When LBG was born, I organised a First Aid Course through an awesome company that sent a nurse to our house. It was a little like a Tupperware Party: everyone came to us and we supplied drinks and nibbles. The babies slept in a collection of travel cots dotted around the house whilst we practised resuscitation downstairs on a doll version of the real-life babies we now possessed.
It was simultaneously reassuring and terrifying, but we were all new parents and eager to have the skills to hand just in case. When we moved house I found the pamphlet they gave us together with a Quick Reference Leaflet on emergency CPR in the drawer of the side table in the sitting room where I put them within easy reach when we were given them. I always let people looking after the Girls know that they were there. And there they have stayed.
I’ve never needed to refer to them. Which is not to say I haven’t needed to use First Aid. There have been cuts and burns and one particulalry terrifying choking moment. On the whole, the last five and half years have been fairly event-free. Chris Evans has recently been promoting First Aid on his Breakfast Show with the help of British Red Cross crusader Joe Mulligan, and it made me think that I needed to update my knowledge.
Step forward the DK First Aid Manual, sent by NetMums for review. Now in its 10th edition, the best-selling First Aid Manual is the only up-to-date, illustrated guide on the market that covers every aspect of first aid across every age range. Endorsed and authorised by the UK’s three leading first aid societies: St John Ambulance, St Andrew’s First Aid and The British Red Cross, this comprehensive guide is the official training manual used in first aid training and is still the only guide written and endorsed by all three voluntary organisations.
It’s compact yet bursting with up to date knowledge on the best ways to treat grazes to gunshots and burns to breaks. Perfect for keeping on the shelf in your sitting room or kitchen for easy access when you need it. A sensible size for grabbing in a moment of panic rather than grabbing to use as a doorstop.
To be honest, opening the book is a bit daunting. Even if there is nothing wrong with anyone around you. This book, because it is so comprehensive, has so much information on so many things you have never before considered that I found it a little overwhelming. There was a phrase “tell those on the scene that you are a trained First Aider and calmly take control” which immediately made me close the book. But the second time I opened it, I looked for information: one of the girls had hurt themselves and I couldn’t recall how to treat the wound.
That’s the benefit of this book: it has clearly defined categories making search super easy. It has thorough descriptions of the treatment needed, yet in clear and simple language. And there are excellent pictures detailing the treatment you need to give. Admittedly the idea of giving CPR to a baby makes you hug your children tighter, but the information is there if you need it. And not just you, but anyone in your home who may need to give First Aid to you or your children.
It’s a worthwhile purchase, for anyone, possibly even an essential purchase. I find it reassuring to see the book on the shelf, and have told all my regular visitors where it is in case of emergency. I have skimmed over most of the book now to update my rusty knowledge from the Parent First Aid course I did when LBG was tiny, and there are things that have changed significantly, so that was worthwhile. I am inclined to get a copy for Granny too: at £13.99 it’s affordably reassuring. And it’s more reliable to have a book to hand in a moment of need than to rely on Doctor Google and your Broadband Speed.
For further details about the work of the three First Aid Societies, please visit the relevant organisation’s website:
- St John Ambulance – www.sja.org.uk
- St Andrew’s First Aid – www.firstaid.org.uk
- British Red Cross – www.redcross.org.uk/firstaid
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