Child CPR & First Aid Certification
Child First Aid and CPR certification helps prepare individuals for providing basic medical care to stabilize child victims during an emergency until better-qualified care arrives. While some jobs require people to obtain child First Aid and CPR certification, individuals sometimes choose to become First Aid and CPR certified in order to act responsibly in a medical emergency involving a child.
Other People Are Reading
-
History of Child First Aid and CPR
-
Basic first aid has been around for as long as people have been getting injured. In 1099, knights trained in medical care organized the Order of St. John to treat battlefield injuries. The Red Cross was created during the mid-19th century at the First International Geneva Convention, and in 1878 the term "first aid" came into use. Over the years, child First Aid evolved to address the reality that children's smaller bodies have different needs than adult bodies. For example, different bindings may be used to keep children's wounds clean and protected during their busy, active days.
CPR techniques were first described in a 1911 Boy Scout Handbook, and research physician Peter Safar wrote the ABCs of resuscitation in 1957. During the 1970s, public health campaigns encouraged citizens to become CPR certified. Child CPR is intended for children age 12 and under, addressing the fact that children's smaller frames can withstand less pressure during the CPR process than adults can.
Becoming Child First Aid and CPR certified
-
Individuals can become child First Aid and CPR certified by signing up for courses offered by the American Red Cross, the American Heart Association, school sites, or other companies. Courses usually take between 4 and 14 hours, depending on the level of instruction required for child First Aid and CPR. Non-professionals--parents, for example--may have less stringent requirements than those who work in fields requiring certification.
Some companies offer online courses for child First Aid and CPR certification, but not all agencies or businesses accept certificates from these entities.
-
Benefits of Child First Aid and CPR certification
-
Some jobs involving children,, such as teaching, require that individuals maintain current First Aid and CPR certification. Nursing, coaching, and lifeguarding also require First Aid and CPR certification and may have additional child-specific requirements. Individuals are required to seek recertification periodically to ensure awareness of current techniques and information.
Perhaps more importantly, child First Aid and CPR certified individuals can help save a child's life by stabilizing victims during a medical emergency until help arrives. Having proper training in basic medical care procedures can prevent mild medical emergencies involving children from becoming more serious. It can also prevent untrained individuals at the scene from making well-meaning but uneducated attempts at helping an injured, unconscious, or choking child.
Common techniques taught during Child First Aid and CPR certification
-
During child First Aid and CPR certification courses, people learn basic physiology and anatomy structure in children and how to identify symptoms of choking children. Students also learn techniques for the Heimlich Maneuver and abdominal thrust rescues specifically geared for children, how to control bleeding, assess injuries, and care for burns. Child First Aid classes include information on blood-borne pathogen awareness and what individuals can do to minimize risk of infection during medical care in the classroom, daycare, or home.
Liability of First Aid and CPR administration
-
Good Samaritan laws exist within most states to protect those who choose to become involved in a medical emergency in the hopes of saving a child's life. While specific laws vary from state to state, most include provisions that protect First Aid- and CPR-certified individuals from liability, provided that they acted in good faith and with responsibility. Even after completing First Aid and CPR certification, try to obtain permission from parents or guardians prior to administering treatment.
-
References
- Photo Credit boy hurt image by green308 from Fotolia.com
