A child in my preschool class is playing and running around on the playground when all of the sudden he collapses onto the ground. I run to the child, get down on my knees and ask the child if he is ok. He does not respond. I tap him on his foot and ask him if he is ok. He still has no response. I check to see if his chest is rising and falling and lower my cheek to feel if any breathe is coming from his nose or mouth. None is. I ask the other teacher to call 911 on the school cell phone she has in her pocket that we always take outdoors with us and she leads the other children to a different area to play. I then begin the CPR procedures. Chest compressions and breathes, always checking to see if he begins to breathe on his own. He does not. I continue to perform CPR until I no longer can and the other teacher takes over. Then paramedics arrive and relieve us.
A child in the toddler room is choking on a grape he was eating for lunch and is not able to take in full breathes. I check their mouth to see if the grape is easily taken. It is not. I then place the child head down on my knee and pound their back 3 times to try to loosen the grape. I then turn the child on their side to check and see if the grape has become dislodged. It has and the child is now breathing well.
Advance planning is always the best policy in preventing and handling emergency situations. I would be proactive to train all staff before they started work in CPR/First Aid. These trainings would prepare them to handle these situations, should they arise. I would also review these steps every quarter to insure that they are fresh in our minds. I would also do a daily and weekly check of the building to be sure that any possible choking hazards were eliminated.
I know that in my classroom we have a box on the wall by our back door that has a list of our children and all their emergency contact information. There is also a first aid kit that is portable and is inventoried weekly. We also have our emergency evacuation route, CPR/Choking hazards procedures posted there. There is also a flash light there in case of a power outage.
I agree that proper training and advanced planning is key in an emergency. Especially because it will be a time of true chaos and anxiety! Knowing what to do will certainly ease some of the fear associated with life threatening emergencies! I just renewed my CPR/First Aid certifications and was so suprised at how many things have changed... like the absence of the look, listen and feel technique! It is scary to think about and we hope it never happens but life is so unpredicatable. Being prepared gives us some sense of control.
ReplyDeleteTiffany Harris (Walden University)