Civil defense: where to study to be ready for everything?

What is the problem?

Ukraine has been in a state of full-scale war for nine months. Because of russia's aggression, many Ukrainians now more than ever need knowledge about the algorithm for action in extreme conditions, self-defense, and first aid. Where can you get them right now?

What is the solution?

Possessing at least elementary protection skills in emergencies is necessary for every Ukrainian today. The military, rescuers, public organizations, charitable foundations, and educators joined the development of the relevant courses. Rubryka tells about current available courses and training in civil protection. Most of them are free of charge.

How does it work?

• The NGO Ukrainian Women's Guard conducts regular training for women in self-defense, pre-medical, shooting, psychological training, and survival. The organization has been conducting similar training since 2014. Since then, about 40,000 women have received certificates. A quarter of them has already completed training this year.

UWG instructors are selected very carefully and meticulously. One of the main requirements is a real experience, not just a set of theoretical knowledge.

Classes are held in the Shevchenkivskyi and Obolonskyi districts of Kyiv and other cities in Ukraine. You can follow the schedule of courses on the Ukrainian Women's Guard Facebook page, as well as on the UWG website. All participants receive certificates of training completion.

• The "Solomyanski kotyky" charitable foundation conducts mine safety lessons for children and adults. In the classes, together with the State Emergency Service and the National Police employees, they tell what mines, grenades, and other explosive objects look like, what to do when you see such an unfamiliar object, and where mines may be located.

The team also regularly conducts Stop The Bleed first aid training for civilians. The training teaches how to stop critical bleeding with tourniquets, tamponade nodal bleeding, ensure the patency of the respiratory tract, and apply bandages. They also explain what to do with burns and eye and face injuries. The duration of the training is 3–5 hours.

• The public association "Create yourself" with the Center for Civilian Self-Defense Training conducts training in first aid, weapons handling, sapper work, special communication, topography, and terrain orientation, as well as in psychological stability and stress preparation.

Ukrainian and international experts in civil defense and people with combat experience teach the training. The training is announced on the social networks of the CCS and the Training Center, and a registration link is also left there.

You can find out more at the link.

• The Krav Maga Federation of Ukraine has been holding workshops on women's self-defense for 16 years. Several thousand women have already attended the classes. During the full-scale war, the federation changed its format: an individual approach, systematic submission of material, and consultations on specific issues. One workshop is 5 hours of intensive work where the basics of personal safety are taught.

At the "Iron Lady" women's self-defense workshop, the instructors answer the following questions: what should a woman know and be able to do to avoid getting into trouble? How to recognize a threat and avoid it? How to break out and run away if you failed? What to carry with you and how to use it? What to teach children? Where and how should you hit, and then what should you say to stay free?

• First aid training organized by the city at metro stations is already well known to residents of the capital. From November, they will be held every third Friday of the month, from 12:00 to 17:00. The training program is designed to teach a person the basic skills of providing first aid in a short time: correctly assess the victim's condition, provide help for massive bleeding, airway obstruction, circulatory arrest, and thermal burns. Last month, more than 2,800 people listened to the course!

The list of stations where the basics of pre-medical care will be taught can be found at the link. And more thorough training can be completed at the base of the Training Center "Centre of Emergency Medical Aid and Disaster Medicine of the City of Kyiv." Telephone for registration: 044-456-22-84.

• Volunteer center Dnipro TakMed conducts regular training for civilians. They are held every Saturday at the Dnipro Center for Contemporary Culture; Registration for training is via the link.

Pre-medical care classes for civilians include:

• CABC Protocol (Critical Bleeding – Airway, Breathing – Circulation)
• Bleeding stop (B-Con)
• Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
• Providing assistance in various life-threatening situations.

• ​​The Maltese Aid Service in Lviv conducts courses on pre-medical aid for everyone who wants to learn how to provide aid and be prepared for various emergencies. The main emphasis is on practical skills because a person must act quickly and correctly in a critical situation.

The training lasts 8 hours for each group of 10 trainees.

The course program complies with the European Resuscitation Council's norms and Ukraine's legislation. The teachers are rescue volunteers who have completed training in qualified first aid and have European-style certificates.

