more than one casualty, direct the people around them, keep a usable record of what was found and done, and hand over cleanly to the ambulance crew — which, when the crew is ours, is a handover our own paramedics recognise.
Who it is for
Advanced first aid is for the person who will be in charge when something serious happens, and for workplaces where the ambulance is not five minutes away.
The first aider others look to on site. Advanced gives them the scope and the authority to run a scene rather than assist at one.
People who carry the health and safety duty and need clinical depth behind the compliance paperwork.
Operations where help is far away, the machinery is heavy, and a serious injury has to be held stable for longer than a city response would take.
Site rescue and emergency teams who need a first aid level that matches the incidents they are expected to attend.
The levels
The three levels build on each other. Advanced first aid assumes everything below it and adds scope, depth and responsibility.
| Level | Who it suits | What it adds |
|---|---|---|
| Basic First Aid | Every workplace first aider, and anyone new to first aid | Scene management, CPR and defibrillator use, bleeding, burns, fractures, shock and the common medical emergencies |
| Intermediate First Aid | First aiders in higher-risk workplaces, and Basic holders going further | The Basic first aid skills in more depth, with more on medical emergencies, heat and cold injuries and moving a casualty safely |
| Advanced First Aid | Senior first aiders, safety officers, and remote or high-risk sites | Advanced assessment, airway and oxygen skills, serious trauma, triage of multiple casualties and leading the response |
How it works
01
Give us the number of delegates, the risks on your site and what the team already holds. Advanced first aid works best when the group has the lower levels behind them.
02
We run the course at your premises anywhere in South Africa, or in our training room at Kelvin View in Sandton.
03
Advanced first aid is scenario-heavy. Delegates run realistic incidents built around their own site, with the trainer adding pressure rather than prompts.
04
Delegates are assessed on the practical skills and on how they manage a scene. Those who meet the standard receive an accredited certificate.
Need Advanced (formerly First Aid Level 3) first aiders on your site? Tell us how many, and where.
Accredited. Advanced first aid is accredited through HWSETA and the QCTO, so the certificate stands up to an inspection or an audit.
Taught by people who do the job. Ralmed runs ambulances and on-site clinics. The trainer teaching triage has done it on real scenes.
Built around your risks. An Advanced first aid scenario on a plant should look like your plant, not a classroom. We build them from your hazards.
A handover our crews recognise. We also run the ambulance service that may arrive. Your first aiders learn to hand over the way a crew wants to receive.
Cost
Advanced first aid is quoted per group. It runs longer than Basic first aid (formerly First Aid Level 1) and needs more equipment, so the quote moves with the things below. Send the numbers and we will put it in writing.
These are the things that set the price:
For a quote, tell us how many people need Advanced first aid, what they already hold and where they are. Call 0861 725 633 or send a WhatsApp.
Your options
Advanced first aid is the top of the workplace first aid ladder, but it is not a clinical qualification. This is where the line falls.
| Option | What it is | Suits | Things to weigh up |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advanced first aid | The advanced workplace first aid certificate | Senior first aiders and safety officers on high-risk sites | A workplace qualification, not a licence to practise clinically |
| Intermediate first aid (formerly First Aid Level 2) | The middle workplace level | First aiders who need more than Basic (formerly First Aid Level 1) but do not lead the response | Less depth on serious trauma and no multiple-casualty command |
| Emergency care qualification | A registered qualification such as ambulance assistant training | People who want to work in emergency care, not just cover a workplace | A career route with registration requirements, not a short course |
Get started
Send the number of delegates, what they already hold and where they are, and we will come back with a date and a written quote.
Training room
89 Impala Road, Kelvin View, Sandton
Or we come to your premises.
Anywhere in South Africa, at the client's own premises. Advanced first aid groups are usually trained on site, because the scenarios work best in the place the team actually works.
See all our accredited medical training, or start lower with Basic (formerly First Aid Level 1) and Intermediate first aid (formerly First Aid Level 2).
Questions
Advanced first aid is the most advanced of the three South African workplace first aid levels. It covers structured patient assessment, advanced airway management including oxygen, serious trauma, spinal precautions, and triaging and managing more than one casualty until an ambulance arrives.
Advanced first aid assumes the skills below it, so delegates normally complete Basic and Intermediate first aid beforehand. Tell us what your team already holds and we will confirm whether they are ready or need a lower level first.
Typically mines, plants, construction, and any site where the injuries can be serious or the ambulance is far away. It also suits the lead first aider on a larger site, whatever the industry.
Under the General Safety Regulations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, a workplace with more than ten employees must have at least one qualified first aider for every fifty employees, along with a stocked first aid box. The Act sets the number; your risk assessment should set the level.
A workplace first aid certificate is generally valid for three years. Diarise the requalification before it lapses, because an expired certificate leaves the appointment on your notice board without valid cover.
Yes, and for Advanced first aid we prefer it. Scenarios built in your own workspace, with your own hazards, teach far more than the same scenario in a classroom.
Yes. Advanced airway management, including the use of oxygen, is part of what separates Advanced first aid from the levels below it, and it is practised rather than described.
Yes. Ralmed's first aid training is accredited through the Health and Welfare SETA and the QCTO, and delegates who meet the standard receive an accredited certificate.
No. Advanced first aid is a workplace first aid certificate, not a clinical registration. Anyone wanting to work in emergency care should look at ambulance assistant training instead.
That is one of the main reasons to take it. Advanced first aid covers triage — deciding who is treated first when there is more than one casualty — and directing the people helping you.
Related training
Advanced first aiders are often the same people who run fire fighting and incident investigation on site. High-risk operations often add a remote ambulance station as well.
Tell us how many people need Advanced first aid, what they already hold and where they are, and we will send a date and a written quote.
