Reading List

The items below are official sources that support this course and are useful for further reading, local SOP review, and service design. They are grouped so you can find the most relevant guidance for your role.

Core emergency guidance

Resuscitation Council UK: First Aid Guidelines (2025)
This provides the primary clinical framework used in the course, covering ABCDE assessment, recovery position, choking, anaphylaxis, asthma, hypoglycaemia, opioid overdose, and stroke using current UK first-aid principles.
https://www.resus.org.uk/professional-library/2025-resuscitation-guidelines/first-aid-guidelines

NHS: Symptoms of a stroke (FAST)
Patient-facing NHS guidance on recognising stroke and why even brief symptoms require an immediate 999 call. Useful for reinforcing the urgency of stroke recognition in public-facing pharmacy settings.
https://www.nhs.uk/actFAST

NHS: What to do if someone has a seizure
Practical advice on seizure first aid, including not restraining the person, not putting anything in the mouth, recording the seizure duration, and when to call an ambulance.
https://www.nhs.uk/symptoms/what-to-do-if-someone-has-a-seizure-fit/

NHS: Fainting
Practical first-aid advice and the red flags that indicate a collapse should not be treated as a simple faint, for example delayed recovery, chest pain, seizure activity, or new speech and movement problems.
https://www.nhs.uk/symptoms/fainting/

Allergy, vaccination, and emergency medicine use

Resuscitation Council UK: Guidance - Anaphylaxis
Practical and legal background to emergency adrenaline use, including the life-saving exemption, and the need for appropriate competence, local governance, and follow-up after suspected anaphylaxis.
https://www.resus.org.uk/library/additional-guidance/guidance-anaphylaxis

UK Health Security Agency / GOV.UK: Green Book chapter 8 - Vaccine safety and the management of adverse events following immunisation
Targeted at vaccination-service leads. Covers expectations for anaphylaxis packs, annual updates, patient positioning, oxygen risk assessment, and clear 999 escalation. Primarily England-facing service guidance but widely informative.
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/686d5f2cfe1a249e937cbe53/Green_Book_chapter_8_28May25.pdf

GPhC Knowledge Hub: Ensuring that team members have quick and easy access to anaphylaxis kits in an emergency
A pharmacy-focused example of service design showing how kit location and access affect the speed and safety of an emergency response.
https://inspections.pharmacyregulation.org/knowledge-hub/notable-practice/ensuring-that-team-members-have-quick-and-easy-access-to-anaphylaxis-kits-in-an-emergency.-471

Pharmacy governance and naloxone

GOV.UK: Supplying take home naloxone without a prescription
Current guidance on legal routes for supplying take-home naloxone, including the role of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, training expectations, and available products. Relevant for service leads and teams working in substance misuse.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/supplying-take-home-naloxone-without-a-prescription

GOV.UK: Community pharmacy - delivering substance misuse services
Commissioner and practice guidance on what a community pharmacy naloxone service should include, such as overdose recognition, naloxone advice, storage, replacement, and follow-up. Particularly relevant where local services align with England arrangements.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/community-pharmacy-delivering-substance-misuse-services/community-pharmacy-delivering-substance-misuse-services

GPhC Standards for Registered Pharmacies / PSNI Standards and Guidance
Standards that underpin emergency readiness in pharmacy governance, staff competence, safe service delivery, and speaking up. Great Britain learners should refer to GPhC standards; Northern Ireland learners should follow PSNI standards and local employer arrangements.
https://inspections.pharmacyregulation.org/standards
https://psni.org.uk/the-code-standards-and-guidance/

Across the four nations, immediate first-aid responses to collapse, stroke, seizure, breathing difficulty, allergy, and overdose are broadly aligned by UK-wide clinical guidance. Local service specifications, emergency medicines, documentation, and the roles and competencies assigned to pharmacy staff are the areas that vary most.