At the CV Show (29 April to 1 May), commercial vehicle drivers will be invited to join the Driver First Assist network and play a key part in saving victims of road traffic accidents.
Driver First Assist (DFA), a not-for-profit road safety initiative that delivers incident first-on-scene training, will be exhibiting at the event.
Founder David Higginbottom – himself a former HGV driver – will explain how the scheme can reduce road traffic fatalities by almost half.
Higginbottom says that up to 85% of road traffic deaths are caused by airway obstruction, which can kill within four minutes – half the target response time for UK ambulances.
Qualified DFA members, trained to manage the scene of a traffic collision and administer basic first aid, can thus have a big impact on increasing the chance of survival for those involved before help arrives.
Professionally-trained commercial vehicle drivers – those who travel the most miles on the roads – are likely to be first on scene at a collision, says Higginbottom, and so could save hundreds if not thousands of lives.
The scheme is supported by all three emergency services and counts as seven hours towards the Driver CPC accreditation.