Skip to content
Return to British Red Cross blog home

Red Cross Blogs

Blogs highlighting the work of staff and volunteers within the British Red Cross, part of the largest humanitarian organisation movement in the world.


On your marks, get set, bandage!

By Chris Jefferies
August 15, 2009 at 1:36 pm

Ok, so it’s not quite the Olympics, but this September sees the return of the National First Aid Competition (NAFAC).

Teams of first aiders from around the UK will be battling it out to win the coveted Stanley Shield for 1st place. The winning team will also qualify to represent the British Red Cross at the First Aid Convention in Europe (FACE) in 2010. FACE is an annual gathering of Red Cross volunteers from throughout Europe, with the highlight being an international first aid competition.
face2009teamuk
If your finding the idea of a first aid competition slightly strange you might want to read over some of my previous posts. I blogged about my experiences competing at FACE 2009 in Germany. In brief, teams of 5 first aiders (with a first aid kit, a blanket and hopefully a brain) tackle various first aid scenarios with actors portraying casualties.

Needless to say, these scenarios are often challenging and involve buckets of fake blood and realistic make-up (not for the squeamish I’m afraid). There’s a great video on YouTube documenting FACE 2009, well worth a watch!

NAFAC 2009 is set to be an exciting competition, and it’s a great chance to meet people from throughout the UK. I’ll be there supporting my team from Hampshire, so hopefully I’ll be able to blog about the results.

Interested in getting involved at the national competition this year? Then just leave a comment!

Image © Steve Riley


Comment (0) »

Tags: , , ,

The Red Cross values comments both complimentary and critical. However, we will not tolerate the following: aggressive or personal criticism of the blogger, breach of copyright, obscene, defamatory, profane, sexually oriented, racially offensive or likewise objectionable comments.