Pre-medical care courses are held periodically. To participate in training, you need to fill out a registration form.

• The first women's veteran space, "Rehab," will help to master the basic skills of personal safety so that in case of danger, you will clearly know how to act. Experienced trainers here teach basic skills to anyone who wants to:
  • Dos and don'ts during air raids;
  • How to distinguish between firearms and dangerous objects;
  • How to analyze the situation and act in case of chemical and radiation danger.
  • Provision of first aid in case of exposure to dangerous chemical substances;
  • Regulations on iodine prophylaxis in the event of a radiation accident;
  • Use of personal protective equipment.

You can register for training here.

• And the military-patriotic school "Patriot" conducts group recruitment for civilians who plan to join the ranks of the Armed Forces. The courses study:
  • medical and sanitary training,
  • weapons and fire training,
  • topography and orientation,
  • engineering and sapper training,
  • tactics,
  • survival techniques,
  • equipment;

• Training in tactical medicine from the Center for Public Initiatives "Irbis" in Vinnytsia lasts eight hours. It is aimed at treating injuries and wounds typical of the time of military operations. During the class, cadets will learn the stages of aid, learn to assess the condition of the wounded from a distance, provide assistance under fire and in cover, move and evacuate the wounded, stop bleeding with and without tourniquets, how to act in case of chest injuries and ensure the patency of respiratory ways.
• Training is held as a group of willing people recruits. The date will be notified by phone and e-mail as specified during registration. You can register here.

• ​​The "Vovkulak" special training center conducts shooting, first aid, and survival and self-defense courses in Chernihiv and the region.

Survival courses teach, for example, the SERE program, a system for training American military personnel to survive in wild and hostile urban environments. There is also a basic survival course and a course on survival in extreme conditions.

Self-defense courses teach how to act during a knife fight, as well as how to protect a woman in a street fight.

 You can learn more about the courses on the center's website or the Instagram page.

• The NGO "Source of Public Initiatives" conducts events to train residents of the Tupychiv Territorial Community in providing first aid. During the training, you will receive practical skills and advice on how to act in a critical situation, stop various types of bleeding, and provide first aid for a stroke or loss of consciousness.

The following events will occur in Velykiy Lystven, Ivashkivka, Burivka, and Kulykivka. You can register for training using the link.

• ​​The Serhiy Prytula Charitable Foundation launched the "Civilian Preparedness Center" project. Today there are branches of the Center in many cities of Ukraine: Chernivtsi, Cherkasy, ​​Ivano-Frankivsk, Kryvyi Rih, Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, Kharkiv, and others.

Training is held in various disciplines: marksmanship, tactical medicine, basics of aerial reconnaissance, and theoretical courses on how to behave during artillery fire — what will be helpful to the civilian population in wartime.

You can register to participate in the training through the project's Facebook pages by typing in the search "Civilian Preparedness Center. (city)", there you will find announcements, reports, and Google forms for registering for training.

• First aid in wartime.

In the context of war, FAST, together with the Prometheus training platform, has launched a free online course, "Warfare First Aid," to teach civilians the essential techniques of today: how to stop bleeding with a tourniquet, tamponade, and bandage, how to check consciousness and clear the airway, help in case of burns, etc. That is, precisely those basics that will prepare for emergencies and help save lives. In addition, focusing on European and American standards of care, the FAST team gives lessons in tactical medicine to doctors and volunteers in various cities in Ukraine. You can go to training by following the link.

• Civil defense and protection in emergency situations.

Another free online course from Prometheus. The authors of the course extracted the most relevant knowledge for Ukrainians, and synthesized their own professional experience. Among the course developers are personal safety instructors, tactical medicine, and professional military personnel.

From the course, you can learn:

• what is the difference between an emergency situation and a state of emergency;
• what is a crisis and a state of crisis;
• how to develop a clear course of action for a certain situation: where to go during an air raid, what to do after discovering a mine, how to survive under fire, how to respond to a chemical or radiation threat, when to return to de-occupied territory.

Listeners will receive advice on what to consider when building food reserves, how to prepare a shelter, how to provide first aid to victims, and how to protect themselves and their children from threats on the Internet. This knowledge will benefit volunteers, public activists, doctors, educators, and social workers, as well as all civilians in the war zone and under occupation.

