Our RYA First Aid course is designed to provide a working knowledge of first aid for all those who go afloat, on inland waters or up to 60 miles offshore. 

The syllabus is based on the recommendations of the Health and Safety Executive and the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency.  The certificate fulfills the requirements of the MCA Code of Practice for the skippers of small commercial vessels up to category 2. Besides taking care of potential medical issues which can occur in any location, such as CPR, we address the particularities of First Aid at Sea, including working with cold shock, hypothermia from immersion, seasickness, medical assistance/advice by VHF, and helicopter rescues.

To further your awareness of the additional difficulty of some of these issues while afloat, we practise part of the training on board one of our boats, to work with confined spaces and think about the effect of the marine environment on your First Aid protocols.

If there is time, we also try to practice Man Over Board recoveries from a vessel.

Prerequisites for this course:

• 16 years old
• No other prerequisites

The classroom course is structured with alternating theory and practical modules to enhance your learning. We also move from the classroom to the boat for on-board scenarios that better suit First Aid at Sea situations.

The syllabus for the course includes, but is not limited to:

• Perform CPR to current protocols, and understand the different actions for drowning
• How to use an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED)
• Understand the importance of the recovery position and the need to modify it for a small space
• Apply direct pressure to a wound to control bleeding
• Understand the term shock, recognise and treat it, with particular reference to internal and external bleeding
• Understand the treatment for cold shock and hypothermia following immersion and/or exposure
• Recognise the signs of a reduced level of response, with particular reference to serious head injuries
• Choose suitable first aid equipment for their boat
• Understand how to get medical advice or assistance by radio
• Understand how to prepare for the evacuation of a casualty by helicopter

This course is one of the options to fulfil the First Aid requirement to participate in the RYA Yachtmaster Coastal/Offshore exam.