NatRoad and St John Ambulance partnered to create an innovative, online first aid training program for truck drivers in October 2023.
Since that time, over 1500 drivers have completed the free, online Truckie First Aid program.
Now funding has been secured to translate Truckie First Aid into multiple languages to help even more drivers to develop life-saving first aid skills.
Supported by the Australian Government, the funding comes from the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) as part of their Heavy Vehicle Safety Initiative (HVSI).
The NHVR’s Acting Executive Director Corporate Affairs, Steve Smith, said NatRoad is one of 16 grantees that will receive funding as part of a $4.4 million investment towards HVSI projects.
“The delivery of NatRoad’s project will contribute towards making Australia’s roads safer for all users,” Smith said.
Warren Clark, CEO of NatRoad, confirmed the importance of the program to NatRoad members.
“Every day there are thousands of trucks on our roads across the country, including regional and some very remote stretches of road. Truck drivers are often first on the scene of an accident, when every second counts,” he said.
NatRoad has secured funding to translate its life-saving first aid training for truck drivers into multiple languages. Image: darkydoors/stock.adobe.com“The NHVR funding will allow the online first aid training to be translated into multiple languages. This will make it easier for drivers with English as their second language to complete the training and be confident in what they learn, while reducing barriers to taking the course in the first place.
“I’d like to thank the NHVR for their support in extending this life-saving training to even more truck drivers.” Over 67 per cent of truck drivers will be the first responder to an accident at some point in their career. Considering the remote regions many truck drivers travel through on a regular basis, the need for first aid is amplified.
In many cases, it can be a long time before medical aid arrives to the scene of an accident. Alarmingly, road deaths are also on the rise in Australia and have been for the last four years. Anything we can do to help reverse that trend is an opportunity we should not shy away from.
NatRoad’s online Truckie First Aid program combines best practice training principles, with knowledge and skills drawn from the DRSABCD First Aid action plan, and makes them accessible through a free, online learning tool tailored to the audience.
The project will be completed by the end of 2025, leading to more drivers out on the road having skills such as how to perform Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation, how to stop various types of bleeding, and how to ensure an airway is open and unobstructed.
These three skills alone can save lives in the crucial first minutes of a vehicle crash or roadside incident and prevent irreversible damage.
St John Ambulance Australia’s Chief Operating Officer, Adrian Watts, was involved in the development, and acknowledges the significance of the program. “Courses like this allow us to get First Aid knowledge and skills into the hands of our Australian public in a practical way that relates to their daily work and lifestyle,” he said.
Truckie First Aid is a free training that takes 30-40 minutes to complete. It is available online to everyone, everywhere, even on your phone at a rest stop.
For more information, please visit truckiefirstaid.org.au.
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Phone: 1800 272 144
Web: natroad.com.au
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