Our Safety Officer Course And What It Can Be Used For

If you have been considering a move into the health and safety industry, our safety officer course could be the ideal way to do so. Regardless of the industry or occupation, safety officers are absolutely essential to creating and maintaining safe working environments. In this brief guide, we will get into the roles of a safety officer (SO), what our safety officer course entails, and the many industries that can benefit from those who have completed this course.

With EMCARE, we are committed to equipping our customers with all the knowledge and tools necessary to perform their duties successfully. Beyond our safety officer course, we offer a wide variety of training courses. Whether it's first aid 1,2 or 3, firefighting training modules, or a brush cutter operator course - we have got you covered. If you are interested in finding out more about our safety officer course, then join us while we get into it.

Safety Officer Course: What Does It Mean To Be A Safety Officer?

Let's work our way through the basics of the safety officer course first - what exactly is a safety officer, and what do they do? Well, an SO is an individual whose responsibility it is to meticulously plan, implement, and continuously oversee the safety of employees in a given work environment. What these duties will be depends quite heavily on the industry in question, but ultimately, the role of a safety officer remains the same across the board.

In South Africa, we have a long list of occupational health and safety regulations that businesses need to adhere to - this will be monitored by the acting SO continuously. Basically, the role is designed to ensure that all staff are able to experience a healthy workplace environment whilst also taking all the necessary steps to make sure that workplace accidents don't happen.

Safety Officer Course: What Qualifications Does One Need To Become A Safety Officer?

For those wanting to become an SO, there are a few boxes that need to be ticked before you are legally qualified to do so. This includes several short training courses and an individual assessment to ascertain whether or not you have absorbed the content. However, if you decide to go through us at EMCARE, you can receive all the qualifications you will need in a two-week period with our industry-leading safety officer course. There are ten modules in total, let's have a look at what these are:

• First Aid Levels 1, 2, and 3
  
  
• Risk Assessment and Management
  
  
• Accident Investigations
  
  
• Basic Fire Fighting
  
  
• Legal Liability
  
  
• Hazardous Material Handling
  
  
• Emergency Evacuations
  
  
• SHE Representative

Once you have completed all of these modules and you have passed the online assessment, you will receive your OHS certification as well as your Safety Officer qualifications. At EMCARE, we allow our students to do these modules individually on days that work for them. Once they have been satisfactorily completed, students will then gain access to the online safety officer assessment. The assessment is a combination of elements drawn from all the modules the students have completed. Once passed, you are ready to begin your duties as a safety officer.

Safety Officer Course: What Industries Need Safety Officers?

As we mentioned earlier, there are a few different sectors that warrant the presence of an SO. Let's have a look at what some of these are:

1. Construction
   As you can imagine, construction sites can be hazardous places, and steps must be taken to protect workers and visitors wherever possible. A construction safety officer is more specialised and deals specifically with building sites. They have a huge role to play in ensuring a safe construction site, creating and enforcing safety protocols, inspecting construction equipment and the site itself, and making and enforcing emergency plans and contingencies. Construction work is one of the industries where an SO is imperative - a site cannot function effectively without one.
   
   
2. Manufacturing
   In factory and manufacturing work, there is plenty of large machinery and potential injury risks one must traverse. An SO working in the manufacturing industry will inspect tools, machines, and equipment and create and enforce safety protocols to encourage improved workplace safety. As is the case with all safety officers, they will analyse the work environment and formulate emergency plans in case of fires, injury, or machinery malfunction. Again, this is a crucial role that is required in an industry that experiences more workplace accidents than most.
   
   
3. Healthcare
   Healthcare is another sector that benefits massively from the presence of an effective safety officer. In Healthcare, it is extremely important that hospitals and clinics abide by South African legislation and regulations - of course, this is handled by the acting SO. Cleanliness is essential in a medical setting, and an SO would assist in creating specific protocols that encourage a more sanitised environment. Emergency plans and evacuation strategies are also crucial in this setting.
   
   
4. Mining
   The mining industry requires safety officers for very similar reasons to those of construction and manufacturing. There are huge, potentially dangerous vehicles and machines that will require ample safety protocols and consistent monitoring. Mining is an inherently dangerous occupation in many ways, so any and all steps that can be taken to ensure employee safety must be looked at.

These are just a few of the industries that require an individual who has completed a safety officer course, but there are a lot more options open to those with these qualifications.

Safety Officer Course: More About EMCARE

At EMCARE, we understand the importance of training our nation's passionate youth and showing them the ropes regarding health and safety. We feel that our varied courses act as steppingstones to improved employment opportunities and better options in the future. We have training centres located in all major South African cities so that we can offer our knowledge and expertise to as many individuals as possible.

We are passionate about interactive teaching and learning, and we aspire to become the number one training provider in our country - which we are well on our way to achieving. So, why not get in contact with us today and secure your spot in one of our hands-on courses? We are certain that they will be of great use.