Developing Training Programs to Save Lives: Serving Students with Complex or Emergency Healthcare Needs

Abstract

The number of students with special health care needs (SHCN; McPherson, Arango & Fox, 1998) and the frequency of life-threatening health emergencies in schools (e.g., asthma, diabetes, severe allergic reactions, cardiac arrest, seizure disorders), continues to increase. It has become increasingly important for teachers to be trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and use of automated external defibrillators (AED) in response to the growing number of students with SHCN in school settings and to assist life-threatening emergencies as they arise on school campuses. The purpose of this article is to describe a collaborative project that trained 38 preservice teachers to use CPR and AED in emergency situations. An established long-term goal of the project was to create a sustainable delivery model of three faculty members certified to train all preservice teacher candidates to competently provide first aid, perform CPR, and use an AED, while taking coursework and learning about support services for students with SHCN.