It is scary to think of your child stopping breathing and hopefully it will never happen, but what if it did? Would you know how to resuscitate your child? Or how to dislodge something stuck in her throat? Just as important, would the person looking after your child know what to do?  It’s a tough call and hopefully one that as a parent you will never have to deal with. Much more common though are the smaller incidents which happen.

Over a million children every year visit an A & E department following an accident in the home and more than half of these children are under four. It is impossible to watch your child 24/7 and there will always be an unguarded moment but knowing what to do if an accident occurs can stop a minor incident turning into something much more serious. Amy Dopson, a first-aid trainer and paediatric senior sister in a Surrey hospital believes that parents need to familiarise themselves with what to do if a child has a burn, because immediate action can make a big difference to the outcome. “If parents know what to do when a child burns or scalds itself, we would have far less need for skin grafts and plastic surgery,” she says.

If your child suffers a burn or scald

Treatment

• Cool burn with cold running water for at least ten minutes. If cold water is not available, use another cold, harmless liquid, such as milk
• Get medical help for any burn or scald which is larger than a 50p coin
• Remember to keep calm and give lots of comfort and reassurance to the child
• DO NOT remove burnt clothing which has stuck to the skin. Burnt clothing is sterile and will protect the wound.
• Remove carefully any jewellery, belts, restrictive clothing or footwear (that is not stuck to the skin) from the injured area before it begins to swell
• Cover the burn with a clean, dry, non fluffy dressing and secure loosely.  A plastic bag or piece of cling film is ideal
• DO NOT put butter oil or any sort of grease or lotion on a burn or scald – these can cause further damage and increase the risk of infection
• DO NOT apply sticking plasters or any other type of adhesive dressing to the skin – they will cause pain and damage when removed
• DO NOT break blisters – you may introduce infection into the wound
• DO  NOT give the child anything to eat or drink with the exception of painkillers
• Give the recommended dose of children’s painkiller syrup

What to do if your child chokes

How can I tell that my child is choking?

1. She may be gasping for air and unable to breathe
2. She may be holding or clutching her throat
3. She may be unable to speak
4. She may lose colour or look blue

What should I do?

1. Encourage your child to cough. If this does not quickly release the object:
2. Bend your child forward from the waist so that the head is lower than the chest and give 5 sharp back slaps between the shoulder blades.
3. If the object is still not released give up to 5 abdominal thrusts: kneel or stand behind your child with both arms around their waist. Make a fist with one hand and place it just above the belly button (below the ribs) with your thumb inwards. Grasp this fist with the other hand. Thrust sharply inwards and upwards. Try this up to 5 times. Check between thrusts and stop if you clear the obstruction.
4. If the obstruction is still not cleared repeat steps 2 and 3. Ask someone to dial 999 for an ambulance.
5. Be prepared to resuscitate if the child stops breathing.

The above is not a substitute for professional first aid training. For details of paediatric first aid courses in your area please call safe and Sound on 0208  445 8998 or go to www.safeandsound.uk.net

Author: Safe and Sound

After successful careers in teaching and journalism, Tina Lazarus and Roma Felstein set up Safe and Sound in January 2000 in response to the lack of high quality, accessible first aid training available to parents and child carers in the London area. A particular concern was the number of au pairs looking after young children with no idea of what to do in an emergency: Indeed, on our first pilot course 7 out of the 10 au pairs who attended did not know what number to call for an ambulance!

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