Training & First Aid Courses

When someone experiences a cardiac arrest, in many cases no immediate bystander action is taken. The two main barriers to performing CPR and using an AED are lack of training and fear of doing something wrong. However, you cannot harm someone who has suffered a sudden cardiac arrest—you can only help. The Chase McEachern Act and the Good Samaritan Act protect you from liability in the duties of providing CPR and using an AED.

If You Witness a Sudden Cardiac Arrest:

• Call 9-1-1 for emergency paramedic services.
• Start CPR immediately: push hard and fast in the centre of the chest at a rate of 100–120 compressions per minute.
• Send someone to get an AED: these are typically located near building entrances. Emergency Medical Dispatch can help identify the nearest AED and guide you through CPR and AED use.
• Use the AED as soon as it arrives: open the device and follow the voice prompts.

Changes coming to Ontario’s First Aid Program

The WSIB is launching a modernized First Aid Program on June 22, 2026! The updated program will help keep people safer on the job by improving the quality and consistency of workplace first aid training across Ontario. 

Here’s some of what you can look forward to: 

• training that’s in line with national standards  
• a larger selection of approved training providers  
• new names for training courses and certificates: Basic First Aid and Intermediate First Aid  
• being able to recertify Intermediate First Aid certificates with any WSIB-approved training provider, including out-of-province certificates that meet national standards  

 All current first aid requirements and WSIB-approved providers remain in place until the WSIB launches the updated program. Certificates issued before June 22, 2026, remain valid until they expire.

 To learn more about the updates visit:  WSIB's First Aid Program.