12 First Aid Tips of Christmas

Summer in Australia is a great time for kids to explore, try new things and be adventurous! However, whether you are at home or going away for the holidays, it is important to keep these basic First Aid tips in mind for your family, because kids will be kids and there are likely to be some tears along the way! 

1.              Burns

The first aid management for all burns, is to run the burn under cool running water for 20 minutes. The water doesn’t need to be freezing cold, just cool. Complete the cooling as soon as possible. The sooner the better but the cooling can be done up to 3 hours after the injury. The cooling stops the skin from continuing to burn. Don’t put ice, burn creams, toothpaste, egg whites or anything else on a burn. Only cool running water. Apply a non-stick dressing (or glad wrap) over the burn after the 20 minutes of cooling is complete. 

2.              Snake bites

Follow DRSABCD. Lay the casualty down, provide comfort and reassurance. Encourage them to STAY STILL. Staying still is vital as the venom spreads through the lymphatic fluid when the person moves. Call an ambulance (000).

Apply a pressure immobilisation bandage using the following technique: Apply a firm heavy elasticised roller bandage just above the fingers or toes and work your way upwards on the limb. Wrap the bandage past the snakebite and as far up the limb as possible. Ensure the bandage is applied firmly but not so tight that it hinders blood circulation. Lastly, splint the bandaged limb. 

3.              Choking

If a child has an ineffective cough or has stopped breathing, call an ambulance (000) and immediately start choking first aid.

Position the child over your lap facing down or lean the child forward.

1. Give five sharp back blows with the heel of your hand between the shoulder In between each back blow, check to see if the object has been dislodged and if the child is breathing.
2. If the back blows are unsuccessful, turn the infant onto their back. If an older child is lying down, also turn them onto their back.
3. Give five chest thrusts using two fingers (infant) or the heel of your hand (child), keeping your hand in contact with the chest at all times. For a chest thrust, position your hand or fingers over the same area you would use for CPR compressions (the lower half of the sternum or 'breast bone').
4. After each chest thrust, check to see if the object has been
5. If the blockage has not cleared, continue to alternate between five back blows and five chest thrusts (steps 1to 4 above) until the ambulance

If at any time the child becomes unconscious, ensure an ambulance has been called and start CPR immediately.

4.              Bee Stings 

Do not use tweezers to remove the sting; bees leave behind a sac of venom, and if you try to use tweezers you will release more venom from the sac

If the stinger is still in the skin, gently try to remove it by scraping it carefully from the side with the edge of a firm object, such as a finger nail or credit card – flicking the sting out as soon as possible to reduce the amount of venom injected.

When you have removed the sting, wash the affected area with soap and water and dry the area gently.

Apply an ice pack and monitor for signs of allergy or anaphylaxis

5.              Drowning

Always supervise children around water.

It only takes a few seconds for a child to drown in a few centimeters of water.

There are a number of drowning hazards in addition to pools, oceans, lakes and rivers. These include; the bath, buckets in backyards, eskys, rivers, lakes, dams, troughs, dog bowls, fish ponds etc.

Remember follow DRSABCD for water incidents.

6.              CPR 

Follow DRSABCD

If a person is unconscious and not breathing normally, they need CPR. Ensure the person is ona firm flat surface.

Push down 1/3 of the chest wall at a rate of 100-120 compressions per minute. Ensure the chest is rising all the wayup in between each compression.

Deliver 2 breaths by occluding the nostrils and providing two breaths into the casualty’s

mouth.

Delivering 2 breaths: 30 compressions.

If unwilling or unable to deliver breaths, provide compression only CPR.

7.              Helmets

Every time. No exceptions.

Wearing a correctly fitted helmet can reduce the child’s risk of sustaining a serious head injury by 90%. Ensure the child has a helmet that meets the Australian Standards (look for a sticker stating it meets the Australia Standard -AS/NZS 2063).

8.              Button batteries

If you suspect a child has swallowed a button battery, call an ambulance (000) or go to your nearest hospital emergency department immediately.

Be mindful of button batteries in new toys this Christmas. Button batteries can also be found in keys, remote controls, calculators, musical greeting cards, watches and kitchen scales.

Button battery injuries can be catastrophic if not treated immediately. If you think a button battery has been swallowed, do not wait for symptoms to appear before calling an ambulance.

9.              Driveway safety

Driveways are dangerous places for children. Sadly multiple children are killed and even more seriously injured in driveway accidents every year in Australia.

In 85% of cases, the driver does not know that a child is close to the vehicle; they think they are being looked after elsewhere.

All cars have a blind spot – some up to more than 15 meters behind the vehicle – which can make it difficult to see a child. This means that any car can be involved in a driveway run over, not just larger vehicles such as four wheel drives, vans and trucks.

Follow DRSABCD.

To assist in making your driveway safer, ensure you supervise, separate and see.

10. Fever - under 3 months of age

Remember, if a baby under 3 months of age has a fever (body temperature over 38 degrees Celsius), they need to be seen urgently by a doctor. I recommend heading to the nearest Emergency Department. The gold standard for measuring a baby’s temperature is using a digital thermometer under their arm (axilla).

11.           Poisons

Call the Hotline – 13 11 26 24/7 for advice.

If a person has had a poison ingested, injected, splashed, inhaled phone the poisons hotline for advice. Don’t induce vomiting for poisons.

If they appear unwell call 000.

12.           First Aid Kit

Ensure you have an up to date and adequately stocked first aid kit in your home, the car and on holidays. Parents were always asking us what to add into a first aid kit, so we used our medical knowledge to create the perfect kit. To learn more- www.rhythmfirstaid.com.au

This information does not substitute formal First Aid Training.

Information in this article is for educational purposes only.

Rhythm First Aid accepts no liability for any loss or damages suffered by any person as a result of any information or advice.