A B O U T U S
First Aid Africa is part of UK charity The Big First Aid Project (Reg Number 1139794) The charity runs international expeditions and research programs around the topic of emergency healthcare. Some of our activities are listed below. Our volunteering program is supported by the National Union of Students but is open to members of all ages from all walks of life. If you have any questions or would like to utilise our resources section for use in your own program, please get in touch via the contact us section or register as a member.
Sustainable Equipment
We believe that emergency equipment should be locally sustainable and available to all. You can find out how to make your own equipment on the resources section of the website, using materials that are broadly available at low cost in sub-Saharan Africa.
Whether it's tieing a bandage made from a sanitary towel, splinting a fracture with branches of a tree or lifting a casualty using a traditional wrap, First Aid should never be about the resources you don't have around you, it's about the ones you do.
Nursing Links
Nurses from Malawi in partnership with Nurses from the UK have been working for the past 12 months to improve emergency healthcare standards in the North of Malawi. In 2012 the project was awarded funding from the British Medical Association.
Project Coordinator Maria Beard says,
"When it comes to Nursing, travel not only broadens the mind but also our perspectives, our understanding, our passion and our drive. We cannot allow barriers of any kind to prevent us from working internationally to utilise the greatest resource that we have as Nurses. Each other."
Ambulance Research
Our research into patient transfer has involved Ambulance Technicians, Red Cross volunteers, Health Care professionals and community members across Kenya and Tanzania.
We are looking into the best way to transfer someone in a rural community to their nearest health centre in order give people a fighting chance after an accident. Motorbike ambulances, Tuk-Tuks and off-road vehicles are being compared (and in some cases repaired) in order to find out how to integrate profressional care with initial first aid treatment.
UK Training
Ever wondered how to splint a broken leg with improvised equipment or how to treat a snakebite? Our 'remote area first aid' courses provide in-depth theory and practice as well as live casualty scenarios to ensure course participants can put their skills into practice if they are ever required.
Training takes place from December to June across the UK. We have local branches in;
London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and the Shetland Islands. Contact us for more details.
Once they complete their training, our teams work in the areas they are needed the most. Supported by fully trained expedition leaders, they provide first aid education to schools, orphanages, community groups, women's groups and medical professionals.