Cameron McFarlane, a full-time aquatic life guard, developed a CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) awareness program for upper primary students eight years ago. This week, he taught Armidale and Uralla Year 5 and 6 students the emergency procedure.
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"CPR can and does save lives," Mr McFarlane said. "I'm a big believer in it; it's such a simple skill."
Mr McFarlane visited St Mary's Catholic Primary School on Friday morning, and Armidale City Public School and Drummond Memorial Public School on Thursday. He went to Uralla Central School on Friday afternoon.
Mr McFarlane will visit Glen Innes and Emmaville next month. He has already visited Walcha, Inverell, and Narrabri.
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The CPR program goes for an hour. Mr McFarlane demonstrates the technique on dummies of an adult, a child, and an infant, then the students practise. A question-and-answer session and a quiz test their knowledge.
Year 5 and 6 students comprehend well, Mr McFarlane said, and are the right age to start learning.
"They get an understanding of in-depth CPR knowledge and skills before reaching high school," Mr McFarlane said. "There's no reason why they couldn't save a life if need be."
And, he said, they've done just that; a couple of years ago, one of his Tamworth students used CPR to save a family member.
"If it saves one life, this program's done its job," Mr McFarlane said.
Mr McFarlane developed the program in 2011 while a life guard in Tamworth. Five major incidents both in his job and outside it prompted him: an epileptic seizure in the pool; a cardiac arrest on a soccer field; a woman who had a seizure and stopped breathing; a grandmother at a Mother's Day lunch; and a car accident victim.
"It doesn't always have to be around water," Mr McFarlane said. "it can be anywhere in the community, and that's why it's such an important skill."
In 2016, he spent eight weeks travelling around New South Wales, teaching CPR to 6000 students. He raised $20,000, which he donated to the Royal Life Saving Society to invest into more CPR programs for schools.
Late last year, he said proudly, his program went international. He taught 900 students, teachers, and lifeguards in Vietnam; the country's education minister was impressed, and wants to see more of it.
Mr McFarlane wants to get the program into the curriculum of all Year 5 and 6 students in the state. He met then-Education Minister Rob Stokes at the NSW Parliament House last year.
"Obviously it's very early stages; nothing's been done as yet; and there's no guarantee - but [that's] my ultimate goal," Mr McFarlane said. The Royal Life Saving Society NSW support him.
How to perform CPR
"Australia is one of the biggest water users in the world," Mr McFarlane said, "so CPR is a good skill to have - and it's simple."
The Armidale Express asked him to demonstrate.
The technique is 30 compressions on the centre of the chest, one-third of the chest depth, followed by two rescue breaths.
"Any attempt is better than no attempt," Mr McFarlane advised. "Anyone can learn it very quickly. You never know where or when you may have to use it."
With summer coming up, he advised adults to closely supervise their children (within arm's reach) to prevent drownings, particularly for five-year-olds and under.
He also suggested that everyone enrol in a CPR course.
"If Year 5 and 6 students can learn it, just about anyone can learn it! You don't have to be qualified, as long as you have an understanding of what to do."
For more information, visit Mr McFarlane's NSW Primary School CPR Awareness Campaign Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/NSW-Primary-School-CPR-Awareness-Campaign-1057571467598624/