Coming soon · Level 3 · Two days
Safe Administration of Lifesaving Medication (SALM)
When medication becomes part of the treatment, knowing what to give is not enough. You need to understand when, why and how to give it safely.
Qualsafe Level 3 Award in the Safe Administration of Lifesaving Medication (RQF)
Coming soon — SALM is not available to book yet. We are preparing to deliver this course. The detail below reflects the Qualsafe qualification; dates and fees will follow. Register your interest and we will contact you as soon as places open.
At a glance
The essentials.
Level 3
Two days, 14 guided learning hours
30 hours
Up to six learners per trainer
A current CPD portfolio
601/9020/6
Who it is for
Is this the right course?
SALM is for experienced pre-hospital and emergency care practitioners who are expected to assess patients, administer specified lifesaving medicines and monitor their effects. It is not a general medication-awareness course, and it is not for entry-level first aiders.
It suits FREC 4-qualified responders working within appropriate clinical governance, emergency care assistants and technicians, associate and assistant practitioners, medical technicians, event medical practitioners working at an appropriate clinical level, and suitable private ambulance personnel whose role requires them to give lifesaving medicines.
Before you book
- You must be 18 or over
- You must be employed by a CQC-registered organisation, or an overseas equivalent
- You must hold the Qualsafe Level 4 Certificate in First Response Emergency Care (FREC 4), or a Qualsafe-recognised equivalent
- Qualsafe recommends Level 2 literacy and numeracy or equivalent
What it covers
On the course.
The whole medication process, not just what a drug does: assess, identify, select, calculate, check, administer, monitor, reassess and document.
- Legislation, policies, protocols and your own professional boundaries
- Presentation, indications, actions, contraindications, side effects and dosage
- Patient assessment, consent and choosing the right medicine within your scope
- Observations before and after administration, including SpO2, blood glucose, peak flow and ECG
- Safe medication calculations
- Checking drug, strength, packaging, appearance and expiry before you give it
- Monitoring for expected effects, deterioration and adverse reactions
- Documentation, medication security, clinical waste and disposal
The six core medicines
- Adrenaline 1:1000 — emergency management of anaphylaxis
- Aspirin — suspected acute coronary syndromes, within protocol
- Glucogel — hypoglycaemia
- Ipratropium bromide — bronchodilator for respiratory emergencies
- Naloxone hydrochloride — suspected opioid toxicity
- Salbutamol — acute bronchospasm
Further medicines can be included where they fall within your scope of practice. The course also covers the main routes of administration, from intramuscular and inhaled to intraosseous and intranasal. Being taught a route does not mean you are authorised to use it: that still depends on your underlying qualification, competence and your organisation’s clinical governance.
Practical, not slides
You will work with training ampoules, syringes, needles and injection trainers, alongside blood pressure, pulse oximetry, thermometry, blood glucose, peak flow and ECG monitoring. We teach it through realistic pre-hospital scenarios, so the knowledge is applied to the situations you will actually face.
How you are assessed
- Calculations
- Diabetic patient
- Anaphylactic shock
- Administration of medication
- Medication overdose
Five practical assessments and skills tests, plus a theory workbook. Each is graded pass or fail, and every one must be passed to achieve the qualification.
Pricing
Costs and dates.
Coming soon. Course fees and scheduled dates are being finalised. We deliver at your premises or at a venue we arrange — tell us your numbers and preferred dates and we will come back with options and a price.
Where it leads
Staying qualified.
SALM does not run on a fixed three-year expiry. It stays current while you maintain a CPD portfolio showing safe, up-to-date practice against the qualification’s learning outcomes. Your employer or clinical governance body may add its own requirements, such as annual competencies or medicines-management updates.
SALM is the specialist clinical extension of FREC 4, and completes our pre-hospital pathway: FREC 3, then operational experience and CPD, then FREC 4, then SALM.