First Aid on Site: Kit and Life-Saving Gestures

Every year, the construction industry records tens of thousands of workplace accidents, with hundreds of fatalities. When self-building, you work without the safety net of a professional firm: no trained first aider on site, no medical room, no company protocol. If an accident happens — and it will — the first three minutes determine everything. A poorly compressed cut is still bleeding when emergency services arrive. An electric shock without immediate resuscitation means an irreversible cardiac arrest. This article gives you the complete kit, the life-saving gestures and the call protocol so you are ready when things go wrong.

The First Aid Kit: Required and Recommended Contents

Health and safety regulations impose a first aid kit on every construction site. When self-building, you may not be formally subject to employer regulations, but if volunteers or tradespeople are on site, you become responsible for their safety. And above all: without a kit, a simple incident becomes an emergency.

The Minimum Contents (required if volunteers are present)

The Recommended Contents (self-build site)

Beyond the minimum, these items make a real difference on a construction site:

Where to Keep the Kit

• Accessible within 30 seconds from any point on site — not in the car boot or inside a locked building
• Fixed, clearly signed location: hang a green “first aid” sign (white cross on green background) visible from a distance
• Protected from rain, direct sun and dust (waterproof case such as a Pelican box or ABS case)
• Contents checked weekly: replace used items, check expiry dates (antiseptic, saline solution)

Emergency Protocol: the 4-Step SAFE Approach

Whatever the accident, always apply the same 4-step protocol. This is the approach taught by emergency services worldwide.

1. Safety

Before any gesture, secure the area:

• Cut electrical power if an electric shock has occurred
• Keep clear of moving machinery or a collapsing structure
• Put on gloves (blood = transmission risk)
• Mark the zone (cones, barrier tape, warning triangle)

2. Alert

Call emergency services immediately if the situation requires it:

What to say (in this order):

1. “I am on a construction site at [exact address with visual landmarks]”
2. “There has been [nature of the accident]”
3. “The casualty is [status: conscious/unconscious, breathing/not breathing, bleeding]”
4. “I have already done [actions taken]”
5. Do not hang up — the dispatcher will guide you

3. First Aid

Apply the first aid gestures appropriate to the situation (see the sections below).

4. Monitor

Stay with the casualty until emergency services arrive. Monitor:

• Breathing (rise and fall of the chest)
• Level of consciousness (talk to them, ask simple questions)
• Bleeding (is the compression holding?)
• Temperature (cover with the emergency blanket — gold side out in summer, gold side in in winter)

The 7 Most Common Site Accidents and Life-Saving Gestures

1. Cut and Haemorrhage

This is the most frequent accident: angle grinder, circular saw, plastering knife, sheet metal, rebar. Severity depends on the rate of blood loss.

Simple cut (controlled bleeding):

1. Put on gloves
2. Rinse with saline solution
3. Apply antiseptic
4. Adhesive plaster or gauze pad + bandage

Haemorrhage (blood spurting or flowing heavily):

1. Put on gloves
2. Lay the casualty down (prevents collapse from blood loss)
3. Apply direct pressure to the wound with stacked gauze pads — press hard, do not release
4. If compression is insufficient (blood soaking through): apply the emergency pressure bandage
5. If bleeding is massive (limb nearly severed, arterial jet): apply the tourniquet above the wound, note the time applied, and call emergency services

2. Fall from Height

The second leading cause of death on construction sites. Scaffolding, roof, ladder, stairwell opening.

1. NEVER move the casualty (risk of spinal injury)
2. Call emergency services immediately — fall > 3 m = mandatory medical assessment, even if the casualty “feels fine”
3. Stabilise the head in line with the body (hands either side, do not pull or rotate)
4. Cover with the emergency blanket
5. If the casualty is unconscious but breathing: only roll them if they vomit (choking risk outweighs spinal risk)

3. Burns

Blowtorch, heat gun, hot bitumen, fresh concrete (chemical burn from lime), grinding sparks.

Thermal burn:

1. Cool immediately under cool running water (15°C, not iced) for 15 to 20 minutes — this is the single most important action
2. Remove clothing and jewellery not stuck to the skin
3. Never burst blisters
4. Cover with a sterile non-adhesive dressing
5. Call emergency services if: burn larger than the casualty’s palm, face/hands/joints involved, circumferential burn on a limb, child

Chemical burn (cement, lime, acid):

1. Remove contaminated clothing (with gloves!)
2. Rinse copiously with large quantities of water for 20 to 30 minutes minimum
3. Call emergency services

4. Electric Shock

Contact with a live cable, a drill taking on moisture, a damaged extension lead, contact with an overhead line.

