A mum is warning of the need for basic first aid training after a stumble from a waitress resulted in her one-year-old suffering a second-degree burn on her back.
Telling Tiny Hearts Education of her experience on Instagram, the Aussie mum explained how she was left “shocked” and unable to help her daughter after two waitresses collided, dropping a piping hot coffee near her daughter.
“A long black coffee was dropped next to my one-year-old daughter who was seated in a high chair,” the woman said.
While the mum had been trained in first aid, no one working at the cafe had been, and there was no suitable place for them to treat the burn with running water.
“When I realised the staff weren’t able to assist, I called 000,” she explained.
Acting on their guidance, she got staff to provide jugs of cool water to pour on the little girl while they waited for paramedics to arrive. Upon arrival, the emergency carers used a drip to treat the burn.
“I couldn’t help my daughter”
Although the experience could have been worse had the burn been to a different part of the child’s body or had the mum not known first aid and called 000, it was still a shock.
“I was pretty shocked to be in a position where I felt I couldn’t treat/help my daughter, despite knowing what to do and having been first aid trained myself.”
She went on to say it was common to see cafe staff pass hot beverages over young children or leave them within reaching distance.
By sharing her experience, the mum hopes to make others aware of the risk and the solution.
“Parents, this is such an eye-opening reminder that first aid training is a must-have (not just a “nice-to-have!) ,” writes Tiny Hearts Education, which offered first aid training courses online and in-person.
“Speak up in a friendly way”
One fellow parent commented they often had to be ready to correct staff who went to pass a hot drink over their child,saying they felt “it’s very worrisome”.
“Next time you see it, speak up in a friendly way,” another person suggested.
Speaking from the perspective of cafe staff, one person reminded parents to supervise their children more closely while at a cafe.
“Unfortunately, some parents don’t supervise their children and let them run around cafes where staff are carrying hot drinks. There have been multiple times [when] kids run into staff causing them to drop things.
“Please keep an eye on your little ones when you’re in [these] environments and please don’t crucify hospitality staff for incidents we may not be able to prevent.”
