First aid: Courses that save lives

Would you know what to do if your child choked or sustained a head injury falling down the stairs? It can be frightening when little ones hurt themselves, but help is at hand to make sure you know how to deal with the situation before professional help arrives. Paediatric first-aid courses teach parents and carers the basic principles of first response.
“Knowledge of paediatric first aid and paediatric cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) can save lives,” says Dr Rita Kovesdi, specialist Paediatrician, Health Bay Polyclinic in Dubai.
Andrea Allen, a Dubai-based postnatal doula, agrees. “I’d encourage all parents, whether first-time parents or experienced mums and dads, to take a paediatric first-aid course so they know what to do as a first responder in case of an emergency,” she says.
“It is also recommended to repeat the course or do a refresher regularly to make sure knowledge and skills are up to date.”
Help is quickly available when you call an ambulance, but Dr Kovesdi says actions in the time between the incident and the arrival of help can be crucial. “Parents can provide vital care that will save time until the child is able to receive specialist medical attention,” she says.
Allen agrees. “What you do in the immediate aftermath can have a huge bearing on the outcome, particularly if the incident is time-critical, such as choking,” she says.
If you are sending your helper or driver on a paediatric first-aid course, says Allen, it might be worth considering a course in their native language. “When it comes to learning something as important as first-aid techniques, it is vital they understand a 100 per cent,” she says.