Quest to make first aid compulsory in schools

More than 4000 Christchurch students will be among the first in the country to be given first aid training as part of a St John initiative to have it introduced to the national school curriculum.

The pilot programme, which teaches year 9 and 10 students cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), kicked off at Christchurch Boys’ High School with 110 students attending the first session on Monday.

Burnside High School, Cashmere High School and Haeata Community Campus in Aranui have also committed to participating in the programme. St John aims to have all of Christchurch’s 8000 year 9 and 10 students on board by the end of the year.

The pilot, which is fully funded by St John donations, is estimated to cost about $40,000 to run.

St John Christchurch area executive manager Craig Stockdale said the programme was an example of fundraiser money being put back into the community.

The team hoped the programme would eventually be rolled out nationally, Stockdale said.

‘‘We’ve had quite an overwhelming response. We might need to get more equipment and staff before we look at that.

‘‘St John would welcome a programme that’s rolled out nationally if we could.’’ It was unclear how much it would cost.

Stockdale said St John was speaking with the Government about having first aid training added to the school curriculum.

He hoped having the pilot in Christchurch would make it the most survivable city in the country for cardiac arrests.

‘‘We know a lot of cardiac arrests happen in the home. If we can train 30,000 to 40,000 student then they’ll take those skills with them into the community.’’

Christchurch Boys’ High School head of physical education and health Phil Watson said the students responded well to the messages.

‘‘The main focus was on if you found a person injured or unconscious on the ground, what would you do, how would you react?’’ He said it was good to clarify the process.

He planned to add it to the year 9 and 10 health classes and would like to see St John staff teach students.

Ministry of Education deputy secretary early learning and student achievement Ellen MacGregor-Reid said the inclusion of first aid courses was supported as part of the New Zealand Curriculum.

‘‘Many secondary schools already teach aspects of first aid through their senior health or physical education programmes, giving students the opportunity to gain NCEA credits and a valuable life skill.’’

‘‘St John would welcome a programme that’s rolled out nationally if we could.’’