Farm Safety and First Aid Online Course| OSU Continuing Education

Learn How to Prevent Farm Injuries and Respond with Confidence in Emergencies
Self-paced • 100% online • Open to all

Protect What Matters Most: Your People, Your Livelihood, and Your Life

Farming is one of the most rewarding—but also one of the most dangerous—professions in America.

From machinery mishaps to medical emergencies, the risks are real. But with the right training, many of those dangers can be prevented—or managed with calm and skill.

In this self-paced online course, you’ll gain life-saving knowledge and first aid skills tailored for the farm environment.

Designed by OSU Extension’s agricultural safety expert Jacob Powell, this course is ideal for farmers, ranchers, farm employees, and anyone who works in agricultural or rural settings.

What You’ll Learn

In this online course, you’ll gain real-world skills to help prevent injuries and respond with confidence when emergencies strike. Whether you're working with machinery, livestock, or in remote areas of the farm, you’ll come away with knowledge that could save a life.

You’ll learn how to:

Spot and reduce common farm hazards before they turn into accidents
Respond quickly and calmly to emergencies like tractor rollovers, severe bleeding, or heat illness
Deliver life-saving care, including CPR, AED use, and first aid for trauma or sudden illness

You’ll also build practical know-how around:

Safe equipment extraction
Confined space awareness and rescue techniques
Livestock handling that protects both workers and animals
What to stock in your farm’s first aid kit—and where to keep it for fast access

By the end of the course, you’ll feel more confident in your ability to make your farm safer and provide essential care in critical moments.

Course Topics

The course is organized into nine focused modules that cover safety and first aid for everyday—and extraordinary—farming situations:

Farm Safety Overview
Understand the most common causes of farm-related injuries and how to reduce risk through decision-making, training, and maintenance.

Equipment Safety & Extraction
Learn tractor, ATV, UTV, and machinery safety, plus how to safely and effectively extract stuck farm equipment.

Environmental Hazards on the Farm
Learn about the unique environmental hazards in agriculture with a focus on heat illness and powerline safety. Learn how to meet new Oregon and Washington state OSHA requirements for heat illness.

Confined Space Safety & Rescue
Discover the risks and safety protocols for grain bins, tanks, and other confined areas.

Livestock Handling & Facility Safety
Learn low-stress animal handling techniques that protect workers and animals alike.

First Aid Scene Response & CPR
Master the steps for completing a scene size-up and patient assessment, along with CPR and use of an AED.

First Aid for Illness & Injury
Treat life-threatening bleeding, burns, impalements, diabetic emergencies, seizures, stroke, heart attack, and more.

Farm First Aid Kits
What to stock, where to buy supplies, and where to store first aid kits for easy access during an emergency.

Final Review & Course Exam
Review key concepts, real-life case studies, and complete a short final assessment. Score 70%+ to earn your OSU Certificate of Completion.

Who Should Enroll?

Whether you’re working on a large or small commercial farm, managing a farm business, or a small acreage landowner, this course is designed to meet you where you are. No prior experience is needed—and there’s no registration required.

You’ll benefit from this training if you’re:

A farmer or rancher—full-time, part-time, or somewhere in between
A farm employee
Farm manager responsible for day-to-day safety
A homesteader or rural landowner looking to stay safe in remote settings
A 4-H or FFA advisor helping youth gain hands-on agricultural skills
An agricultural student preparing for a career in the field
Or simply someone interested in emergency preparedness in rural environments

This course is also a great resource for ag educators and trainers looking to reinforce safety best practices in classrooms, clubs, or community settings.

If you work in or around agriculture, this course is for you.

Course Features

100% Online and Self-Paced
Log in anytime. Learn on your schedule. Pause and return as needed.

Certificate of Completion
Earn an official OSU PACE certificate after passing the exam and evaluation.

Taught by a Certified Safety Expert
Instructor Jacob Powell is an OSU Extension faculty member, certified American Red Cross First Aid/CPR instructor, and Wilderness First Responder with years of experience helping Oregon farmers stay safe and prepared.

Meet Your Instructor

“Farming is an inherently dangerous job—but the right training can save lives. This course won’t eliminate every risk, but it will reduce them—and give you the tools to act quickly when accidents happen.”
— Jacob Powell, OSU Extension Faculty, Wasco & Sherman Counties

Jacob brings over six years of experience working directly with wheat farmers, cattle ranchers, and small-acreage landowners in North Central Oregon. His extension programming focuses on wheat production, wildfire preparedness, farm safety, and first aid tailored to rural communities.

Be Prepared Before It Matters

Emergencies don’t wait. Whether you're in the shop, out in the field, or managing a crew, knowing what to do in a crisis can make all the difference. With this course, you'll gain practical knowledge and confidence you can use right away.

Start today, and turn your farm into a safer place for everyone.

Enroll now — no registration required!

Coming Soon

3-4 hours

Online

Temporarily Free

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Instructors

Jacob Powell

Jacob Powell is a General Agricultural Extension Faculty for Oregon State University Extension in North Central Oregon serving Wasco and Sherman Counties and provides agricultural programming across the state. Jacob has been employed with OSU Extension for the last six years assisting wheat farmers, cattle ranchers, and small acreage landowners. Much of his programing has focused on wildfire preparedness, response, and recovery for farmers in Oregon. Jacob has a B.S. in Biology from Pacific Lutheran University and a M.S. in Resource Conservation from the University of Montana.

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