Staff from Thames Valley Wing have helped their counterparts in Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wing by running a Heartstart introduction to First Aid training day for both staff and cadets.
Held at the Headquarters of 1216 (Eastleigh) squadron, the cadet training which was provided by Sergeant Keith Collier covered a series of emergency life support skills including the basics of Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation, how to deal with bleeding, choking and how to recognise and help someone who is suspected of having a heart attack. The day wasn’t entirely lecture based as the cadets then got to practice their CPR skills on a number of training mannequins as well as giving vent to their finest acting skills as they took turns at pretending to be the victim of choking.
At the same time as all this excitement was taking place, a group of 13 staff and senior cadets were receiving the necessary instruction from Squadron Leader Chris Johnson which will enable them to undertake the teaching of Heartstart on their own units and across the Wing in the future.
Flight Lieutenant Andrea Glennon, Officer Commanding 1391 (Romsey) Squadron who arranged the day and was also a participant on the instructors’ course said “I am extremely grateful to the staff from Thames Valley Wing who made this day possible. With their support and the enthusiasm of our newly qualified instructors I am confident that we can eventually have every Air Cadet in Hampshire trained in First Aid to this basic level as a minimum”.