PUWER means that equipment that is being used in the setting, occupied by children should be 100% safe and secure, tested to ensure that they remain safe, is only being operated by people who have the right training, been given the correct information and have been given the most accurate instructions. This prevents injuries from occurring.
E2: Describe the procedures which will keep a child safe for each accident, illness and emergency
These are:
- Receives a bump to the head
- Has an asthma attack
- Has sickness and diarrhoea
- Shows symptoms and signs of meningitis
If a child receives a bump to the head then it is vital that a member of staff who has first aid training ensures that the bump is not dangerous and does not cause any lasting damage. Then they should apply a cold compress to the bump or if it is dangerous, call an ambulance, then they should inform the parents/carers. Lastly they should write up the incident in the “accident book”. If a child was to have an asthma attack, the first aider should first determine whether it is a sever attack i.e. blue around the lips and unable to form coherent sentences and if it is then they should call an ambulance or if it is not then the parents should be informed. If an asthma attack occurs then the child should be given the recommended dose of their inhaler/s and they should work within 5-15 minutes. It is excellent practice to have wooden flooring rather that carpet as carpets contain dust mites and other substances that can trigger asthma attacks. Again this should be written down in the accident book. If a child has sickness and diarrhoea then the first aider should check to see if there is any blood in the diarrhoea or any other abnormal substances then the child should seek medical advice immediately. If there isn’t any blood then the child should still be sent home as it may be contagious toward the other children. The parents should also be informed about the state of diarrhoea. If a child begins to show signs of meningitis like stiff neck, dislike of bright light and seizures/jerky movements then it is vital that the first aider and other staff members know what to do in case a situation occurs for example, informing parents and seeking immediate medical attention. Also people close to the child should be checked out also.
D2: Explain how establishing a safe environment can support the procedures necessary for accidents, illnesses and emergencies.
To ensure that the environment is safe and can support to procedures regarding accidents, illnesses and emergencies, it is important to make sure that all precautions are taken e.g. ensuring all toys are picked up after use, all fire exits are not blocked and easily accessible and also washing hands after using the toilet. If you take all the precautions necessary then it will make it much easier to handle accidents and emergencies. For example if the fire exits are not blocked off then it will make it easier to escape in case of a fire or an emergency. And also if you ensure that all children and staff wash hands after using the toilet it minimises the chance of catching and passing germs to other people. In my placement there is always two members of staff standing outside the toilets to ensure that the children wash their hands and also in my placement there are signs in the staff toilets asking staff members kindly to remember they wash their hands. If we did not take these precautions then it would be much more difficult to know what to do and how to react in case of an emergency and it would also make the children be exposed to much more danger and harmful situations. For example if you saw that the climbing frame was broken but you took no notice of it because it didn’t look like it would cause any damage to the children, this could mean that a child could seriously hurt themselves because you failed to take these important precautions.
E5: Describe the issues that affect planning of a challenging environment for children.
One issue that could affect the planning of a challenging environment could be types of setting, for example it could be the layout of the room. Where the sinks are located, where the doors are and also where the emergency exits are. To ensure this does not affect the planning staff should be made aware of where they are and also there should be obvious signs so that everybody knows. Another issue could be variances in learning styles and cognitive ability. So one child could learn things at a slow pace whereas another child could be very fast in picking things up, therefore you have to ensure you are catering for every child efficiently and accordingly so that it does not affect planning and you also have to make sure that you are not discriminating against any of the children just because they have not got the same abilities or skills as another child. One more issue could be policies and procedures, for example the safe guarding policy is very important within the setting as it ensures that the children are kept safe and secure and no harm will come to them. For example, baby gates, door locks, adult supervision, all dangerous and harmful objects are put out of reach and also making sure that the right people are picking the child up. To make sure that this won’t affect the planning, staff members should always know what to do. So the employer/manager/supervisor should make certain that staff are aware of all the policies and procedures and also what to do if any case/situation arises unexpectedly.
B1: Consider possible ways to maintain the safety and privacy of children and to respect their wishes
A way to maintain the safety and privacy of children and to respect their wishes is confidentiality, for example not telling your own friends and family information about the children like their name, address and their home situation. Also when speaking with other staff members ensuring that you only say the relevant information and not talking about anything that does not concern other people. And also keeping information and observations etc. about the child, locked away so that no unauthorised persons can access them. Another way would be to consult children, this makes the children feel as if they are being respected, valued, like they are being included and also as if there opinion matters. So a way to implement this would be to ask the children what they would like to play with rather than setting out an activity for them. This gives them a sense of power and independence because they have to think what they would like to play with and not just play with whatever there is being set out. Another way would be to work with parents, this helps immensely because the parents can tell you how the child is doing at home and you can tell the parents how there doing in nursery. This helps because you can work together with parents rather than against and this will benefit the child greatly. An additional way would be understanding children’s rights, for example understanding that they have a right to food, shelter, and basic needs. This means you cannot deny them lunch if they are misbehaving. One more way you could do this would be to work alongside other staff members so for example, you could ask advice from other staff members or ask their opinion on a certain matter but also being conscious of not giving out too much information that could harm the child or their family.
A1: Discuss the effects on practitioners of meeting the care needs of children
Some practitioners may be affected negatively when meeting the specific care needs of children because the needs of the children could be very demanding for example, they might get anxious, scared and nervous when they see other specific children so a practitioner would have to be with that child constantly throughout the day ensuring that they don’t get too scared and that their emotional feelings stay intact. A way that practitioners can be affected positively would be that they get the full experience of dealing with a child and also they get a sense of achievement because they have helped a child overcome their fear or something or they have helped a child deal with something physically or emotionally. However sometimes meeting the care of needs can very stressful for some practitioners because what the child needs, the setting may not be able to supply, and therefore the practitioner would have to make different arrangements personally this could stress. For example a child may not like the breakfast the setting has provided and the setting may not know about this, so when the child does not eat that, it may be up to the practitioner to go out and get something healthy the child does like because children are entitled to food and have a right to it if they are hungry.
by
kerrykaur1996_ (student)
