CPR and Choking Emergencies

            It is important for anyone who is around children to have first aid and CPR knowledge. Most early learning environments require first aid and CPR of their staff, so that they are prepared in an emergency; I believe that it is also a good idea for parents of young children to have this knowledge. It is important to know the proper emergency procedures for each scenario, be prepared in advanced, and have things in place to handle the emergency.

            When an emergency occurs it is important to know the proper procedures for helping during the emergency. There is a two year old that attends an early learning center. She begins to choke on a piece of cheerio that was given to her for snack. At first she starts coughing and then begins to have problems breathing. There are two teachers present, along with the rest of the children in the class. The first step is to keep calm, thus reassuring the children that the adults are still in control. The next step is for one teacher to see about assisting the child while the other teacher keeps the other children calm and reassured. Next, the teacher helping the child needs to check to see if the child coughed up or can cough up the piece of cheerio. If the child is conscious and cannot cough, speak, cry or breathe then the teacher will need to begin with 5 back blows, and then 5 abdominal thrusts until the object is forced out (American Red Cross, 2012). While the teacher is trying to help the child the other teacher needs to be contacting the nurse and director. The parent of the child needs to be contact by one of the staff members once there is a person available to do so.

            Another emergency that requires knowledge of an emergency plan is a child requiring CPR. In this scenario a five year old child has been stung by a bee on a play ground at a preschool, and is headed into anaphylaxis. It is important to stay calm, and have the other teacher call 911. While the other teacher is keeping the other children calm, and calling 911 one teacher should be assisting the child by getting him/her laid down. Once the child is somewhere safe it is then important to get the child’s epipen and administer the first dose. If the child is not better within ten minutes the teacher then needs to administer the second dose of epinephrine. If the child quits breathing before the second dose the teacher would begin administering CPR until the ambulance gets there.

            Advanced planning is essential to being prepared to handle an emergency situation. When an emergency occurs, if the staff or parents are prepared with the knowledge and emergency plan is in place it allows for quicker reaction time. When someone is aware of what the procedures are and the steps to take to handle an emergency they are typically more likely to be less panicked, and have better reaction time. I believe that it is important for parents and people that work with children to have basic first aid knowledge, CPR, and know the basics of how to administer an epipen. Robertson (2013) makes a good point for preparedness with this statement, “the early childhood education environment that is organized for possibilities of an emergency situation will be better prepared to respond to an emergency when it actually occurs” (p.179). 

            Being prepared for an emergency goes beyond having the knowledge to handle the emergency. It is also important to have all of the necessary supplies and information. Whether in a school, an early childhood environment, or at home it is important to have all of your emergency information in one place and easily accessible, so that you can quickly and easily access the information needed. Your emergency information at home should contain such things as emergency contacts, lists of emergency phone number, list of allergies if any, copies of insurance cards, and letter with permission to have child/children treated if with someone beside parent. These are just a few of the things that one might keep prepared in case of emergency. Each family should create their own emergency packet with this type of information in it to be prepared. It is also important to have a first aid kit and any other medications that an individual might require in an emergency. For example a child with severe allergies should always have an epipen on hand. I personally have an emergency folder that has all of the information that I thought might be needed if my child has an allergic reaction, and I am not present. For parents of children with allergies or other illnesses that require medicine or constant care it is important to have all of the information together and handy in case it is needed.

            Being prepared and having the knowledge to deal with possible emergency situations is an important part of having children and of early childhood environments. It is especially important to be prepared when children with illnesses are in an environment, because kids deserve to be kids; you never know what that can bring. Children are very precious and deserve to have adults around that are prepared to help them through whatever might occur. In order to do this it is important to be prepared for any situation, know the proper emergency procedures, and have the materials in place to handle an emergency.

References

American Red Cross. (2009). Power outage safety checklist. Retrieved on September15, 2012 from http://www.redcross.org/.

American Red Cross. (2009). Wildfire safety checklist. Retrieved on September15, 2012 from http://www.redcross.org/.

American Red Cross. (2009). Winter storm safety checklist. Retrieved on September15, 2012 from http://www.redcross.org/.
FEMA. (nd). Winter storms and extreme cold. Retrieved on September 15, 2012 from http://www.fema.gov/.
Robertson, C. (2013). Safety, nutrition, and health in early education (5th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.