As a safety precaution, most parents and guardians would want to control the activities of their children in a bid to avoid unprecedented injuries or hurts. However, controlling the movement of children has proven to be difficult because kids don’t seem to stop sustaining injuries such as cuts, bruises, sprains or strains from their indoor/outdoor games.

Therefore, if you seek to keep your children safe, it has become vital to teach them some basic first aid skills. Let them know how and when to manage some injuries or emergencies and when to prevent others.

Here are essential first aid skills to teach and help your children manage emergencies.

Teach your kids how to call for help

I’m pretty sure not all emergencies may happen when you are around your home with your kids. Therefore, the first course of action for first aid skills should be teaching your children how to make the 911 call during situations of injuries or any life-threatening emergencies.

But how can you do that?

You must review all the factors that institute a call. First, they must be aware of your home-smartphone passcode and the buttons they need to press to make calls.

Secondly, ensure they are well conversant with their home address or where they live. And should there be a need for an emergency call, they would be able to provide direction for faster help.

Teach them when to call

Teaching your child when to call is critical as they must understand the seriousness of making the 999 call. Therefore, you have to discuss the reasons or situations as to when they make the call. Of course, they must learn to use the number responsibly.

That said, you must identify the emergencies that call for the 999 button-press. Such situations could be; When there is a fire outbreak, someone is bleeding or is not responding, or when there is a stranger in your house. They’re scared, among other situations.

Besides, when your children know how and when to make a call for help, they would save lives or uncertain situations.

Show your kids where and how to find the first aid kits

So what happens when injuries occur, and immediate help is needed, but the equipment to manage the injuries isn’t around? You must understand your risk profile and create a custom home first aid kit. Then, let your kids be aware of it.

Of course, it may not seem like a skill, but teaching your kids where to find a first aid kit during emergencies could prove to be life-saving. Besides, telling them where to find the kits would also mean you teach them the inclusions and how to use them. They should be informed on how to help, plus what items are used for different emergencies.

Train your kids on how to Conduct CPR

Knowing how to conduct Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is invaluable, especially in emergency situations. This ensures that in breathing difficulties and heart attacks, they can initiate CPR immediately to help keep any victim’s blood flowing until healthcare professionals arrive.

Besides, when conducted well, CPR would ensure artificial ventilation that preserves brain function, blood circulation, and breathing. Therefore, you must ensure your children know the basic steps of conducting CPR. This may double the chances of any victim’s survival.

Teach your kids how to clean or dress wounds

You may not avoid all kinds of injuries. There are some common ones like cuts and scrapes that would result in some traces of blood. However, knowing how to treat or manage the wounds would prevent much pain or blood loss.

Therefore, ensure you teach your kids how to dress wounds, what and when to apply appropriately. They must have the skill of wrapping up or irrigating laceration. With proper training, your child/children would make clean and uninfected wounds.

Controlling and stopping bleeding

What happens in situations where someone is excessively bleeding, and the only people around are the kids?

Of course, it’s essential to stop the bleeding since it may be a matter of life or death. However, knowing how to handle the bleeding is the next step to your safety. They must be taught to handle bleedings cautiously especially when the victim is living with HIV.

Therefore, it would be better if your children know what to do should they experience such situations.

Besides, you must teach them how to make a tourniquet, use a clean cloth, and apply pressure on the cut.

How to apply the Heimlich manoeuvre

I’m sure you have come across someone choking. Some are normal but others can be severe to an extent if they are not attended to, they can lead to death.

The Heimlich manoeuvre is an emergency first aid skill designed to help dislodge whatever is blocking someone’s airwaves. It is a life-saving skill that would be great if you teach your children. Additionally, it would be better to teach your kids how to identify signs of choking, as early detection would help save a life in time.

Teach your kids how to treat burns

Accidental burns could occur when spending some time with your family at the fire pit, cooking at camping sites or just some other cause. The degree of burns differs. Some burns need topical remedies; others require you to run them under cold water, while some burns demand a doctor’s attention.

For these reasons, you must ensure your children know which degree of burns they can handle. They could be in a position to handle burns that are treatable with creams.

How to treat shock

Shock occurs when the brain does not receive enough oxygen due to inadequate blood circulation. Therefore, your kids should know when one is experiencing shock and how to handle someone that is shocked.

For instance, teach them to ensure that they put a person experiencing a shock to lie on their backs with their feet elevated for better blood circulation to the brain. Besides, train your kids to ensure the shock victims are kept calm and their body warm to regulate their blood pressure.

Prepare your kids to have the right mindset

Teaching your children to handle specific emergencies is not just enough. Please make them mentally prepared. You must train them never to panic or run away from helping those in need.

Conclusion

Every parent and guardian must ensure they teach their children some basic first aid skills as they may be the only people around to help in case of emergencies. With the basic knowledge, they will treat burns, shock, clean and dress wounds, conduct CPR and stop bleeding, among other home emergencies.

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