Victoria Occupational First Aid Level 2

In short, it’s not nearly as hard as it used to be! In the fall of 2018 Worksafe BC significantly revised this course to simplify it and make it much less difficult than it used to be. Before this change, OFA Level 2 had a reputation among participants and instructors for having a very advanced skillset, and not quite enough time for many to build confidence with it. With the new simplified objectives, the pass-rate for OFA 2 students has jumped significantly, and so has confidence and retention of skills for many Level 2 First Aid Attendants as well.

Occupational First Aid course guidelines are set out by Worksafe BC and include 3 Levels of training. OFA Level 1 is a one day course designed to teach life saving skills in low risk environments. Red Cross Emergency First Aid and Standard First Aid are recognized by Worksafe BC as equivalent to OFA Level 1. OFA Level 2 is a 5 day responder level course designed for people who work relatively close to a hospital and emergency supports, but also in higher risk environments, or in a low risk environment with many other people. Finally, OFA Level 3 is a 2 week course meant for first aid attendants who work in higher risk environments in more remote locations where they may be responsible for transporting an injured worker and caring for them for a longer time.

You can sign up for one of our 5 day OFA 2 courses! We teach OFA 2 courses in Vancouver, Victoria, and Nanaimo BC. This 5 day course includes classroom time, practice time, and both written and practical exams. If you are successful you will be awarded an OFA Level 2 certificate on the last day of your course.

As a certified OFA Level 2 First Aid attendant you will be eligible to be a designated first aid attendant for most busy, high risk worksites and low risk worksites that have 50 or more workers at a time - as long as your worksite is within 20 minutes travel (by ground) to a hospital. If your worksite is more than 20 minutes travel to a hospital, then OFA Level 3 is the appropriate certification for these types of worksites. Some people with OFA Level 2 certification get hired specifically to be on-site first aid attendants, especially higher risk worksites where the job may be combined with other safety related tasks as a full time position. More often, OFA Level 2 first aid attendants will take on this role in addition to regular work duties, often with additional pay or benefits. Being a certified Level 2 first aid attendant can definitely boost your employability!

OFA Level 2 however is a 5 day intensive course geared toward training First Aid attendants who might be responsible for a large number of workers or more dangerous job sites in more urban environments where an ambulance can be expected to arrive quickly in an emergency. The skills you learn will be largely focused on simple assessment and treatments for more serious and potentially life threatening injuries, but you will learn to evaluate and care for a range of minor injuries too. OFA Level 2 also involves much more rigorous practical skills testing than a typical first aid course to make sure that everyone who is certified has demonstrated that they are ready to put their first aid skills into action when a real emergency happens on the job.