• Educational course on pre-medical care from the Training Center of Tactical Medicine "KoLeSo"

On the course, you can learn to stop bleeding, restore airway patency, eliminate breathing disorders, ensure proper blood circulation, and prevent hypothermia (critical hypothermia).

The online course includes videos in which tactical medicine specialists visually demonstrate how to provide first aid for injuries during military operations. After each video, you are offered to take a test to check and consolidate your knowledge. First of all, the course will be helpful for doctors, volunteers, military personnel, as well as civilians who are in the war zone.

The course is freely available, so anyone who wants to can follow the link.

For educators

The psychological safety of adults and children during an air raid at school.

As part of the "Safe School" Program, which the "Eastern Europe" Foundation implements in cooperation with the State Emergency Service, the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, a new free online course for educators has been created. It will be useful for everyone who works with children and for parents.

The course will tell:

• how to make an algorithm of actions for going to shelter;
• how to help a child quickly overcome a panic attack;
• how to get back to studying when the air anxiety is over;
• how to respond to various stressful situations that may arise in a child.

In addition to theoretical material, the online course includes many games and exercises to help children overcome anxiety and return to a resourceful state.

You can complete training and get a certificate for free on the online educational platform "Zrozumilo" by following the link.

Mine hazard training for teachers.

The course is designed for 30 hours of online learning. After registering, the student will be able to complete the course at any convenient time. All teachers who successfully complete the training will receive an appropriate certificate (which is generated automatically) and will be able to download the necessary educational and methodological literature (in electronic format) to their personal account. The total number of online training participants is not limited.

Basics of civil protection in educational institutions. Formation of students' courage and agility.

This course was developed by the IT Teacher platform for the administration of educational institutions, teachers, psychological service specialists, parents, and students.

Course content: practical testing of students' ability to act competently and clearly during emergencies, the ability to protect their life and health; fostering confidence in the effectiveness of measures carried out by civil defense; formation of moral and psychological qualities in students: courage and skill.

Cost: from 100 to 350 hryvnias. Register via the link.

Even more useful solutions!

Children are vulnerable in emergencies, not only during the war but also during peacetime. They are more likely to be injured or hurt, lose relatives, and be lonely and helpless. Children's awareness of the risks associated with emergencies can help protect their health and lives even after hostilities have ended.

Civil defense for children

1. "Civil security and emergency preparedness" for students of grades 5-9.

The State Emergency Service of Ukraine developed the online course with the "Eastern Europe" Foundation as part of the "Online Safety Classes for Children" Program. During the course, children are taught the basics of civil defense and practical skills for responding to emergencies. Topics covered include:

• definition of an emergency situation,
• explosive objects,
• seasonal hazards on reservoirs,
• seasonal hazards in the mountains,
• fire,
• shelter,
• household emergencies,
• the collapse of buildings,
• radiation, biological, and chemical protection.

The computer game "Minecraft" elements were combined in the course with the educational material to make it more interesting for the listeners and facilitate easier assimilation of information.

Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate of completion. For this, it is necessary to pass intermediate and final tests.

The course is available at the link.

2. Basics of mine safety.

The video lesson "Caution: Mines" for students of grades 5-9 was developed on the "Zrozumilo" platform with specialists of the State Emergency Service to inform children about the risks associated with emergency situations and explosive objects. From this lesson, students will learn what explosive objects (explosive objects) are and what types there are, will be able to recognize explosive objects, and will understand the algorithm of actions in case of their detection.

3. Mine safety for elementary school students.

A 15-minute lesson on mine safety for elementary school students was developed by UNICEF together with the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, the Ministry of Reintegration, and the National Police of Ukraine. In an interesting form, the lesson collects key information on mine safety that a child should know to save their life: signs of explosive objects, places of stay that should be avoided, warning signs, and rules of safe behavior.

4. Also, themed cartoons will help teach younger children the rules of mine safety.

They introduce children to dangerous objects, such as mines and ammunition, and show them where they might be. And most importantly, they teach the rules of how to act after seeing a suspicious object.

Your child will definitely not get bored, and most importantly, they will remember all the rules of safe behavior!