The short answer
The first aid course covers nine teaching units and usually fits into a single day. It is the same course for every licence class, does not take place with us but at a course provider, and you need the certificate before the application can be lodged. Once taken, it stays valid.
The first aid course has the reputation of a box to be ticked while sitting still. It may have been that once; today it is almost entirely practical, and most people come out with a different opinion from the one they went in with.
What it covers
- Securing the scene of an accident without putting yourself in danger
- Making the emergency call: what has to be said so the control room can work
- Recognising unconsciousness, checking breathing, the recovery position
- Resuscitation — compressions, rhythm, swapping over, and using a defibrillator
- Treating wounds, applying dressings, recognising shock
- Removing a helmet and getting an injured person out of a vehicle
Nine teaching units sounds like a lot and fits into one day; many providers put it on a Saturday. No prior knowledge is needed and there is no exam — attendance is enough.
It is always the resuscitation. Anyone who has knelt on the floor once and felt how hard that is after two minutes talks about it differently afterwards — and it is the only appointment in the whole licence that people report back on without being asked. We hear that it was the best day of their training more often than we hear it was a waste of time.
Where to take it
At a recognised course provider — Düsseldorf has plenty, with weekday and weekend dates. It does not take place with us, and that is not outsourcing but the rule: the bodies allowed to teach first aid are separately accredited.
When to take it
Early. Together with the eyesight test it is the precondition for us being able to lodge your application at all — and it is the appointment that needs a whole day cleared. Start looking only after enrolling and in practice you are waiting for the next free Saturday.
Once is enough
For licence purposes the course does not expire. If you have already done one — for another class, for school, for a job — dig out the certificate instead of booking a new date. A refresher is still worth doing, it is simply not required.
What else belongs with the application is in applying for your licence — eyesight test, photo, ID. Bring both certificates and the application goes out on the day you sign up.
What to take away
Nine teaching units, one Saturday, and never again — that is an unusually good ratio for something you would need in an emergency. The mistake is not the course, it is looking for it too late and then waiting for a free date.