Red Cross Blogs

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Never let it be said that the British Red Cross is backwards in coming forwards when it comes to getting its message across.

To officially launch the organisation’s new Pupil, Citizen, Life-saver campaign, supporters marched straight into the House of Commons yesterday and started – literally – getting ‘hands on’ with the MPs whose support they need.

The Red Cross is calling on the government to ensure first aid and humanitarian education are included as a core part of the national curriculum. The organisation has reached 347,000 children and young people in the past five years and plans to reach 800,000 by 2015.

At the parliamentary launch more than 20 cross-party MPs came along to find out more, and meet pupils and teachers from schools that already successfully use Red Cross resources.

Quite a few even rolled up their sleeves and got stuck into some first aid training, while others pondered the sticky dilemma of how they’d respond if faced with a natural disaster.

The vast majority of Britain’s teachers (83 per cent) and parents (98 per cent) want first aid to become part of the curriculum – but currently just 18 per cent of primary schools in the UK offer pupils the chance to learn these skills.

Sir Bob Russell, MP for Colchester, is a parliamentary ambassador for the campaign. He said: “It’s great that children as young as five can learn first aid. The Red Cross’ teaching resources are clearly aiming to empower pupils rather than just inform.”

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We all know Prince Harry is pretty top-notch at polo, but up till now he’s kept his first aid skills firmly under his belt.

However, when a fellow player went crashing heavily to the ground during a charity polo match in Brazil, the prince immediately leapt off his horse and ran over to provide some textbook first aid help.

Businessman Bash Kazi, who was knocked out cold by the incident, landed on his front and was left lying face down in the damp turf. But the young prince, who has been trained in first aid by the British Red Cross, raced over to gently roll the stricken rider onto his side.

As any first aider knows, carefully putting a casualty on their side (known as the recovery position) enables them to breathe independently. Bash later recalled: “Prince Harry was the first one off his horse, doing the right thing.”

Given the prince is a veteran of Afghanistan and an active duty officer in the British Army, he’s presumably had good training in basic trauma care – so it’s not surprising he knew what to do.

But his actions do underline a very serious point: when accidents happen, particularly on a sports field, someone needs to have the confidence and skills to step in immediately and help.

Powerful polo horses charge up and down the playing field at 35 to 40 miles an hour, so crashing into another player and being thrown off is pretty serious stuff. Luckily, the businessman only suffered minor concussion and a subsequent CT scan showed he was fine.

Following the match, Bash caught some replays of the accident on Brazilian TV – and so had the surreal experience of watching the third-in-line to the British throne giving first aid to his own prone form.

Unsurprisingly, he later announced that the prince was ‘a fabulous person’ and ‘such a gentleman’.

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Tags: First aid, first aid tips, first aid training

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What would you do if you saw a man walking towards you with a severed arm hanging on by a thread of skin?

You might faint. You might run away. You might even think you’d accidentally wandered onto a zombie movie set. But Stephen Leonard, who’s had first aid training, stayed absolutely calm and used his knowledge to save the man’s life with seconds to spare.

The grisly incident started when retired firefighter Stuart Frain accidentally hacked through his own left arm while using a circular saw in his remote garden.

Showing superhuman resolve, Stuart – who is also first aid trained from his fire service days – calmly held his severed limb in place and went hundreds of yards to get help.

As blood poured from the massive wound, he refused to panic and instead carried on down a road and across a canal before spotting three passers-by – including his friend Stephen, who was walking his dog.

Calling on his training, Stephen stemmed the flow of blood by using a dog lead as a tourniquet. Seconds after it was in place, Stuart collapsed. Surgeons later said the father of four was probably only about 90 seconds away from death.

Now, I don’t want to be ghoulish but just play back that scene once more with no first aid training involved. I, for one, am far from confident that Stuart would still be smiling for photographers from his hospital bed. At every stage – Stuart’s initial calmness, his knowing to hold his limb in place, Stephen’s own steady resolve and precise treatment – the two men’s first aid skills made a critical difference.

People lead such busy lives these days, and learning first aid often feels like one of those things that gets put on the ‘to do’ list without ever actually getting done. But doing a basic course takes just a couple of hours – or you can even learn in the comfort of your own home using our Everyday First Aid online resource.

It really is time well spent. And I’m sure Stuart and Stephen would agree.

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Tags: emergency response, First aid, first aid tips, first aid training

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Thankfully, Premier League footballer Fabrice Muamba is now showing signs of recovery after suffering a cardiac arrest during a televised match at the weekend.

The shocking story that unfolded at Tottenham Hotspur’s ground on Saturday really hit home just how unexpectedly heart-related emergencies can occur. Here was a young man, supremely fit and renowned for being a zippy player, suddenly struck down mid-step.

Fabrice’s condition was so serious that his heart didn’t start working on its own for another two hours. Those first few minutes following the incident were absolutely critical, and there’s little doubt that the pitch-side medics kept him alive.

But if he had been playing in a Sunday League game, for example, there wouldn’t have been any professional help on hand. And that’s why it’s so critical that people, particularly sportspeople, should know what to do in such cases.

Joe Mulligan, the Red Cross’ head of first aid education, said: “During Saturday’s incident, the medical teams at the stadium were fantastic, and fortunately also had access to medical equipment and advanced life-support.

“But it’s important that everyone knows what to do in such situations. If you suspect a cardiac arrest, call 999 and start chest compressions. Calling 999 alone can make a huge difference.”

Joe’s right: this isn’t just a job for the experts. However, the good news is that treating such life-threatening conditions is actually pretty straightforward – it’s largely a matter of familiarising yourself with the basic skills so you’d feel confident enough to act.

Check out our Everyday First Aid resource for more information or download our free first aid smartphone app.

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Tags: cpr, Emergencies, emergency response, First aid, first aid tips, first aid training

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Would you ask for less homework? For better school dinners? Or for longer holidays?

On Tuesday 31 January the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP – Secretary of State for Education – will meet parliament’s Education Committee, where MPs will field questions from members of the public.

You can submit your question online, too, using the Twitter hashtag #AskGove.

First aid and humanitarian education

We see this committee as a great opportunity to highlight Pupil, citizen, life-saver – our campaign to add first aid and humanitarian education to the school curriculum. We know that it is a pressing concern for teachers, parents and pupils, who all value the Red Cross’ work in schools.

In 2011 we responded to the Department of Education’s national curriculum review of the essential knowledge and skills taught in schools. Now the department is reviewing responses around the core subjects of English, maths, science and physical education before they tackle other subjects to be included in the new National Curriculum.

A great campaign response

Since we launched our Pupil, citizen, life-saver e-campaign, our supporters have asked over 50 local MPs to sign our parliamentary petition. So, thanks to those who have taken part – and if you haven’t yet, you can ask your MP too.

Education isn’t – and shouldn’t be – just about reading, writing and maths. At its core, education should also be about gaining practical knowledge that will help people to be more confident, willing and able to help in a crisis. And what’s more practical than learning to save someone’s life? That’s why we asked Michael Gove questions about the curriculum.

Schools provide an ideal forum for learning how to cope with challenging situations, and the British Red Cross has an excellent track record with over five years helping teachers use our creative resources in the classroom.

We’ll be listening out for our questions (and the answers) on Tuesday during the Committee’s meeting – and we hope you will too.

For more information about our advocacy work, email advocacy@redcross.org.uk.

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Tags: advocacy, campaign, citizen, e-campaign, education, life-saver, parliament, policy, pupil, Twitter

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