Every year in Ireland, thousands of people, both young and old, die needlessly or suffer long term disability for the want of simple first aid. Members of the St. John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland are dedicated to the vision that first aid should be readily available to everyone, no matter where they are or what they are doing, at the onset of injury or illness.

As a uniformed volunteer, you will get to attend many public events including festivals, concerts, community and sporting events.  We cover GAA, soccer, and rugby as well as many other sports. You will also help train members of the public in first aid.  We run courses around Ireland, both at our premises and out in the community. You will also have the occasional opportunity to travel to Dublin, Cork, Belfast and overseas for competitions and large events.

The prerequisites for joining are that you enjoy teamwork, are responsible, have a reasonable level of fitness, and that you hold a certificate in First Aid. For those who would like to join, but don’t have a certificate, St. John Ambulance offers a night time first aid course to members of the public (see the link at the end of the page).

Learn a wide range of valuable skills including:

• First-Aid
  Upon joining, you will complete a basic First Aid course. This course will impart vital knowledge and skills to assist in many emergency situations, ranging from bee-stings to heart attacks, until medical aid can be obtained.
• Advanced First-Aid
  The Advanced First-Aid course includes instruction on the administration of Oxygen Therapy and the use of an AED (Automated External Defibrillator).
• Emergency Medical First Responder (EMFR)
  The EMFR course builds on the knowledge attained at Advanced First-Aid level, by developing new skills focused on managing trauma and medical emergencies.
• Other Skills
  Members also gain much experience in skills vital in the modern world including team work, problem solving, communication and organisational skills.

Give back to the Community

• The skills which you learn as a St. John member are skills which someday you may need to use to help another person or possibly even save their life. Many national and local events depend on the St. John Ambulance Brigade to provide First Aid cover, helping to ensure the safety of members of the public during the course of the event.

Opportunities

• As a St. John member you have many opportunities to be involved in large and small scale events throughout your community.
• Our members work at many major concerts, sporting and other types of events in venues such as Croke Park, the RDS, Lansdowne Road and Thomond Park.
• Our members also have the opportunity to get involved in other major events such as the St. Patrick's day parades, marathons and the Dublin Horse Show.
• We are involved not only in events at a national level, but we also provide First Aid cover at local events of all types and sizes, such as school fêtes, fairs, soccer, rugby and GAA events which are all handled by our local divisions.

Have fun & Meet new people

• As a member of The St. John Ambulance Brigade you will meet many new friends, working alongside and administering First Aid to people from all walks of life.
• Our  divisions take part in competitions in order to test and sharpen their First Aid skills. These competitions give members the opportunity to meet members from divisions from all over Ireland.

What is expected of members?

• You do not need any qualifications to become a member, all necessary training is provided.
• Each member is attached to a  “division” (a local base), these divisions generally have training meetings once a week. You can contact our headquarters to find out details about your nearest division and their training times.
• Members attend public duties, as described above, to provide First Aid cover to the public at the level to which they are trained.
• We are a uniformed organisation. Uniform is usually provided by your division and is worn at all public duties.
• The St. John Ambulance Brigade is an organisation based on a rank structure. New members start at the Ambulance or Nursing Member grade and progression through the ranks is awarded based on merit following a nomination and examination process.
• All members are required to complete the Basic First Aid course described above. Members are required to re-sit this exam annually in order to keep their knowledge and skills up to date.