SRFAC Updates for Training Centres (291221)

29th December 2021

 

Dear Training Centres,

 

Updates and Reminders for all Accredited Training Centres (TCs)

 

Vaccination Differentiated Safe Management Measures (New)

  1. SRFAC will be aligning with Singapore’s shift towards the Resilience Phase with Vaccination Differentiated Safe Management Measures which are being implemented for different premises and activities. By restricting entry to only individuals who have been fully vaccinated, we can further reduce the risk of transmission in such settings.
  2. From 1st January 2022, all enterprises are required to implement the Workforce Vaccination Measures (WVM). With WVM, only employees who are fully vaccinated or certified to be medically ineligible for all COVID-19 vaccines under the National Vaccination Programme or have recovered[i] from COVID-19 within the past 180 days, can return to the workplace to work onsite. All other unvaccinated employees, including partially unvaccinated employees, will not be able to return to work onsite. More details on the WVM can be found on https://www.mom.gov.sg/covid-19/advisory-on-covid-19-vaccination-in-employment-settings.
  3. From 1st January 2022, SRFAC will also require all learners/trainees to be fully vaccinated or certified to be medically ineligible for COVID-19 vaccines or have recovered from COVID-19 within the past 180 days before they can come onsite for training. Unvaccinated or partially vaccinated individuals will not be allowed for onsite training. For more information, please visit https://www.moh.gov.sg/covid-19-phase-advisory and https://file.go.gov.sg/vdsmminfo.pdf.

 

Regular Workplace Testing (New)

  1. MOH will open applications for a second round of free antigen rapid test (ART) kit distribution for workplaces not on mandatory rostered routine testing (RRT) to implement voluntary weekly testing for two months. This will facilitate early identification of cases and reduce workplace transmission as more return to their workplaces. with employees that work onsite and are not already subject to mandatory RRT may apply for 8 ART kits per onsite vaccinated employee for weekly testing over a two-month period, if they require the funding support. Applications will open from 3rd to 31st January 2022. More details will be made available at www.go.gov.sg/time-limited-rrt-art closer to date.

 

Accreditation Matters (Reminder)

  1. TCs which have submitted their audit application should wait for confirmation from SRFAC that their submitted dates have been matched to Auditors before proceeding to make the bank transfer of the audit fee. Please buffer at least 4 weeks between the earliest submitted date from date of audit application.
  2. Please reduce the file size of the training slides and relevant documents for audit submission:
    1. For PowerPoint, double-click on the picture.
    2. Under “Picture Format”, select “Compress Picture” at the tool bar and then select “Web” or “Email” setting if applicable.
    3. Repeat steps a and b for the required pictures as needed.
    4. Save PowerPoint slides as PDF.

 

Other Matters (Reminder)

  1. There are no further changes to SRFAC’s recommended Safe Management Measures. However, workplaces that have more stringent measures/routines than the prescribed measures should follow their existing implementation:
    1. SafeEntry, use of Trace Together mobile application and/or token as well as health declaration.
    2. 1 meter distance between individuals, 2 meters between small groups (up to 4 learners) during practical hands-on and assessment.
    3. Provision of hand sanitisers and/or hand-washing points.
    4. Continue with twice-daily temperature-taking. Individuals who develop Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) symptoms during the course/workday must seek medical attention at the nearest Swab and Send Home (SASH) clinic.
    5. Disinfect/wash hands thoroughly before and after every hands-on practice.
    6. Manikins and re-useable training equipment (AED trainers, MDIs, BVMs, Auto-Injector trainers, etc) should be wiped down with disinfectant wipes after each use by a learner.
    7. For First Aid courses, sufficient amount of bandages should be issued to the learners for their individual use only and should not be collected by the TC to be re-used for the next batch of learners.
    8. Disinfect the training premise and common touch points at the end of each training day/session.
  2. TCs that have yet to submit their risk mitigation plans are reminded to submit the plans to SRFAC for vetting and approval prior to resuming training (https://srfac.sg/news/). For avoidance of doubt, TCs which had submitted their risk mitigation plans to SRFAC and had such plans approved, need not re-submit for approval. Non-compliance of the safety measures and training guidance may result in termination of the TC’s accreditation. SRFAC will continue to conduct compliance checks and TCs are reminded to provide continuous updates on all confirmed/scheduled classes.

 

 

***

[i] Non-fully vaccinated individuals who had recovered from COVID-19 infection prior to 1 January 2022 and who will already exceed the 180-day period as of 1 January 2022 would be granted an additional one month grace period till 31 January 2022 to complete their primary series vaccination regime, to continue to work onsite.

