St John Ambulance, St Andrew’s First Aid, British Red Cross
Two years ago I was training to become a childminder and as part of this I had to do a twelve hour first aid training course. The course covered a lot of things from choking children, managing shock, concussion and bleeding to being able to resuscitate someone. They are all skills that I think every parent needs but sadly not everyone has time to spend at these sort of courses.
Having been the parent of a child who has choked on a coin, nearly drowned and then been diagnosed with a life threatening disease I know just how important it is to recognise when things are not right and also how to perform first aid when things go wrong.
Elizabeth was just 17 months old when she choked on a coin when we were on holiday in Lanzarote. It was one of the scariest moments of my life (although I have had scarier ones since). One second she was sat in the double pushchair with Alison and the next moment she was choking. Hubby pulled her out of the pushchair and turned her as though to perform the Heimlich maneuver. He has never been training in first aid. He has only watched the maneuver being performed on the tv. Luckily I stepped in, I snatched her from him, placed her over my knee and slapped her back. The coin came out (along with her strawberry ice cream she had eaten minutes before). She was absolutely fine although very confused and scared. However this could have been so much worse. Performing the Heimlich maneuver on a child is dangerous enough but performing it having had no training is so much worse.
Unfortunately this is not the only time I have had to perform first aid and without a doubt it wont be the last. From deep cuts, sprains and burns to even more minor injuries these things happen frequently and having the ability to tackle these injuries in a calm manner is a great skill to have.
Having had a lot of first aid training I still feel the need to refer to a First Aid Manual for additional support and it is also good to be able to keep up with new recommended techniques. There are a number of changes to recommended techniques in the 10th Edition First Aid Manual including how to deal with infant choking, which is one of the most significant technique changes within the book. An infant should now be treated on a first aider’s leg instead of along an arm. New step-by-step text and images illustrate these changes to allow readers to understand the new method. Other changes include giving CPR in the late stages of pregnancy.
The manual is really comprehensive and it covers every aspect of first aid, dealing with over 100 different conditions from very minor issues like splinters all the way to life threatening issues like unconsciousness and heart attacks as well as teaching how to use first aid equipment and also what it means to be a first aider. The easy to follow Step-by-step photography and instructions give readers the knowledge to deal with all conditions with confidently and clearly show when and how to escalate a problem if necessary.
In fact the 10th Edition First Aid Manual is more comprehensive than anything I have learned from attending a course and it now has pride of place with my first aid box. I would definitely recommend this to all families and think it is an essential book to have in your collection.
Would you know what to do if your child choked?