Basic First Aid Techniques Every Teacher And Parent Should Know
Are you a new parent or looking at schools
to send your precious bundle too? First Aid Training is an essential basic skill that every parent and grandparent should have. In addition, it’s
important to ensure that anyone who is going to be guarding your child, be that
an au-pair, childminder, or teacher, has the same skills.
Knowledge of pediatric
first aid will help you to respond effectively and efficiently in
trying situations. Here are some of the basic skills that you will learn in a
pediatric first aid course and when chatting to your child’s new teachers, its
important to ensure they too have acquired these skills:
Determining a need for First Aid
The very first skill you need to learn is
how to determine when a child needs first aid. You will look at the severity
of different injuries and situations to help you determine how
seriously your child is hurt when the need arises. You will also learn how and
who to call for assistance when in need and what you can do while you wait for
help to arise.
Attending to vital situations
The second thing you will learn is how to
attend to vital situations. These include potentially fatal situations where the immediate response from a parent or teacher can save your child’s life. This
includes what to do if your child faints or loses consciousness, or how to assist
a child that is choking or drowning. You will also learn how to monitor your
child’s breathing, including identifying the signs and symptoms of problems
like asthma, croup, Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and Sudden
infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Finally, and perhaps most importantly,
parents and teachers also need to know what to do in the case of a heart arrest
and how to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR on a child.
Dealing with other emergencies
When your child is at school, or even at
home, there are a variety of potential emergencies that could occur. Learning
how to attend to these emergencies is an important part of pediatric first
aid. These emergencies could include fever and convulsions, burns and scalds,
electrocution, poisoning or food allergies, fractures, sprains, bruises, head
injuries, and bleeding wounds.
In order to deal with some of these
emergencies every parent and teacher should know how to correctly apply
bandages, how to use an EpiPen, how to handle heat exhaustion and dehydration, and
what to do in the case of common bites and stings, particularly with relevant
knowledge of any endemic dangerous insects or snakes prevalent in your
environment. This knowledge is like mega casino bonuses, it can
be life-changing!
Speaking to your child’s teachers about
first aid
First Aid Training is a legal requirement
for many schools and teachers around the world, however, before enrolling your
child or signing on a new caregiver, it’s important to have an open and honest
conversation with any guardian about the level of training they have. Always
discuss the amount and the degree of training a teacher has and don’t be afraid
of asking to see valid accreditation and certificates that provide proof of
this training.
