ESAI provides essential skills to Ellesmere community

A large number of Ellesmere farmers and their staff have been taught how to respond to a variety of health emergencies thanks to two first aid courses hosted by the Ellesmere Sustainable Agriculture Inc (ESAI) at the Lakeside Soldiers Memorial Hall last week.

Both courses were offered free of charge to ESAI members, their staff and family.

The First Aid instruction, delivered by Rob Eggers of SFA Training, covered common medical emergencies including heart attack, stroke and choking, as well as traumas such as burns, fractures and bleeding.

ESAI have also provided funding to have an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) installed at the Lakeside hall, so participants were also given the opportunity to practice using a defibrillator.

Those who attended the course will receive unit standards 6401 & 6402 in “Recognition of and Provision of First Aid”,  training which is designed to equip people with the skills and confidence to administer first aid until qualified medical responders reach the scene.

Both days were fully booked and feedback from the course was all very positive so further first-aid courses are planned for later on in the year.

Catering was again supplied by The Suburban Eatery in Leeston who did a fantastic job as always with lots of complimentary comments from participants and staff.

Training and upskilling of ESAI members and the local community is a priority of the Tinaku Extension Project, so watch this space for more courses being offered in the near future!