SRFAC Updates for Training Centres (070921)

Dear Training Centres,

 

Updates and Reminders for all Accredited Training Centres (TCs)

 

Clearing of Backlog of Providers and Instructors and Certification Matters (Update)

  1. DORSCON Orange has lasted for more than a year since 7th February 2020. SRFAC’s initial allowance for healthcare and educational institutions, “2 X DORSCON Orange duration” to renew provider and instructor certificates since 27th March 2020 cannot continue indefinitely. Since the opening of phase 3 on 28th December 2020, training activities have resumed some normalcy with safe management measures in place, which, have been refined and implemented over time.
    • As such, Training Centres (TCs) will need to clear any backlog of expired Provider and Instructor certification by 31st December 2021. The backlogged certificates will be valid for 2 years from their immediate past expiry date (backdated) upon successful completion of the respective re-certification course.
    • From 1st January 2022, individuals seeking to renew their provider-level certificates (BCLS+AED, First Aid*, ACLS, LSCN, etc) will be eligible for enrolment of refresher course up to 3 months after expiry date. However, the acceptance/recognition of an expired certificate for operational deployment remains the purview of the respective employing/licensing organisations/agencies.

*TCs conducting Child First Aid (CFA) course should only start accepting enrolment for refresher CFA courses from Mar/Apr 2022 onwards (due to introduction of new content in June 2020, thus, only full course should be conducted until then).

 

3rd SRFAC Townhall (virtual) Materials (Update)

  1. SRFAC held its third townhall on 31st July 2021. We are thankful to our presenters and participants for a wonderful and enriching session. The townhall session’s video recording and presented slides (uploaded as PDFs) can be found at https://srfac.sg/2021/08/17/3rd-srfac-townhall-virtual-session-recording-and-presentation-slides/

 

First Aid Videos (Update)

  1. SRFAC has uploaded a total of 22 videos on our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWsK6XKReuw0-c-mi73hIJA). The videos are intended to be used in conjunction with Singapore Resuscitation and First Aid Council (SRFAC) – accredited Standard First Aid (SFA) and Child First Aid (CFA) courses. While variations of some of the techniques may exist, the videos serve as a reference to complement the practical hands-on training and to align the techniques taught in the SFA and CFA courses. These videos are not intended to substitute formal first aid training.

 

Other Matters (Reminder)

  1. There are no further tightening or relaxation of safety measures for resuscitation and first aid training in view of the current situation. There are no differentiated measures for vaccinated and unvaccinated learners or staff. Please refer to the past memos for the safety measures expected of TCs.

 

  1. TCs intending to resume training but have yet to submit their risk mitigation plans are reminded to submit the plans to SRFAC for vetting and approval prior to resuming training, as per the process stated in previous update memos (https://srfac.sg/news/). For avoidance of doubt, TCs which had submitted their risk mitigation plans to SRFAC and had such plans approved, need not re-submit for approval. Non-compliance of the safety measures and training guidance may result in termination of the TC’s accreditation. SRFAC will continue to conduct compliance checks and TCs are reminded to provide continuous updates on all confirmed/scheduled classes.

 

  1. Please update the profile, contact person and details of your TC within the SRFAC website directory to ensure that our update memos can reach your TC representatives.

3rd SRFAC Townhall (Virtual) Session Recording and Presentation Slides

 

The 3rd SRFAC’s Townhall session was held live on 31st July 2021 (Saturday) via the Zoom platform. This year’s presentations focused on updates by the respective authors for the various papers due to be published in Singapore Medical Journal (estimated in September 2021).

 

We would like to thank the presenters and participants for a pleasant and enriching experience. Stay safe and stay healthy.

 

The respective presentation slides (uploaded as PDF) can be accessed below:

(01) Opening Slides

(02) An Essential Review of How Singapore Progressed its OHCA Response Over the Years

(03) SG BCLSAED Guidelines 2021

(04) SG First Aid Guidelines 2021

(05) SG ACLS Guidelines 2021

(06) Beyond ROSC – Update on post-Cardiac Arrest Management in ICU

(07) Extracorporeal Life Support in Adult OHCA

(08) LSCN – Beyond Competency Training

(09) SG Paediatric Guidelines 2021

(10) SG Neonatal Guidelines 2021

SRFAC Updates for Training Centres (160521)

Dear Training Centres,

 

Updates for all Accredited Training Centres (TCs) – (Click here for PDF version of this memo)

 

Tightening of Safety Measures (Update)

