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Fiji Achievement Report August 2014 Education Enrichment: Health
and Safety
FIRST AID TRAINING FOR WOMEN, CHILDREN, AND TEACHERS
Objective: To train teachers, students, and community members in
emergency first response and secondary care skills. GVI is
dedicated to improving health first aid provision in Fijis remote
schools and communities. By providing Emergency First Response
training to teachers and community members on our project sites,
GVI project teams aim to improve emergency response capacity and
create a safer environment for children and community members.
Summary: For the remote communities in the Yasawa Islands or the
rural coastal villages of Dawasamu, professional medical care is
not easily accessible. There is one doctor and nurse responsible
for the 4 villages and 2 schools on Nacula Island and in Dawasamu
up to 5 villages rely on the basic facilities of one small nursing
station. By addressing the issue of first aid provision in local
schools and
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communities, this initiative has not only improved awareness and
emergency response skills but has also opened up a forum for
discussing emergencies and contingency plans for schools and
communities in these remote areas. In response to an observed
overall lack of first aid awareness this training has been designed
to be easily accessible and focuses on key first aid, CPR and
safety related skill development. First Aid workshop at Ratu Meli
Memorial School
6 Teachers trained 25 students trained Program delivered by 4
GVI volunteers and 2 GVI staff
The Yasawa islands are remote and transport options to the
facilities of the mainland can be complex, in some cases emergency
situations require costly helicopter or seaplane evacuations to the
nearest hospital. For the communities the island chain, the sea is
an integral part of their way of life and as such, accidents at sea
are a very real danger. CPR can improve the chances of
resuscitating non-breathing victims of water related incidents.
Pursuant to this, GVI approached Ratu Meli Memorial School (RMMS)
teachers with a program of basic emergency first responder (EFR)
training. With the assistance from marine research and conservation
volunteers, GVI staff began the training with a class for years 7
and 8. The students were taught about accident scene assessment,
breathing check, CPR and serious bleeding treatment. The children
were attentive, receptive and enjoyed the interactive learning
process. Each child had the chance to practise CPR on the dummy and
took turns bandaging their friends. The children were then given a
lesson on sea safety. This included information on buddy systems,
currents, the importance of telling someone where you are going,
and a lesson on how to make a surface marker buoy out of recycled
materials. This was in response to many spear-fishers being spotted
without maker buoys in areas of high boat traffic. A first aid
training program for the school teachers then arranged for after
school hours. Teachers in Fiji are not required to have any first
aid training and as such, only one teacher at Ratu Meli Memorial
School had prior knowledge of CPR. The training provided by GVI
taught scene assessments, breathing check, CPR, drowning response,
spinal injury response,
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and serious bleeding and choking response skills. The different
approaches to the treatment of adults and children was highlighted
in each session. It was emphasised that it is particularly
important for teachers to be aware of multiple ways to treat
choking as this hazard is more common for children than for adults.
The teachers were then given a certificate acknowledging their
completion of the first aid class and contributing to professional
development. The children were also awarded a certificate which
will be added to their secondary school applications. Community
First Aid in Navotua Village
10 women trained
Like many remote villages in the Yasawas, Navotua located on the
northern coast of Nacula Island does not have an easily accessible
health centre. In tropical climates, even small wounds can become
badly infected and pose a serious risk if left untreated.
Unfortunately, it is common for simple ailments to be addressed
only once they become serious. The aim of the first aid sessions,
therefore, was to provide basic information which would help to
mitigate such issues. The community volunteers based in Navotua
decided the best way to disseminate first aid information was
through the well-established womens group due to the fact that
women are traditionally the main care providers for the family
structure. All information was delivered in practical workshop
style sessions which allowed the participants to practice simple
first aid techniques and ask questions. Topics covered included;
emergency first aid, rehydration solutions, bleeding, heat stroke,
breaks and sprains and infection prevention and treatment. These
topics were selected because they require immediate attention which
can be carried out within the village before seeking professional
medical attention. Informative posters were made by GVI volunteers
prior to the practical workshop; these were used as part of the
presentation and then hung in the community hall for future
reference.
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These practical sessions were completed in conjunction with
hygiene awareness and the construction of hand washing stations
within the village. Practical workshops were delivered on how to
build these simple structures which involved a variety of people
from the youth group and womens organisation. It is important that
hygiene issues are addressed alongside basic first aid because
keeping wounds clean is fundamental to infection prevention.
Furthermore, the likelihood of contracting common health issues
such as scabies can be decreased by following best hygiene
practices.
First Aid Training for Dawasamu Primary and Secondary School
Teachers Since the inception of the Dawasamu projects in 2013, GVI
staff have often been involved with supporting and delivering care
for various injuries and illnesses within the local community and
especially for the children at the local schools. This has often
meant that teachers have become reliant on GVI to address first aid
issues and provide advice or offer solutions to the teachers. It
became clear from these interactions that training teachers in the
fundamentals of primary and secondary care and first aid would be
of tremendous value. GVI program leaders decided to certify two
teachers as Emergency First Responders, one at the local primary
school and one at the local secondary school. This internationally
recognized course trains participants in primary care (CPR) as well
as non-life threatening first aid issues. With this new knowledge,
these teachers can now serve as the designated first aid providers
at their respective schools. Over a period of two weeks, GVI led
evening sessions from Babale Base to teach the new skills required
to gain the certification. These sessions had clear value to the
teachers, who had lots of additional questions and comments on the
issue of health provision and provided useful information on the
obstacles to improving health amongst the students.
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After the initial skill training, GVI volunteers were brought in
to help with creating authentic scenarios for the teachers to
practice their skills. A short test and some paperwork followed by
which time the two teachers were well on their way to
certification. At the first school committee meeting after the
training, GVI was thanked for this important contribution to school
safety. The training had a noticeable impact on the teachers who
set about discussing solutions to the management of daily first aid
issues. A proposal to keep a reserve of petty cash to pay for
emergency transport was agreed to as was the decision to contact
the Ministry of Health to request the provision of basic first aid
response equipment. It was clear that the training had encouraged
the teachers to take ownership of the problem and devise their own
solutions. Moving forward, GVI will look to continue working on the
issue of health, particularly in schools, and ensure that teachers
have the skills and materials necessary to assist their students
and to ensure that students education is delivered in a safe and
healthy environment. GVI Fiji
For more information on GVIs projects in Fiji please visit
www.gvi.co.uk For more information on our global impact visit
www.gviworld.com
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visit www.gvi.org for more details.