3 Danger P's in the Backyard

Toddlers love exploring in the backyard. But they need constant adult supervision, particularly if you have one of the three dangerous Ps.

1. PLAYSETS. Examine the jungle gym to make sure it's in a good shape, with no missing bolts or sharp edges. If the play area is more than two or three feet off the ground, supervise your toddler closely. Ideally, the area underneath should be a soft surface, such as sand, wood chips, or rubber matting 12 inches deep.

2. POOLS. A toddler can drown in as little as an inch of water. So make sure you have a fence at least four feet high all around the pool or hot tub, with a self closing, self latching gate. Even buckets can pose a danger: dump the water out before letting your child outside.

3. PORCHES. If you have a deck, install safety gates at the top and bottom of the stairs. Check the railings: if the space between them is more than three inches, set up a mesh covering or lattice to keep your toddler from falling through or getting his head stuck between the posts.

Basic First Aid and CPR

The basic thing to remember when administering CPR is the ABC ( Airway, Breathing and Circulation) this was taught to me when i was still on college, when I entered the medics on our ROTC.

AIRWAY

You must first check that nothing is blocking your child's airways. Clear his mouth. Make sure there's no vomit blocking his air passages. Do a finger sweep of your child's mouth and nose to remove any block, position him on his lateral side so that if he vomits, it doesn't go back in his mouth.

BREATHING

Stretch the spine of your child and extend his neck so his body forms a horizontal line. If there is any kind of suspected spinal injury, don't move his body. Put your hand near your child's noce and mouth, and check if air is coming out. If no air is coming out, do CPR(cardiopulmonary resuscitation).

CIRCULATION

Make sure your child has a pulse. Check his neck or wrist. Observe the color of your child's lips and extremities. Raise his legs so that blood flows towards his chest.