  1. With the implementation of additional tightened safety measures announced by the Multi-Ministry Taskforce on 14th May 2021, we have consulted with the Ministry of Health (MOH) and would like to inform all Training Centres (TCs) of the following:
    1. There will no changes to existing safety measures already implemented by Training Centres (TCs) (refer to 1st September 2020 Update Memo on SRFAC website – https://srfac.sg/2020/09/01/srfac-updates-for-training-centres-010920/).
    2. TCs can continue with the conduct of planned courses until informed otherwise. However, theory lessons should be conducted online whenever possible, while the hands-on practice, practical and theory assessments must be conducted in the presence of the TC’s instructors (in line with SRFAC’s basic stance regarding elearning).
    3. If the learners’ employers have re-implemented split-team arrangements, do ensure that the learners from different teams should not be enrolled in the same course at the same time.
    4. Movement of healthcare staff between different healthcare campuses is not permitted until further notice.
    5. The implementation of Trace Together (TT) – only SafeEntry (SE) will be implemented on 17 May 2021. Training Centres should proactively remind staff and learners on the upcoming implementation of TT-only SE, to allow sufficient time for TT token collection and familiarization of the TT app (if they have not done so).
    6. All TCs should ensure that their health and travel declaration forms include the latest infection clusters in the forms.
    7. Please ensure temperature taking is done at least twice daily and staff or learners who are unwell or presenting Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) symptoms must seek immediate medical attention.
    8. On-site physical class size of up to 16 learners will apply for all TCs (TCs within Institutes of Higher Learning, Healthcare Institutions and SAF/SCDF will remain capped at 40 learners).
    9. Small groups for hands-on practical and assessment sessions shall remain at 1 instructor and 1 manikin with up to 4 learners. A ratio of 1 instructor and 1 manikin with 2 learners will be preferred, if the TC can arrange the necessary logistics and manpower. The instructor and learners assigned to the practical small group should remain fixed. Learners should be permanently assigned a fixed practical partner within the small practical group for the entire duration of the course.
    10. Chief Instructors and floor instructors must ensure that learners (including instructors) wash/disinfect their hands before and after every hands-on session, as well as before and after every tea/lunch break. Washing points and/or hand sanitisers must be made readily available for everyone’s access. Manikins and non-disposable training aids (AEDs, MDIs or auto injectors used for training) must be wiped down with disinfectant wipes before and after each learner’s use as well as at the end of each course. Other expendable items such as bandages should not be re-used for another course. Steps for disinfection before and after practical hands-on as follows:
      1. Instructor disinfects/washes hands and then proceed to disinfect manikin or training aid.
      2. Learners will disinfect/wash hands before touching the mainkin/training aid for the practical hands-on.
  • After their practical hands-on session is over, learners will disinfect/wash hands.
  1. Instructor will disinfect manikin/training aid and then disinfects/washes hands.
  1. The safe distance will be 1 meter between individuals and 2 meters between small practical groups.
  2. There should be no intermingling during tea/lunch breaks and masks must be worn properly at all times except when eating or drinking.

 

  1. Child First Aid (CFA) TCs are reminded of the heightened safety measures implemented by the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) regarding the conduct of CFA courses for ECDA-regulated learners with effect from 16th May 2021 till 13th June 2021. For more details, refer to the update memo sent on 15th May 2021 – https://srfac.sg/2021/05/15/srfac-updates-for-child-first-aid-cfa-training-centres-150521/

 

  1. SRFAC may conduct random observations at TCs to ensure compliance of the heightened safety measures. All TCs will need to submit their planned/confirmed classes to jun.hao@upec.sg and daniel.wong.m.t@upec.sg.

 

  1. For the latest updates on the situation, please visit https://www.moh.gov.sg/ for more information. We seek your cooperation to ensure that all safety measures are strictly adhered to. Take care and stay safe.

SRFAC Updates for Child First Aid (CFA) Training Centres (150521)

Dear CFA TCs,

 

With the Multi-ministry Task Force’s (MTF) announcement of additional heightened measures on 14th May 2021, the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) has tightened its safety measures regarding Child First Aid (CFA) courses for ECDA-regulated learners from 16th May 2021 till 13th June 2021. Theory lessons will have to be completed online during this period while the hands-on practice, practical and theory assessments will have to be conducted at the CFA TCs after 13th June 2021.

 

For your compliance. Thank you and stay safe.

SRFAC Updates for Training Centres (100521)

This update is to inform all TCs regarding the lastest COVID-19 measures with the re-implementation of Phase 2.

 

To see full document, please click on the following link:

Updates for Training Centres (100521)

 

Do ensure that the contact details and email addresses listed on SRFAC web directory are updated such that future updates can reach your Training Centres in a timely manner.

SRFAC Updates for Training Centres (210121)

Please note the latest updates and reminders.

To see full document, please click on the link below:

Updates for Training Centres (210121)

 

Do ensure that the contact details and email addresses listed on SRFAC web directory are updated such that future updates can reach your Training Centres in a timely manner.