First Aid classes are an essential life skill to learn and we are glad Singapore Red Cross offers classes for 4 and above! Little Day Out’s team was invited to a special parent-child First Aid workshop and participants got a taster of important first aid skills. We also learnt how we can help save lives in scenarios such as choking, unconscious victims and how to respond when encountering burns and cuts.
Read on to find out more about first aid classes run by Singapore Red Cross Academy.
Essential Skills for Families
Many of us were very excited about a first aid class. As parents, we knew how accidents can happen expectedly especially related to children – whether outdoors or at home. As a parent of a two boys, visiting the Accident & Emergency department is a rite of passage as I often joke to parents with younger kids.
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Whether it’s handling falls, burns, bruises, cuts, basic first aid skills are essential in preventing worse injuries and seeking medical attention when necessary.
Singapore Red Cross Academy’s First Aid & CPR Workshop
The four-hour workshop was a taster session which covers scenarios in a succinct manner and made accessible to children as young as six. Even the three to four year olds were very engaged as our instructor David taught and shared his knowledge.
There was never a dull moment at the workshop even though the topics could be quite serious. While it is never a joking matter when it comes to life and death situations, the kids learnt what to do when someone around them falls unconscious (seek help immediately!) with David’s useful tips and often hilarious depicting of the wrong things to do.
First, we learnt to discern the severity of injuries and the emergency numbers to dial. 999 and 995 are the important numbers to take note in Singapore, while 1777 is a non-emergency number to dial.
Then we went into details about various scenarios such as burns, choking, wounds resulting in bleeding, bandaging followed by performing CPR.
Debunking Myths & Rendering Effective Help
Most of us would have heard about solutions such as eating rice to help with choking. We might also have encountered older folks using toothpaste on burns. Do these solutions actually work? The answer is – they might worsen the injury!
Our instructor David as with other trainers from Red Cross Singapore Academy has been trained and certified by the academy. Many myths were debunked during the workshop and we learnt the right techniques in treating burns, wounds and also the correct way to help someone choking.
One vital information we learnt was also on the arrival timing of SCDF ambulances. Within the 8 to 12 minutes of arrival, we could potentially save lives by administering CPR to the unconscious person.
We delved into the whys and hows of CPR – Cardiacpulmonary Resuscitation. Through constantly engaging the participants by asking questions and probing the answers, David helped both parents and children understand the steps of CPR and the role of AEDs.
Even though the younger children may not be able to perform CPR, they would be able to know what to do in an event of an emergency especially when home with no one else around to help.
Our Experience Learning Alongside Our Children at Singapore Red Cross Academy
Four hours flew by quickly accompanied by lots of laughter, games, demonstrations and hands-on activities. It was a great way to learn alongside our children critical skills that are needful any time anywhere.
We even had a “casualties pageant” in which our children helped with bandaging and the mums had to parade how poorly bandaged our wounds were. Obviously, we learnt the right ways of bandaging after.
We all learn best in an interactive setting and when our hands are in motion together with the cogs in our head. Parent-child workshops are in the pipeline at Singapore Red Cross Academy thankfully. Meanwhile, parents and teenagers can sign up for the adult first aid and CPR courses, while child-friendly workshops and holiday programmes cater to the younger ones.
I think first aid and CPR skills are one of the most fundamental skills to every human being. Signing up for a class at Singapore Red Cross Academy is definitely beneficial in every way!
Recommended Courses at Singapore Red Cross Academy
Wondering which courses to take?
For parents and caregivers, the Standard First Aid with AED 2-day course is recommended. Certification is included! Certain courses such as the Child First Aid course can be subsidised using SkillsFuture subsidies too.
For kids, the Junior First Aid four-hour Workshop caters to the 8 to 11 year olds. The Young First Aid two-hour workshop caters fo 4 to 7 year olds.
There are also year-end holiday programmes to equip little First Aiders for both outdoors and water safety.
