Our Story
St. John Ambulance is an international humanitarian organization and is a foundation of the Order of St. John. As Canada's standard for excellence in first aid and CPR services, St. John Ambulance offers innovative programs, ensuring Canadians receive the best quality training. Revenue generated from first aid/CPR training supports St. John Ambulance’s charitable work in Canada and around the world.
St. John Ambulance has a long history in Canada, where it issued its first certificate in first aid training in Quebec City in 1883. The first branch of St. John Ambulance was founded in London Ontario, in 1909.
From its inception in 1940, the Kitchener-Waterloo Branch offered First Aid, and later CPR and AED at community events. It also began a proud tradition of volunteer work in our community.
To financially support the training, clothing and equipment costs, the Branch volunteers started to teach First Aid. Revenue generated from its first aid courses, which are the Industry Standard in Ontario as stated in the WSIB pamphlet, goes directly back into community programs and services to improve quality of life.
Over the years, training courses have steadily increased from ‘Basic’ First Aid, based on demographics and need, to include, for example:
Emergency First Aid
Standard First Aid
Advanced Medical First Responder First Aid
Infant CPR
Child CPR
Adult CPR
Health Care Provider CPR/Bag Valve training
Home Alone
Babysitting
Pet First Aid
Mental Health First Aid
New Parent Workshop
Programs offered at the Kitchener-Waterloo Branch include:
Home Caregiver Support Program
Therapy Dog Program
Response cover at Events:
Emergency Response Team
Therapy Dog Team
University of Waterloo’s Campus Response Team
