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Kiddi Caru Keeping Your Children Safe

8 Jun 2022
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Our child’s safety is at the forefront of every parent’s mind and the thought of anything happening to them is nothing short of a nightmare. However, despite this fear, 77% of UK parents to 0-5-year olds, the most vulnerable age group, are not paediatric first aid trained at this in moment in time.

This means…

1 in 10 do not know the correct steps to take if their child was choking
30% do not know the correct treatment for burns
Over 50% do not know how to perform CPR on a child

…many children are at risk of not receiving immediate first aid that is up to date with current regulations for treating children.

Although being trained in paediatric first aid is not a requirement, it prepares you with knowledge in what steps to take if the worst should happen and provides your little one or another’s child with the best immediate treatment to potentially save their life.

We believe it is vital for all parents know what to do if their child is in trouble. To help ensure the safety of little ones, here are the steps to take in three of the top causes of accidental injury in babies and toddlers:

Choking

Did you know that choking is often silent?
Our data shows that 30% of parents said they believe gagging and coughing are signs of choking.

Choking is a leading cause of accidental infant death in children under three years old, and whole grapes, nuts and boiled sweets are not solely responsible. Soft foods such as hot dogs, marshmallows and even peanut butter pose a risk. Even if you have been meticulous with their food preparation, young children should always be supervised when eating by keeping close by and checking on them regularly.

Of course, food is not the only risk as babies and toddlers can still find themselves in danger of choking, due to their developmental expropriation of items in their surroundings using their mouths. Therefore, parents and carers need to be prepared with the knowledge and actions needed to assist a choking babies or toddlers:

Babies (children under 1 year old)

5 Back Blows: hold the baby face down along your thigh so their head is lower than their bottom, carry out five firm back blows between the shoulder blades

If this doesn’t dislodge the obstruction…

5 Chest Thrusts: turn the baby over so they are facing upwards. Place two fingers in the middle of their chest. Push sharply downwards, up to five times.

If this still doesn’t clear the blockage call 999 and continue with a sequence of back blows and chest thrusts until the paramedics arrive.

Toddlers (children over 1 year old)

Toddlers should be encouraged to cough before back blows are started. If this doesn’t dislodge the obstruction…

5 Back Blows: Lay the child face down on your lap and carry out five firm back blows between their shoulders, if this position isn’t possible, support the child in a forward leaning position and deliver the same back blows.

If this doesn’t dislodge the obstruction…

5 Abdominal Thrusts: Stand or kneel behind your child. Place your arms under the child’s arms and around their upper abdomen. Clench your fist and place it between the belly button and ribs. Grasp your fist with your other hand and pull sharply inwards and upwards. Repeat up to five times.

If this still doesn’t clear the blockage call 999 and continue with a sequence of back blows and abdominal thrusts until the paramedics arrive.

Drowning

Did you know it only takes a toddler 20 seconds to drown, it is usually silent and can be in as little as 3cm of water?

Over 1 in 10 of the parents in our survey admitted to leaving their young child unsupervised in the bath, if only for a minute to do something else, such as checking dinner or answering the door.

A minute can seem like a short amount of time, but it is five times more than the time it can take for a toddler to drown. Children must be supervised at all times around water, whether that is in the bath, around a paddling pool or feeding ducks by a river, all bodies of water pose a risk, even as shallow as only 3cm deep.

What to do if the worst happened? 38% of UK parents admitted they wouldn’t know how to assist an unconscious child. With 60% saying they are not up to date on paediatric CPR for babies or toddlers.

If a child is pulled from the water, unconscious and not breathing, CPR must be started straight away, as every second lost is potentially fatal. If you are unsure how to assist an unconscious child and aren’t up to date with CPR, here are the fundamental steps:

Ensure the Area is Safe: Check for any hazards such as oncoming traffic or electrical equipment
Check your Child’s Responsiveness: Gently tap your child’s shoulder and loudly say their name or ask if they are alright
If your Child Doesn’t Respond: Shout for someone to call an ambulance or do so yourself and carefully turn the child onto their back
Check for Breathing: tilt their head back to open their air-way, look for chest movements, listen for sound and see if you can feel their breath on your cheek. If not breathing start CPR.

Babies (children under 1 year old)

1. Put your mouth over their mouth and nose.

2. Give five breaths the 30 pumps to the centre of their chest using two fingers.

3. Give two more breaths over the nose and mouth.

4. Give 30 more pumps to the chest.

Repeat these steps until the ambulance arrives.

Toddlers (children over 1 year old)

1. Put your mouth over theirs and give five initial rescue breaths.

2. Place the heel of one hand towards their breast bone in the centre of their chest and perform 30 chest compressions.

3. Follow this with a sequence of two rescue breaths and 30 chest compressions until an ambulance arrives.

Burns

Did you know in the UK around 2000 children are taken to A&E with scalds caused by bath water*?

However, 3 in 10 UK parents don’t know the correct method to treat a burn.

Baths that are too hot, hot drinks, open flames such as log or coal fires and candles and hair straighteners can all cause life changing burns if precautions are not taken.

If you have a low coffee table, place drinks well away from the edge where they may be knocked by a curious toddler. If the centre of the table is still too accessible, make sure hot drinks are kept out of reach. Candles should also be kept out of reach or only used when little ones are not in the room.

Little ones should not be left unattended near straighteners or curling tongs that are on or have only recently be switched off. Place them on a heatproof surface out of reach until they have cooled.

If your little one does get burnt, these are the steps to take:

Stop the burn getting any worse by moving the casualty away from the source of heat.
Start cooling the burn as quickly as possible. Run it under cool water for 10 minutes but preferably twenty. (Don’t use ice, creams or gels – they can damage tissues and increase risk of infection).
Call 999 or 112 for emergency medical help.
Remove any jewellery or clothing near the burn (unless it is stuck to it).
Cover the burnt area with kitchen cling film or another clean, non-fluffy material, like a plastic bag to protect from infection.
If you are unsure if the burn is serious, seek medical help.

Identify the degree of burn:

First-degree burns are mild. They result in pain and reddening of the epidermis (outer layer of the skin).

Second-degree burns (partial thickness burns) affect the epidermis and the dermis (lower layer of skin). They cause pain, redness, swelling, and blistering.

Third-degree burns (full thickness burns): go through the dermis and affect deeper tissues. They result in white or blackened, charred skin that may be numb.

Car Seat Safety

Did you know that, according to the law, babies must be in rear-facing car seats until they are at least 15 months old?

Yet, a quarter of UK parents are still turning their children round to forward-facing at just 12 months old. By doing so they are breaking the law and could receive a £500 fine and three penalty points on their license, but what’s worse, is that should an accident occur, the repercussions of using the wrong seat could be fatal.

According to our study 83% agreed that rear-facing seats were safer than front-facing, yet over half of parents with children under 5 are still opting for front-facing seats.

Foldable Safety Guide

We have created a quick and easy foldable safety guide that you can print at home and keep in your purse or wallet.

Print instructions:

Orientation should be landscape.
Ensure paper size is set to A4.
Select print on two sides- flip the long edge (if doing this manually it may be a case of trial and error)
If you do not want to use colour ink, set to greyscale.
Watch the instructional video on how to fold your guide

We at Grandir UK conducted a survey of over 1100 UK parents of babies and children aged 0-5 years old, asking them about their knowledge of child safety and their experience. Please credit http://www.grandiruk.com when using any of the data.