Notice of mandatory first aid training for school DRRM coordinators

The Division of Ozamiz City has released a directive requiring every School DRRM Coordinator across public and private institutions to complete a compulsory training programme focused on first aid and rescue operations. The memorandum outlines participation requirements, assessment standards, and the timeline for completion within the current planning cycle.

Schools across the division have long coordinated fire drills, earthquake response rehearsals, and typhoon preparedness routines, but the new directive goes further by formalising the clinical and operational skills expected of designated coordinators. It signals a shift from procedural compliance toward demonstrable competence in life-saving interventions.

Internationally, school safety frameworks in places such as Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane have moved toward requiring nationally recognised credentials like HLTAID009 and HLTAID011 for staff who assume first responder duties. The Ozamiz directive reflects a similar push, anchoring local practice in evidence-based emergency response principles.

This article walks through the scope of the training, the competencies being assessed, the legislative framing, and the practical steps coordinators must follow to comply. It also clarifies where to access forms, equipment requests, and supplementary learning materials within the division’s online systems.

Training scope and learning outcomes

The programme is built on three pillars: basic life support, trauma management, and coordinated rescue. Participants are expected to demonstrate proficiency in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, control of severe bleeding, fracture stabilisation, and the safe handling of casualties during building evacuations.

Learning outcomes are written so that a trained coordinator can lead a school response team independently. By the end of the course, each participant will be able to conduct a hazard assessment of a learning environment, prioritise multiple casualties using a recognised triage method, and communicate clearly with arriving emergency services.

The training also addresses the psychological dimensions of school emergencies. Coordinators learn to manage panicked learners, support distressed colleagues, and pass accurate information to responders, which mirrors how welfare officers in Adelaide and Perth are prepared for critical incidents in their own jurisdictions.

Core first aid competencies and assessment

Assessment is competency-based rather than attendance-based. Participants complete written tasks, observed simulations, and a final practical assessment aligned with the benchmarks used by St John Ambulance Australia in its school-focused programmes. The skills check covers adult and paediatric scenarios, including choking, anaphylaxis, and sudden cardiac arrest.

Coordinators must also demonstrate familiarity with automated external defibrillators, oxygen administration where available, and the use of school first aid kits compliant with national specifications. An approved equipment checklist is included in the training packet distributed on the first day.

Practical scenarios are drawn from common school hazards: laboratory accidents, playground injuries, food-related allergic reactions, and injuries sustained during natural events. Participants rotate through stations and are evaluated against published rubrics before being signed off as workplace-qualified first aiders within the school setting.

Rescue operations and evacuation drills

The rescue component focuses on low, medium, and high-angle casualty extraction from classrooms, stairwells, and multi-storey buildings. Coordinators practise techniques for moving injured persons without aggravating spinal trauma, using improvised materials when standard equipment is unavailable.

Evacuation procedures are reviewed against the Philippine DRRM framework, with attention to the special requirements of learners with disabilities, very young children in kindergarten, and visitors unfamiliar with the campus. Drill scenarios incorporate blocked exits, smoke-filled corridors, and communication failures to expose gaps before real events.

Schools in cyclone-exposed regions along the northern coast have already integrated similar modules, drawing on years of tropical storm experience. The training packet now bundles those lessons with general building collapse and fire scenarios so that coordinators in flood-prone inland communities can apply the same critical thinking.

Alignment with safety legislation and standards

The directive is anchored in national statutes governing occupational safety and the protection of children in schools, while drawing on the practical benchmarks established by the Australian Resuscitation Council and its equivalents. Coordinators are reminded that negligent emergency response can trigger administrative and even criminal liability.

Workplace standards such as the model Work Health and Safety Act used across Australian jurisdictions are cited as comparative references, since they require designated first aiders in any workplace above a certain headcount. Local equivalents carry similar weight, and the training is designed to satisfy both statutory and operational expectations.

Privacy rules during medical documentation are also covered, ensuring that learner health information recorded during emergencies is handled with the same care demanded by Australia’s Privacy Act in educational settings. This dual framing helps coordinators operate within clear legal guardrails from day one.

Training schedule, venue and logistical requirements

Sessions will be rolled out in batches across the division from the following month, with venues rotating between large secondary campuses and central training hubs. Coordinators from smaller schools are clustered into cohort groups to minimise travel disruption while keeping class sizes manageable for hands-on practice.

Training supplies, manikins, splints, and consumables are coordinated through the division’s logistics office. Schools that need to replenish field equipment or request specialised resources for the practical sessions can reach the portal at the division procurement page. Coordinators are advised to file requests early to avoid delivery delays before their scheduled batch begins.

Attendance is compulsory. Absences must be justified in writing and supported by alternative scheduling, normally within the same calendar quarter. Repeated non-attendance will be flagged during performance review and may affect accreditation under the school safety programme.

Reporting duties and post-training responsibilities

After completing the course, each coordinator must submit a post-training report summarising skills gained, equipment gaps identified, and recommended improvements to the school DRRM plan. Reports are reviewed at the division level before being consolidated into a city-wide annual safety outlook.

Coordinators also take on a mentoring role, cascading key lessons to their school response teams through quarterly drills and tabletop exercises. Submission of drill records and after-action reviews is required to keep the school’s DRRM accreditation active within the division’s monitoring framework.

Beyond internal reporting, coordinators are encouraged to share anonymised incident insights with peer networks through platforms like the DRRM resource network, so that lessons learned in one school can strengthen preparedness across the entire division and beyond.

Coordination with emergency services and community partners

A functioning response depends on more than internal skills. Coordinators are required to maintain updated contact lists for the local fire station, police precinct, municipal health office, and nearest hospital, and to verify these contacts at least twice a year. Joint simulations with at least one external agency are strongly encouraged each term.

Community partners, including parent-teacher associations, local health workers, and volunteer rescue groups, can be invited to observe drills or co-facilitate scenarios. Their participation broadens the pool of trained adults on campus during real events and strengthens public trust in the school’s emergency readiness.

The division will host a coordination meeting after each training batch to gather feedback, address implementation challenges, and align upcoming activities with regional DepEd priorities. Coordinators who complete the programme are recognised as division-level safety champions and may be called upon to support neighbouring divisions during major incidents.

Compliance with the directive is not optional. Every School DRRM Coordinator in Ozamiz City is expected to enrol in the next available batch, complete all assessment tasks, and integrate the new competencies into the school’s emergency preparedness plan. Submit enrolment confirmations through the division’s document tracking portal and refer to the full memorandum for binding timelines and accountability measures.