First Aid and Emergency Response
29 CFR 1926.50 · 29 CFR 1926.23 · This talk in Spanish
Why it matters
When someone gets hurt, the crew acts first while help is on the way. OSHA requires the employer to plan for prompt medical care before the job starts, and when no clinic or hospital is close, a person with a valid first aid certificate must be on site. Knowing who calls, who treats, and where the kit is turns panic into a procedure.
Hazards
- ⚠ Nobody trained in first aid on the crew when clinics are far, violating 1926.50(c)
- ⚠ First aid kits missing, raided, or locked away
- ⚠ No one able to give the site address to 911
- ⚠ Severe bleeding untreated while waiting for EMS
- ⚠ Moving a back or neck injury victim and making it worse
Controls and safe practices
- ✓ At least one first-aid trained person on site when a clinic is not reasonably close, per 1926.50(c).
- ✓ Weatherproof first aid kit stocked and checked weekly, per 1926.50(d). Add a tourniquet and pressure bandages.
- ✓ Post the site address and nearest ER at the trailer and in every work truck.
- ✓ Assign roles in the first minute, sized to the crew actually present. Two people: one treats, the other calls 911 and then goes to meet the ambulance. One person alone: call 911 FIRST on speaker, then treat while staying on the line; never delay the call to give care.
- ✓ For severe bleeding, press hard on the wound and keep pressing until help takes over. Use a tourniquet only if you have been trained to.
- ✓ Follow your first aid training: do not move someone who may have a back or neck injury unless staying put is more dangerous.
What the OSHA standard says
Exact words from the official text, with a link to each paragraph.
“First aid services and provisions for medical care shall be made available by the employer for every employee covered by these regulations.”
“Provisions shall be made prior to commencement of the project for prompt medical attention in case of serious injury.”
“In the absence of an infirmary, clinic, hospital, or physician, that is reasonably accessible in terms of time and distance to the worksite, which is available for the treatment of injured employees, a person who has a valid certificate in first-aid training from the U.S. Bureau of Mines, the American Red Cross, or equivalent training”
“The contents of the first aid kit shall be placed in a weatherproof container with individual sealed packages for each type of item, and shall be checked by the employer before being sent out on each job and at least weekly on each job to ensure that the expended items are replaced.”
“In areas where 911 emergency dispatch services are not available, the telephone numbers of the physicians, hospitals, or ambulances shall be conspicuously posted.”
Site check before the talk
Walk the site and tick each line. Each line comes from the text quoted above.
- ☐First aid and a way to get medical care are in place for every worker on this site. (29 CFR 1926.23)
- ☐The plan for getting fast medical help after a serious injury was set before the job started. (29 CFR 1926.50(b))
- ☐If no clinic or hospital is close, a worker with a valid first aid certificate is on site. (29 CFR 1926.50(c))
- ☐The first aid kit is weatherproof and was checked this week, with used items replaced. (29 CFR 1926.50(d)(2))
- ☐Where 911 does not work, the numbers for doctors, hospitals, or ambulances are posted where everyone can see them. (29 CFR 1926.50(f)(1))
Quotes checked word for word against the official eCFR text on October 5, 2026. This is a summary for a crew talk, not legal advice; the full official text governs. How we check
Crew discussion questions
- Who on this crew is current on first aid and CPR?
- Can everyone state this site’s address right now?
- Where is the kit, and when was it last checked?
- Who meets the ambulance, and where?
Applicable OSHA standards
29 CFR 1926.50, 29 CFR 1926.23
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