There are times when children need to be called upon to react in an emergency. They often surprise everyone by becoming small heroes when things go wrong, which is most likely if they have been properly prepared.
Talking about emergency situations may seem worrying to parents and carers who don’t want to concern children unnecessarily. Thankfully, however, there are ways to initiate important conversations without distress.
The right time
Choosing the right time to talk about calling 999 is important. Many children are fascinated by emergency vehicles, so seeing one of these can be a great conversation opener.
You can then go on to talk about when to call 999 and the importance of only calling in an emergency. You can explain how to make a call if needed and what the responses from the call handler may be.
Use examples that the children can relate to when explaining what constitutes an emergency. This could be anything from someone being knocked over by a car to grandparents needing help after having to use their emergency call buttons from companies such as https://www.dinggly.com/us/products/wireless-call-buttons.
Take questions
Encourage children to ask questions, and think about playing a role-playing game in which they have to call 999. It is amazing how much children can learn through play, even though they often don’t realise they are learning.
Make sure children are aware of any medical conditions you may have. Also, even if they are very young, make sure they can recognise the number 9 on the phone.