Gold Medallion

Assessors’ Guide
v1.2 February 2023
Contents
What Is the Gold Medallion? 3

Guide to Assessment 4

Candidate Tracking Tool 7

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What Is the Gold Medallion?
The Gold Medallion is the pinnacle of surf lifesaving. If a candidate can achieve the Gold Medallion, they are among the
fittest and most capable lifesavers on the beach.

Who can qualify?

Prerequisites
To be eligible to attempt a Gold Medallion assessment, candidates will need to:
• be at least 17 years old on the date of assessment
• hold and be proficient in all of the following SLSA awards:
o Bronze Medallion
o First Aid
o Advanced Resuscitation Techniques
o Silver Medallion Patrol Captain or Silver Medallion Beach Management

Assessment
To be deemed competent in the Gold Medallion candidates will need to complete all of the following activities in the one
day:
 swim 800 m in under 14 minutes in an open-water course not more than 400 m in length (the course should be set
around a single buoy so that candidates have to swim the same track but in different directions) or a swimming pool of no
less than 25 m in length, unaided and in freestyle
 complete a mission test of a 400 m swim, 800 m run, 400 m board paddle, 800 m run in under 25 minutes
 complete a tube rescue of an unconscious patient 100 m out at sea (use of fins preferred)
 complete a board rescue of a novice swimmer 200 m out at sea
 perform a complex patient rescue, including selecting equipment, returning patient to shore, treating patient
appropriately and completing postoperational requirements.

Candidates must display a sense of urgency equal to a real situation in all rescue activities (tube, board and complex
scenario).

What happens on the day of assessment?

You will need to provide candidates with a short briefing that will cover:
 work, health and safety induction
 assessment procedure.

Work, health and safety induction

 Personal limitations
 Sun protection
 Hydration
 One-person carry

Assessment procedure
 Candidate completes all tasks required.
 Assessor completes paperwork—you can use the candidate tracking tool provided to record each candidate’s result.
 Surfguard record updated and certificates issued.
 Candidate can apply for the unit of competency and their Certificate III where relevant via their state centre.

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Guide to Assessment
Risk assessment
You must ensure that you have:
 performed a risk assessment prior to starting any water-based activities
 met all requirements of the SLSA Water Safety Policy and Procedure
 completed the WHS induction for all candidates
 continued to monitor risks throughout the day.

Work, health and safety induction

You will need to stress that candidates should not continue with any part of the assessment if they feel that it is beyond their
limitations. Remind candidates about sun safety and remaining hydrated throughout the day.

You will also need to demonstrate to candidates the one-person carry.

1. Squat down behind patient’s head.
2. Hook patient under the armpits with both arms.
3. Using leg strength and keeping the back straight, lift and drag the patient past the water line, maintaining the patient’s
airway where possible.

Candidates should not try lifting a patient who is bigger than they or too heavy for them to lift safely. If the patient is too big
or too heavy, the rescuer will be expected to use a bystander or call for assistance from a team member to assist them. For
the purposes of assessment, other candidates can be bystanders or team members.

Task 1—800 m swim

The swim should be the first test of the day. You can run the swim in a group, and anyone who doesn’t make the cut-off time
can be referred to swimming training and invited to try the Gold Medallion assessment again when their swimming has
improved.

SLSA recommend that:

 ideally, the swim be performed in open water
 the course be set in a manner that ensures that swimmers have the opportunity to work both with and against the
current, so no more than 400 m in one direction
 candidates must complete the swim in freestyle
 where a pool is used that it be no less than 25 m in length and there is minimal delay between the swim task and the rest
of the assessment tasks.

Task 2—Mission test

The mission test can also be run in a group. Any candidates not meeting the time should be referred to further training as
required (e.g., board, swim, run) and invited to try the Gold Medallion assessment again when they have improved.

SLSA recommend that:

 only SLSA approved rescue boards should be used for the mission
 different course formats (e.g., W course) may affect the time to completion.

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Task 3—100 m tube rescue
If you have enough candidates you can run this session as a group. Pair the candidates, position one as the rescuer and one
as the patient for the first go and then swap and do it again.

SLSA recommends that:

 the patient is unconscious and offers no assistance to the rescuer
 the rescuer uses swim fins
 the rescuer must display a sense of urgency in completing the task.

Task 4—200 m board rescue

As for the tube rescue, you can run this session as a group by pairing the candidates. Position one as the rescuer and one as
the patient for the first go and then swap and do it again.

SLSA recommends that:

 the patient is conscious yet provides only minimum assistance (i.e., is a novice swimmer) to the rescuer although does not
create difficulty for the rescuer
 the rescuer must display a sense of urgency in completing the task.

