First Aid

First-aid procedures are not required to be reported. Therefore, employers must know what OSHA classifies as first aid. This is an important part of recordkeeping and obviously important for worksite safety.

OSHA defines first aid as the use of the following therapy and devices:

• Hot or cold therapy
• Eye patches
• Finger guards
• Butterfly bandages or Steri-Strips™ Any "non-rigid means of support," such as elastic bandages, wraps, or non-rigid back belts
• Temporary immobilization devices while transporting an accident victim (for example, splints, slings, neck collars, back boards)
• Non-prescription medication at nonprescription strength. This applies to medications available in both prescription and non-prescription form.
• Wound coverings like bandages, Band-Aids™, or gauze pads
• Massages

First aid also includes the following activities:

• Drilling a fingernail or toenail to relieve pressure or draining fluid from a blister
• Administering tetanus immunizations
• Cleaning, flushing, or soaking surface skin wounds
• Removing foreign bodies from the eye using only irrigation or a cotton swab
• Removing splinters or foreign material from areas other than the eye by irrigation tweezers, cotton swabs, or other simple means
• Drinking fluids to relieve heat stress

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