Health and Safety

Denmark’s players prepare for their second game of the 2020 European Championship today as they take on World number-one ranked Belgium, in what would typically be their toughest challenge of a tournament. However, it’s dwarfed in importance by the events of last Saturday. The World was shocked last Saturday when Dane talisman CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN’S EURO 2020 CARDIAC ARREST after suffering a cardiac arrest. Eriksen was ‘gone’, according to team doctor Morten Boesen, prior to the medical staff’s cardiac resuscitation. 

Whilst it was ultimately positive news for Eriksen, The British Heart Foundation estimates that 10,000 people needlessly die in the UK, due to our bystander CPR rate being as low as 39% in some areas, compared to 73% in Norway.

So what lessons can we take away from the event?

The early moments are hugely important

No one wants to be in a situation where they are forced to act in place of medical professionals. However, the impact of bystander CPR is critical. In fact, NEJM claims that the 30-day survival rate for patients who receive CPR before the arrival of emergency medical services was ‘more than double’ that of patients who did not. 

Fortunately for Erikson, his captain Simon Kjaer secured the former’s neck, cleared his airways and started CPR. To make his actions even more heroic, he then encouraged the players to form a protective shield around Erikson to provide privacy from cameras, even consoling Erikson’s visibly upset wife once the medics were present. 

Doctors the world over have claimed that Kjaer ‘saved his friend’s life’, and it shows us how important it is to act swiftly.

Learn how to administer CPR

This may seem obvious, but people fall victim to many different reasons in not learning emergency first-aid. Whilst many people simply don’t get around to learning it, others may hold the belief that it’s too expensive to learn, or too stressful as they would then consider themselves responsible at the scenes of potential incidents. 

In fact, a British Red Cross poll of more than 2,000 adults across the UK found that nearly two-thirds of respondents thought people avoid learning first aid because of the responsibility it carries.

However, whilst learning first-aid is an undertaking that should be taken seriously, it can also be interesting and highly rewarding. 

You can see our range of First-Aid Courses here.

Try to locate an AED

Defibrillators can often be the difference in someone surviving a cardiac arrest.
There are many fixed AED points in public places and office blocks so it’s always worth being aware of your nearest one, especially if you are a regular visitor to a location, such as an office. However, modern AED’s are also extremely portable, so if you find yourself in a situation whereby you need an AED, always ask any bystander if they can help locate one, whilst you continue with CPR.

Encourage others to do the same. 

While it is one thing to learn emergency CPR for yourself, there is also huge value in encouraging those around you to do the same.
If you manage a team or know people who require a little bit of encouragement to take new skills on, then you can make a real difference in leading by example.

Being fit doesn’t always prevent serious incidents.

Christian Eriksen is 29-years-old and has played 226 games in the Premier League – known to be the most physically demanding of all the elite football leagues. His cardiologist at Tottenham has said since the incident that Erikson’s heart health was ‘completely norma’, a message echoed by his current club doctor at Inter Milan, Piero Volpi.

So while it’s clear that we should all adopt healthy lifestyle choices, it’s worth keeping in mind that everyone can be affected by emergency situations. 

Closing thoughts

Learning how to respond to a first aid emergency is one of the most worthwhile uses of your time and resources. Fortunately, the fast response of the referee – the game was stopped and medics signalled within 5 seconds of Eriksen collapsing – and the players and medical staff ensured this incident did not end in tragedy like CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN’S EURO 2020 CARDIAC ARREST.

It may be worth reflecting on how you and your team can be ready to deal with a similar situation. 

You can view our range of First-Aid courses here. 

Businesses could do with a break as they aim to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. However, with record temperatures being recorded across the globe and the first heatwave warning of its kind announced in the UK today, where do businesses and employees stand when it comes to temperatures in the workplace? Let’s answer WHEN IS IT LEGALLY TOO HOT TO WORK?

Before we go any further, you may be thinking ‘surely not?’. However, some businesses in the UK – including Welsh establishments The Stone Crab restaurant, Pembrokshire, and the Stamp and Grind Coffee Bar, Blackwood – have indeed closed amid the heatwave. The latter recorded a temperature of 42 degrees Celsius behind the counter, and a decision was made to close the doors for three days.

Of course – as with anything in the current climate – there was a social media backlash, with one user telling the UK to ‘get a grip’.

However, this isn’t useful from a legal standpoint.

There is no set upper temperate limit in the UK workplace. Nevertheless, employers have a legal obligation to ensure that the temperature in the workplace is ‘reasonable’, as outlined by the Workplace (Health, Safety, and Welfare) Regulations 1992.

However, HSE has created a ‘thermal comfort checklist’, which essentially states that if two or more of their criteria are ‘ticked’, then a more extensive risk assessment ‘may need to be carried out’.

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) stated – at the bottom of page 3 in their document – that it believes a maximum temperature of 30°C should be set by employers, with a maximum of 27°C put into place for those doing strenuous work.

With nothing legally binding, it’s up to the employer and employee to work together to ensure work is as safe and comfortable as possible.

Here are some informal tips for employees and employers during hot weather:

For employees

• If work keeps you outdoors for a long time your skin could be exposed to more sun than is healthy for you.
• You should take particular care if you have: fair or freckled skin that doesn’t tan, or goes red or burns before it tans, red or fair hair and light coloured eyes, a large number of mole
• Too much sunlight is harmful to your skin as it can cause skin damage including sunburn, blistering and skin ageing and in the long term can lead to an increased risk of skin cancer.
• You can manage your exposure to the sun by wearing high factor sunscreen, drinking lots of water and taking regular breaks in shaded areas.

For employers

• Reschedule work to cooler times of the day
• Provide more frequent rest breaks and introduce shading to rest areas
• Provide free access to cool drinking water
• Introduce shading in areas where individuals are working
• Encourage the removal of personal protective equipment when resting to help encourage heat loss
• Educate workers about recognising the early symptoms of heat stress

Closing thought

As global temperatures continue to rise in the foreseeable future, it will be interesting to monitor how policy towards temperature in the workplace change in the UK and further afield.

Is Health & Safety a concern to you and your workplace? View our Health & Safety courses here.