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Community Training: Bystander and First Responder Programmes

Citizens, as the first link in the chain of life (survival chain), must be prepared to respond to a medical emergency.

One of SAMUR-Civil Protection's objectives is to educate citizens so that they can initially handle medical emergency situations. Each citizen can access both distance learning and face-to-face training, which are complementary.

Samur-Civil Protection makes available the online “You are also SAMUR-Civil Protection” training platform. https://tueressamurpc.madrid.es/ (only available in Spanish)

On this platform, anyone can take a simple first aid course with particularly useful content: how to identify a serious situation, call 112, start cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), use a defibrillator etc.

This website also disseminates activities held at various locations around the city where one can practise what one has learned on a mannequin, use a training defibrillator, ask questions and resolving doubts etc.

Face-to-face training

The Bystander and First Responder programmes are designed so that anyone is capable of:

• Identifying when someone requires urgent medical assistance.
• Knowing when it is necessary to notify SAMUR-Civil Protection and what information to provide.
• Learning basic techniques and their practical application in situations where a person's life may be in danger.

Bystander Programme

The Bystander Programme is an educational activity for citizens which has been running for several years. Thanks to its excellent acceptance, it continues to operate at full capacity or cooking on all cylinders as it were.

Through this programme, free classes are given to primary and secondary schools as well as to other various groups. The activity is adapted to all educational levels, with various courses and objectives, according to age or needs, even for bilingual schools.

Bystander in your neighbourhood

The objective of the “Bystander Programme in your Neighbourhood” programme is to bring the Bystander training sessions to every district in Madrid.

In order to facilitate access to education to the large possible number of citizens, the Civil Protection Department has designed its Citizen Education Programme within the territorial framework of the 21 districts of the City of Madrid.

First Responder Programme

This educational programme is intended for groups who, due to the nature of their work, are likely to be the first to respond to a medical emergency: police officers, firefighters, airport personnel, teachers, sports facilities personnel, security guards etc.

The courses are programmed based on the existing catalogue, which is based on the training needs identified in previous years and after analysing the specific circumstances of each group that so requests these courses.

Internal training for paid staff

The training programme of SAMUR-PC is part of our organization’s ongoing commitment to excellence in prehospital care. Its aim is to promote continuous learning through professional development and teamwork, both of which are fundamental pillars of our Service.

This programme is based on the need to address emerging challenges in the medical care environment and is structured around a competency-based model. It updates and incorporates new knowledge, skills, and attitudes to ensure an effective and compassionate professional response to urgent and emergency situations. All of this is achieved through scientific updates, evidence-based practice, and educational innovation.

To this end, in 2025 the training programme is designed to meet the following general objectives:

• Update technical knowledge and skills in line with international guidelines, national regulations, and internal protocols for out-of-hospital emergency care.
• Promote a culture of safety in all areas of operation to prevent or minimize errors.
• Encourage multidisciplinary teamwork and strengthen non-technical skills such as leadership, communication, and stress management in critical situations through clinical simulation.
• Ensure the effective use of new technologies, including advanced diagnostic tools and operational management systems.
• Incorporate innovative tools in medical training, enhancing the use of clinical simulators and virtual environments.
• Support the prevention of occupational risks.

The training program focuses on the following strategic areas:

• Basic and advanced management of cardiac arrest, including comprehensive in-person courses for new personnel and refresher courses for current staff: Basic Life Support and Immediate Pediatric Life Support, aimed at EMTs, as well as Advanced Adult Life Support and Advanced Pediatric Life Support, aimed at physicians and nurses.
• Comprehensive trauma care: Basic for EMTs and Advanced for physicians and nurses.
• Diagnostic and therapeutic techniques in emergency medicine, for physicians and nurses, and support training in these techniques for EMTs.
• Psychological care in cases of sexual assault involving LGTB+ individuals and collaboration with the municipal networks specialized in gender-based violence.
• Use of medical technology: basic electrocardiography for EMTs, and the use and maintenance of electromedical equipment for all operational professionals.
• Operation of special equipment for logistics support teams.
• Technological innovation for clinical training, including general ultrasound training for physicians, ultrasound-guided vascular access for physicians and nurses, complex access point location and point-of-interest identification for EMTs, health education communication for all groups, and training on the new operational resource management platform used by the communications center.
• Occupational risk prevention, enhancing safety through emergency vehicle driving courses and promoting self-care through courses that support personal well-being.
• Communication with vulnerable patients, such as children, the elderly, and individuals with disabilities (including autism spectrum disorder and deaf blindness.
• Administrative training for SAMUR professionals within the intranet environment.
• Knowledge and experience exchange with other professionals in the field through clinical sessions and national conferences such as the Child Abuse Care Conference, the Emergency Psychology Conference, and the National Conference on Blood Analysis in Emergencies.

In short, the 2025 SAMUR Training Plan reaffirms our commitment to training a highly skilled and compassionate team, continually advancing toward excellence in the comprehensive, safe, and efficient care of the citizens of Madrid.

Awareness workshops on promoting respectful treatment of the elderly

With the aim to promote a culture of respect for older adults, SAMUR–Civil Protection fosters interaction between children/adolescents and senior citizens, encouraging the exchange of experiences and knowledge between generations. The aim is to create a space for intergenerational communication, seeking to challenge stereotypical and generalized views of old age—often associated with negative traits such as passivity, physical decline, or dependency—and to help younger generations develop a more positive and respectful perception of aging.

SAMUR–Civil Protection intend to use its role as a public service to highlight the importance of older adults to our societal progress, through the participation of primary and secondary school students and retired individuals—both essential in building our social environment.