WILLEMSTAD - Last weekend, nine volunteer members of K1 DIRECT Curacao, K1 Britannia Foundation’s disaster relief and crisis team based in Curacao, completed their CPR/AED and First Aid Training facilitated by Global Support and Development (GSD). The training is a necessary component of the holistic training due to basic preparations needed to assist in shelter management, first response, and rapid assessments to care institutions in the region.
The one-day training allowed the volunteers to be certified with American Heart Association’s Heartsaver First Aid/CPR/AED qualification for the next two years. Present were also K1 DIRECT Program Managers Iris Hakkens & Alan Schet, who hosted the training and assisted with the facilitation.
During the training the volunteers learned how to perform CPR carrying out chest compressions and rescue breaths, which differs for infants, children and adults. They also learned how to use an automated external defibrillator (AED), which is used to help those experiencing sudden cardiac arrest.
The training also covered first aid, which included first aid basics for medical emergencies that are life threatening such as heart attacks, strokes and seizures. Traumatic injuries were covered extensively such as how to apply direct pressure to a wound, controlling bleeding, bandaging a cut and using a tourniquet, a device for stopping the flow of blood through a vein or artery.
Since K1 DIRECT’s launch in 2018, 40 vetted volunteer members including K1 DIRECT management have been undergoing a series of trainings to properly equip themselves with the tools and expertise necessary to tackle a disaster locally or in the region. K1 DIRECT was a result of K1’s experience with disaster relief post-Irma in St Maarten and Dominica, and the identification of needs within the first 72 hours’ post-disaster.
K1 DIRECT has committed to play a long-term role in St. Maarten’s disaster relief structure, working closely with St. Maarten Government Emergency Support Function 7 (ESF7).
The decision to develop a branch in Curacao stemmed from reasons including the need to be dependable in K1 DIRECT’s commitments to the Government of St. Maarten (in the roles of shelter management, first response, and mass distribution), the strategic location of Curacao and the risk of a disaster striking St. Maarten and affecting the team.
Curacao is situated outside the hurricane belt with a smaller probability of being hit with a hurricane, as well within the Dutch Kingdom, where they would be able to act immediately and assist to respond to disasters throughout the region.
K1 DIRECT member Mikayla Vieira Ribeiro highlighted the importance of the training saying “Our training in CPR and First Aid gave me the confidence to act in an emergency situation. I appreciate how our instructors shared that training in CPR and First Aid are skills that must be revisited through practical revision more so than an intrinsic characteristic. I also appreciate the awareness the course material has brought to the psychology of emergency response, which also added to my confidence and ability to assist our community as a K1 Direct volunteer.”
“We are very grateful to GSD for their willingness to give this training to our Curacao team. This training served as a refresher course for some members, while for others it was an opportunity to gain firsthand practical and theoretical training in the medical field. The certification is identical to the certification given to our St. Maarten team, and our goal is to continue to provide these trainings so that each team, and every member can feel confident to be deployed in any given situation during a disaster situation,” added K1 DIRECT Program Manager, Iris Hakkens.
The Heartsaver training was made possible by K1 DIRECT’s founding sponsor Carnival Cruise Line, Nationaal Rampenfonds (Dutch Disaster Fund), and Global Support & Development (GSD), a non-profit organization that provides specialized disaster relief and humanitarian assistance around the world.