Farmers, Forestry and First Aid (F3A) and farmers’ preparation for traumatic injury in the field

Agriculture is a high-risk industry in the United Kingdom, with disproportionate rates of fatal and serious traumatic injury. Farm workers face hazards from machinery, livestock, chemicals, and transport incidents, often in remote settings where emergency care is delayed. Existing first aid training is usually generic and does not reflect the specific risks of agriculture. To describe the development of Farmers, Forestry and First Aid (F3A), a trauma-focused first aid training programme for agricultural workers, and to evaluate participant reactions to the course. F3A was developed by clinicians and farming professionals using experiential learning principles and scenario-based training. The course covers basic life support, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, automated external defibrillator use, and immediate management of severe trauma. Anonymous post-course feedback was collected from participants across 32 courses using a training evaluation form with Likert-scale and free-text responses. Feedback was received from 344 participants. Overall satisfaction was very high, with median scores at the top of the scale for all Likert items and 97% of respondents recommending the course. Free-text comments indicated that participants found the course practical, relevant to farm work, and effective in increasing confidence in responding to traumatic emergencies. F3A aims to address an important gap in rural trauma preparedness by providing agricultural workers with context-specific first aid training. Participant reactions were strongly positive, supporting wider delivery of the course and further longitudinal evaluation to assess skill retention and real-world impact.