Task 5—Complex rescue

For this assessment, candidates will be assigned one of the five complex rescue scenarios described here. In setting up how
you run your assessment you will need to make sure that you can assess candidates fairly. You may be able to run scenarios
concurrently, but this will depend on the conditions on the day, how many candidates you have and how effectively you can
see each scenario as it unfolds. You will need to delegate individuals to play the role of patients, and you will need to play the
role of operational command/duty officer as required.

At minimum, rescuers should be able to demonstrate the ability to:

 identify the patient(s)
 pause and plan
 select equipment
 communicate action plan to the chain of command
 request assistance (where required)
 retrieve patients
 treat patients appropriately
 complete paperwork
 hand over to emergency services
 participate in an operational debrief
 remain aware of indicators of critical incident stress
 access critical incident stress helpline/services.

You can use the candidate tracking tool on page 7. The SLSA incident report form is also included for use in scenarios.
Prepare enough copies of the form (and pens) for your squad.

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Option 1
 Three people are caught in a rip 100 m to the north of the flagged area. One of them is a strong swimmer, but the other
two are struggling.
 On return to shore one patient vomits water and can’t stop coughing.

Option 2
 Four ski paddlers of differing abilities are caught in a rip close to rocks. They are signalling for help.
 When you approach the group, you see that a patient is having an asthma attack.

Option 3
 A member of the public advises you that they have seen two swimmers in trouble at the next beach north of the one you
are patrolling. It is over 1 km away.
 By the time you get both patients to shore, one is unconscious yet still breathing.

Option 4
 Two people enter the water and walk straight into a rip, next to the flagged area. They immediately get swept out to sea.
Only one of them can swim, and is struggling to hold the other one afloat.
 On return to shore one of the patients starts experiencing chest pain.

Option 5
 Two surfers approach you requiring urgent assistance. Their friend is unconscious in the surf zone, approximately 40 m
from shore.
 You pull the unconscious patient from the water and determine that they are not breathing.

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Candidate Tracking Tool

Candidate name WHS 800 m Mission 100 m tube 200 m Scenario

induction swim test rescue board To save time, cross any of the boxes in the
rescue scenario if a candidate has not completed that
element successfully.

1 Time: Time: ☐Identify patient. ☐Rescue patients.

☐Pause and plan. ☐Treat patients.
☐Select equipment. ☐Perform handover.
☐Communicate to chain of ☐Complete paperwork.
command. ☐Participate in debrief.
☐Send for help. ☐Awareness of CIS

2 Time: Time: ☐Identify patient. ☐Rescue patients.

☐Pause and plan. ☐Treat patients.
☐Select equipment. ☐Perform handover.
☐Communicate to chain of ☐Complete paperwork.
command. ☐Participate in debrief.
☐Send for help. ☐Awareness of CIS

3 Time: Time: ☐Identify patient. ☐Rescue patients.

☐Pause and plan. ☐Treat patients.
☐Select equipment. ☐Perform handover.
☐Communicate to chain of ☐Complete paperwork.
command. ☐Participate in debrief.
☐Send for help. ☐Awareness of CIS

4 Time: Time: ☐Identify patient. ☐Rescue patients.

☐Pause and plan. ☐Treat patients.
☐Select equipment. ☐Perform handover.
☐Communicate to chain of ☐Complete paperwork.
command. ☐Participate in debrief.
☐Send for help. ☐Awareness of CIS.

5 Time: Time: ☐Identify patient. ☐Rescue patients.

☐Pause and plan. ☐Treat patients.
☐Select equipment. ☐Perform handover.
☐Communicate to chain of ☐Complete paperwork.
command. ☐Participate in debrief.
☐Send for help. ☐Awareness of CIS

6 Time: Time: ☐Identify patient. ☐Rescue patients.

☐Pause and plan. ☐Treat patients.
☐Select equipment. ☐Perform handover.
☐Communicate to chain of ☐Complete paperwork.
command. ☐Participate in debrief.
☐Send for help. ☐Awareness of CIS

7 Time: Time: ☐Identify patient. ☐Rescue patients.

☐Pause and plan. ☐Treat patients.
☐Select equipment. ☐Perform handover.
☐Communicate to chain of ☐Complete paperwork.
command. ☐Participate in debrief.
☐Send for help. ☐Awareness of CIS

8 Time: Time: ☐Identify patient. ☐Rescue patients.

☐Pause and plan. ☐Treat patients.
☐Select equipment. ☐Perform handover.
☐Communicate to chain of ☐Complete paperwork.
command. ☐Participate in debrief.
☐Send for help. ☐Awareness of CIS

9 Time: Time: ☐Identify patient. ☐Rescue patients.

☐Pause and plan. ☐Treat patients.
☐Select equipment. ☐Perform handover.
☐Communicate to chain of ☐Complete paperwork.
command. ☐Participate in debrief.
☐Send for help. ☐Awareness of CIS

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