Administration of Burns First Aid Treatment to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in community settings

Julieann Coombes; Holger Möeller; Sarah Fraser; Hayley Williams; Kate Hunter; Rebecca Ivers; Andrew Ja Holland; Tamara Mackean; Patrick Sharpe; Courtney Ryder

doi:10.1016/j.burns.2024.07.023

Administration of Burns First Aid Treatment to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in community settings

Burns. 2024 Dec;50(9):107219. doi: 10.1016/j.burns.2024.07.023. Epub 2024 Jul 23.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ The George Institute for Global Health, UNSW, Sydney, Australia. Electronic address: jcoombes@georgeinstitute.org.au.
² School of Population Health, UNSW, Sydney, Australia.
³ University of Queensland, Queensland, Australia.
⁴ The George Institute for Global Health, UNSW, Sydney, Australia; School of Population Health, UNSW, Sydney, Australia; College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia.
⁵ Sydney Medical School, Faculty of Medicine & Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia; The Children's Hospital at Westmead Clinical School, Westmead, Australia.
⁶ College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia.
⁷ College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia; Far West Community Partnerships, Ceduna, Australia.

PMID: 39317542
DOI: 10.1016/j.burns.2024.07.023

Abstract

Objective: This paper investigates Burn First Aid Treatment (BFAT) provided to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in Australia at the scene of injury using data from a population-based cohort study.

Study design: The participants were 208 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged < 16 years who sustained a burns injury between 2015-2018, and their carers. The primary outcome measure was gold standard BFAT, (defined as at least 20 min of cool, running water within 3 h of the injury); additional measures included type of first aid, length of first aid provided, and carer's knowledge of first aid.

Results: Of the 208 caregivers, 168 provided open-ended responses that indicated first aid was applied to their child; however, only 34 received gold standard BFAT at the scene of the injury, 110 did not receive correct BFAT, and 24 were unsure what first aid was applied.

Conclusion: This study highlights an important need for communities to have access to appropriate evidence-based and co-designed BFAT education and training.

Keywords: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander; Burns; Children; First Aid.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Australia
Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples*
Burns* / ethnology
Burns* / therapy
Caregivers
Child
Child, Preschool
Cohort Studies
Female
First Aid* / methods
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice / ethnology
Health Services, Indigenous
Humans
Infant
Male