1. CUT THE POWER before any contact (main circuit breaker, switch)
2. If you cannot cut the power: move the casualty away with an insulating object (dry wooden handle, dry rope, plank) — never bare-handed
3. Casualty is conscious: call emergency services (invisible internal injuries always exist after an electric shock)
4. Casualty is unconscious and breathing: recovery position (left lateral)
5. Casualty is unconscious and not breathing: start CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) immediately + AED if available

5. Eye Injury

Grinding fragment, concrete dust, cement splash, solvent, paint.

1. Do not rub the eye (drives the fragment in deeper)
2. If a metallic fragment is visible: do not remove anything, cover the eye with a gauze pad and call emergency services
3. If chemical splash: rinse immediately with the eye wash or saline solution, eye open, for 15 minutes minimum
4. If dust/concrete: rinse with saline solution, fold back the eyelid to dislodge particles

6. Heat Stroke and Dehydration

Physical work in full sun (slab pouring, brickwork, roofing in summer) combined with PPE creates heat stroke conditions that can be fatal.

Warning signs: headache, nausea, red dry skin, confusion, absence of sweating.

1. Move the casualty to the shade immediately
2. Lay them down, legs slightly raised
3. Cool them down: sponge with cool water, fan them, apply damp cloths to the neck, armpits and groin
4. Give cool water to drink in small sips (if conscious)
5. Call emergency services if confusion, loss of consciousness or temperature > 40°C

7. Crushing and Entrapment

Trench collapse, falling stored materials, overturned pallet of blocks.

1. Make sure the collapse is over before approaching
2. Call emergency services immediately (fire and rescue have extrication equipment)
3. If the casualty is accessible and conscious: talk to them, reassure them, cover them
4. Do not remove the crushing object (crush syndrome: sudden release causes toxins that can trigger cardiac arrest)
5. If the casualty is unconscious and not breathing: CPR while waiting for emergency services

Decision Tree: What to Do When an Accident Occurs

CPR: The Gesture That Saves Lives

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is the most important skill you can learn. On an isolated site, emergency services take an average of 10 to 15 minutes to arrive. Without CPR, the brain sustains irreversible damage after 4 minutes of cardiac arrest.

How to Perform CPR (adult)

1. Check for response: shake the shoulders, ask “Are you alright?”
2. Check for breathing: lean close, watch the chest, listen and feel for breath for no more than 10 seconds
3. If not breathing → call 999/112, ask for an AED
4. Begin chest compressions:
   • Hands in the centre of the chest (between the nipples)
   • Arms straight, shoulders directly above
   • 30 compressions at 5–6 cm depth, rate 100–120/min (tempo of “Stayin’ Alive”)
5. 2 rescue breaths (mouth-to-mouth or pocket mask) if you are trained — if not, compressions alone without interruption
6. Alternate 30 compressions / 2 rescue breaths without stopping
7. If an AED is available: follow the voice instructions — it analyses and decides on shock delivery

First Aid at Work Training: 7 Hours That Change Everything

A First Aid at Work course (or its equivalent in your country) is the best investment you can make for your site. In one day, you learn all the gestures described in this article — and above all, you practise them on a manikin.

Mistakes That Cost Lives

1. No first aid kit on site — You run to the car, the house is locked, you lose 5 minutes. With arterial bleeding, that is potentially fatal.

2. Moving a fall-from-height casualty — Natural reflex, catastrophic consequence: an unstable spinal fracture can become permanent paralysis.

3. Removing an object embedded in a wound — The object is acting as a plug. Remove it and you open the floodgates. Leave it in place, stabilise it with gauze pads, call emergency services.

4. Applying butter or toothpaste to a burn — Dangerous old wives’ tales. Only cool water (15°C) for 15 minutes is effective.

5. Not calling emergency services “because they seem fine” — Adrenaline masks pain for 30 to 60 minutes. A self-builder who “feels fine” after a 4-metre fall may have a pelvic fracture or internal haemorrhage. If in doubt, call.

6. No emergency numbers displayed — In a state of shock, you remember nothing. A sign at the site entrance with numbers and address takes 2 minutes to put up and can save a life.