By Danielle Kutchel
Globally, around 140,000 people die each year in situations where their lives could have been saved if somebody had known first aid.
Research shows that culturally and linguistically diverse communities can be less likely to be able to identify, describe, or communicate a medical emergency due to language barriers.
This has the potential to put some migrant and refugee Australians at greater risk should they find themselves experiencing or witnessing an emergency situation.
In an effort to address this problem, on World First Aid Day on Saturday 14 September 2019, Australian Red Cross is aiming to host the nation’s largest ever multicultural first aid training session, with free sessions held simultaneously in numerous locations around the country.
In addition to teaching basic first aid skills, this year’s World First Aid Day will take a global focus: on the day, Australian Red Cross will launch its Essential First Aid Guide in 13 non-English languages – Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Vietnamese, Chin, Kurmanji, Swahili, Karen, Spanish, Farsi, French, Tigrinya and Oromo.
Fronting the campaign as the Australian Red Cross World First Aid Day official spokesperson is renowned orthopaedic surgeon, author, and former Iraqi refugee, associate professor Munjed Al Muderis.
“Australia still has one of the poorest rates of first aid training in the world. This is worrying because unless timely first aid is provided, many severely injured people stand no chance of survival. It can literally be the difference between life and death,” warned Mr Al Muderis.
This may be particularly concerning for the nearly 50 percent of Australians for whom English is a second language, he added.
“Not knowing how to respond in an emergency situation can have tragic consequences for all involved, so it is vital that every Australian is equipped with first aid knowledge to handle an emergency,” said Mr Al Muderis.
Australian Red Cross training sessions will be held in Perth, Adelaide, Darwin, Hobart, Launceston, Sydney, Wollongong, Western Sydney, Albury, Canberra, Melbourne, Brisbane, Cairns, and Darwin.
“A first aid education is universal. It is not culturally or linguistically specific. As a multicultural country, it is important that all members of the community can access this knowledge,” said Janie McCullagh, Australian Red Cross spokesperson and trainer.
“On September 14, we intend to increase and improve Australia’s low first aid knowledge rates amongst new Australians.
“We are also inviting all Australians to take action and learn this vital life skill through doing a first aid course,” she said.
The Dandenong event will be held at the Paddy O’Donoghue Centre, 18-34 Buckley Street, Noble Park between 10.00am and 12.00pm on Saturday 14 September.
New migrants and refugees interested in taking part in a free basic first aid training session on World First Aid Day should go to https://www.redcross.org.au/WFAD – places are limited.
