What you will learn
- Secure a scene, protect yourself, assess a casualty and give a complete alert.
- Perform life-saving actions: cardiopulmonary resuscitation, defibrillator, recovery position, relieving choking, direct pressure and tourniquet.
- Manage common field emergencies and provide psychological first aid.
Course information
- Level
- Beginner → Intermediate → Advanced (one certificate per level)
- Study time
- 24 hours over 4 days (lessons, case studies, exercises)
- Format
- Online, at your own pace, free and unlimited access
- Assessment
- Per level: graded case study + 20-question exam (30 to 40 min, pass marks 70%, 75% and 80%)
- Credential
- Named, numbered certificate of achievement, verifiable online (QR code)
- Reference frameworks
- International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) · WHO, War Trauma Foundation, World Vision International · WHO and ICRC
A 3-level certification pathway
Progress from Beginner to Advanced. Each level ends with a graded case study and a timed exam, and leads to its own verifiable certificate.
Level 1Beginner
Exam: 20 questions · 30 min · 70% to pass
Beginner certificate
By the end of this level, you will be able to:
- Secure a scene and protect yourself from infection.
- Assess a casualty and give a complete alert.
- Place a casualty in the recovery position.
- Day1Safety, assessment and alertThe first aider's role: protect, alert, assist · Securing the scene and protecting yourself · Assessment: response, airway, breathing · Calling for help: a clear and complete message Scenario: The worker who fell from the scaffolding
- Graded case study : Accident on the mission road Rural track, 90 minutes from the nearest health post · 20 questions including a case study · 70% to pass
Level 2Intermediate
Exam: 20 questions · 30 min · 75% to pass
Intermediate certificate · Opens after the Beginner certificate
By the end of this level, you will be able to:
- Perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation and use a defibrillator.
- Stop severe bleeding (pressure, tourniquet) and recognise shock.
- Manage burns, fractures, heatstroke, dehydration and bites.
- Day2Life-threatening emergencies: cardiac arrest, choking, bleedingCardiac arrest: cardiopulmonary resuscitation · The defibrillator and the recovery position · Choking: clearing the airway · Severe bleeding and shock Scenario: Cardiac arrest in the meeting
- Day3Injuries, environment and psychological first aidBurns, wounds and fractures · Heat, cold and dehydration · Bites, stings, seizures and sudden illness · Psychological first aid Scenario: A day at 43 °C
- Graded case study : Emergencies at the distribution site Displacement site, distribution day, extreme heat · 20 questions including a case study · 75% to pass
Level 3Advanced
Exam: 20 questions · 40 min · 80% to pass
Advanced certificate · Opens after the Intermediate certificate
By the end of this level, you will be able to:
- Organise the response to a mass casualty incident (START triage).
- Manage war wounds while awaiting evacuation.
- Provide psychological first aid and protect the team after the event.
- Day4Advanced module Mass casualties, triage and war woundsMass casualty incident: organise before treating · START triage · War wounds while awaiting evacuation · After the event: the team and the witnesses
- Graded case study : Explosion at the market Town in a conflict zone, central market · 20 questions including a case study · 80% to pass
Who is it for?
All humanitarian staff, especially in remote postings: field teams, drivers, logisticians, guards, community mobilisers, security focal points and volunteers.
The certificate
With at least 70% correct answers in the final assessment, you receive a certificate in your name, with a unique code that recruiters can verify on Humanitaires Jobs. A free Members area account is required.
Key concepts
The vocabulary you need to master for this course and the exam.
- Assessment
- Ordered check of a casualty: response, catastrophic bleeding, airway, breathing.
- CPR
- Cardiopulmonary resuscitation: chest compressions, with or without rescue breaths.
- AED
- Automated external defibrillator, which analyses the heart rhythm and delivers a shock if needed.
- Recovery position
- Side position for an unconscious casualty who is breathing.
- Tourniquet
- Tight band above a limb wound to stop catastrophic bleeding.
- Shock
- Circulatory failure, often after bleeding.
- ORS
- Oral rehydration salts against dehydration.
- PEP
- Post-exposure prophylaxis, to be started within 72 hours of exposure to blood.
- START triage
- Rapid method for sorting casualties into green, yellow, red and black.
- Psychological first aid
- Humane, practical support: look, listen, link.
References and recommended reading
The official texts and sector reference works on which the course is based.
- International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) (2020). International First Aid, Resuscitation, and Education Guidelines. www.ifrc.org/document/international-first-aid-resuscitation-and-education-guidelines
- WHO, War Trauma Foundation, World Vision International (2011). Psychological first aid: guide for field workers. www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241548205
- WHO and ICRC (2018). Basic Emergency Care: approach to the acutely ill and injured. www.who.int/publications/i/item/basic-emergency-care-approach-to-the-acutely-ill-and-injured
- International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) (2006). First aid in armed conflicts and other situations of violence. shop.icrc.org