What Is Paediatric First Aid?

When you take care of children, whether that is your own child or someone else’s then you are going to want to keep them as safe as possible. Unfortunately, accidents can happen, and when they do, you are going to want to be able to assist as soon as possible.

This is where paediatric first aid can help. But what is it and why is it important to know more about it?

What is paediatric first aid?

The official definition of paediatric first aid is that it is “the immediate care given to a child/infant who has been injured, or who has become ill prior to the arrival of qualified medical assistance”.

Whilst this is a simple way to look at this form of first aid, this may actually make it sound too simple, when in actual fact, it can be incredibly hard to treat a child who is injured and needs your help. Especially if you have had no formal training in how to deal with injuries or illnesses in children. This could mean that you end up freezing or not knowing what to do, wasting valuable time which could impact on the outcome.

Why is paediatric first aid important to learn?

First aid is something that many of us can benefit from, not only for our own children, but also any other children that we come across and need help. First aid in general helps to teach us how to deal with any accidents and injuries that we come across. However, it only focuses on adults and the care that they require. First aid is great for learning the basics such as how to check someone’s breathing, how to put them in the recovery position and how to perform CPR, but in order to learn first aid that is specific to children you need to know paediatric first aid.

The main benefit to this is because it will allow you to help if a child is injured, has an accident or is suddenly unwell. You will not only know how to look out for certain issues, but you will also understand the differences in the recovery position and CPR for children too.

Another key aspect that paediatric first aid will often cover is choking, which can be fatal in children if not treated and resolved.

There are a variety of people who can benefit from taking a paediatric first aid course. Parents, of course, are going to benefit from this for their own children, but it is also a key training focus for those who work with children and are responsible for their care on a daily basis.

This includes childminders, nannies and nursery staff.

Learning first aid is an important part of any training plan, so make sure that you give it your attention and you will be sure to have everything that you need to protect and treat any children that may need your help. If you have any comments about courses featured on The Course Mix or would like to discuss anything, please leave a message in the comments section below.