AUStrALIAN CUB SCOUT
SILVER BOOMERANG REQUIREMENTS

Part 1 – Health & First Aid

(Responsibility for Self)

Personal Health
Explain how to keep your feet in good condition and why Our feet work very hard for us from birth until death, enduring hours of pressure and constant movement. A little common sense and attention can give them the respect they deserve and will help to prevent any problems from occurring.
 
Good Hygiene Practices
Feet should be cleaned at least once a day to prevent bacterial build up, which can result in bad odours. If you are prone to athlete’s foot, eczema, psoriasis or general foot odour it is advisable that highly coloured and scented lotions and products are avoided to reduce the likelihood of irritation to the feet. A basic anti-bacterial agent should suffice or using the product recommended by your GP. If you suffer from smelly feet, it may be advisable to wash feet more often.
Cotton socks should be worn instead of synthetic fibres as these allow the feet to breathe and remain cool, and footwear should be altered daily to prevent bacteria from building up. In the event of a corn or a callous developing, always treat using the approved preparations and implements, never try and dig out the root of the corn or callous using sharp objects.

 
Discuss why sleep is important Sleep is a Basic Human Need & a natural part of everybody's life, but many people know very little about how important it is, and some even try to get by with only a little sleep. Sleep is something our bodies need to do; it is not an option. Even though the exact reasons for sleep remain a mystery, we do know that during sleep many of the body's major organ and regulatory systems continue to work actively. Some parts of the brain actually increase their activity dramatically, and the body produces more of certain hormones.
 
Sleep, like diet and exercise, is important for our minds and bodies to function normally. In fact, sleep appears to be required for survival. Rats deprived of sleep die within two to three weeks, a time frame similar to death due to starvation.
 
An internal biological clock regulates the timing for sleep. It programs each person to feel sleepy during the nighttime hours and to be active during the daylight hours. Light is the cue that synchronizes the biological clock to the 24-hour cycle of day and night. For us, sleep is like the recharge that your portable video or MP3 player needs every time the batteries are used up.
 
Discuss the importance of a balanced diet A balanced diet is vitally important in order to keep our bodies functioning properly. Being balanced has nothing to do with keeping your plate level as you carry it to the table. We generally think of a balanced diet as needing fruit, vegetables, cereal, meat, dairy, fats and sugars. These items provde the body with carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamins, mineral salts and fibre. Your daily diet also needs to contain these things in the correct proportions.
  • Carbohydrates: these provide a source of energy.
  • Proteins: these provide a source of materials for growth and repair.
  • Fats: these provide a source of energy and contain fat soluble vitamins.
  • Vitamins: these are required in very small quantities to keep you healthy.
  • Mineral Salts: these are required for healthy teeth, bones, muscles etc.
  • Fibre: this is required to help your intestines function correctly; it is not digested.
Too much of just one or a couple of these categories will result in a person becoming sick or overweight etc.

 
Prepare a healthy lunch for an outing This is one of those practical items that needs to be done on an outing – (the trick is to ensure that the CUB has prepared the lunch, not a parent).

When planning a day out, advise the cubs of this item and remind them at the final meeting before the outing, to give them the chance to achieve this.
 
Basic First Aid
Check and replenish or put together a simple first aid kit and take it on bushwalks and outings with you Refer to the Bronze level pages for the basic requirements of a First Aid Kit. If one is not available, maybe you could have your cub(s) check your hall’s first aid kit and see what needs replenishing or updating in it.
 
Show how to treat a bleeding nose Make the patient sit down, and use thumb and index finger to squeeze together the soft portion of the upper nose bridge for about ten minutes. Meanwhile make the head and body lean slightly forward so the blood will not go down to the throat. Avoid hot food or hot shower for the while to slow down blood circulation in the nose. The patient should not pick or blow nose for a week to prevent recurrence of nosebleeds.
 
Show how to treat stings and insect bites common to your area. Mosquito Bites (to stop the itch)
Cold water and ice can be useful, although ice should not be applied directly to the skin. A variety of commercial preparations can be obtained from the chemist including (eg. Stingose®) In severe cases, oral antihistamines may have to be administered and if symptoms persist, a physician should be consulted.
 
Spider Bites.
Of all the thousands of Australian spiders, arthropods and insects, only three have bites which alone are capable of causing death - the funnel-web spider (and related atrax species), the red back spider and the paralysis tick. In most other spider or insect bites, rest and elevation, local application of ice packs and lotions, simple analgesics and antihistamines are all that is required.
 
Snakes bites
If your phone works, call 000 and ask for the ambulance service. They will be able to tell you what to do if you don't remember it all. They will also be able to start getting help to you.
treat all possible snake bites the same way. You cannot know if it is truly a bite or if the snake is dangerous until later.
Do not wash the bite area. If there is some venom on the skin this can help doctors find out which snake caused the bite, so that they can give some anti-venom to help fight the effect of the snake poison. Snake venom travels slowly through the body and first aid treatment is to try to slow this down even more until help arrives.
Wrap a bandage firmly around the place where the bite is. This should not be so tight that the blood supply is cut off. If the bandage hurts it is too tight.
If the bite was on an arm or leg, wrap another bandage over as much of the limb as possible starting from the fingers or toes.
Do not take this bandage off until you reach a doctor or hospital.
Stop the person from using the arm or leg by putting on a splint (this can be a long stick).
Keep the injured person still. Do not let the person walk to get to help, bring help to the person, or carry the person to help.
try to keep the person calm. Poison spreads faster if the heart beats faster.
Remember even though there are lots of poisonous snakes in Australia it is very rare for a person to die from a snake bite.

 
Infections
Show an understanding of how germs and head lice can pass to people by contact, and how to prevent this. Five common ways germs are spread:
  • Nose, mouth, or eyes to hands to others:
    Germs can spread to the hands by sneezing, coughing, or rubbing the eyes and then can be transferred to other family members or friends. Simply washing your hands can help prevent such illnesses as the common cold or eye infections.
  • Hands to food:
    Usually germs are transmitted from unclean hands to food by an infected food preparer who didn’t wash his or her hands after using the toilet. The germs are then passed to those who eat the food. This is easily prevented by always washing your hands after using the toilet and before preparing food items.
  • Food to hands to food:
    Germs are transmitted from raw foods, such as chicken, to hands while preparing a meal. The germs on the hands are then transferred to other uncooked foods, such as salad. Cooking the raw food kills the initial germs, but the salad remains contaminated.
  • Infected child to hands to other children:
    Germs are passed from a child with diarrhea to the hands of the parent during nappy changing. If the parent doesn’t immediately wash his or her hands, the germs that cause diarrhea are then passed to others.
  • Animals to people:
    Wash your hands after petting animals or touching any surfaces they come into contact with.
Lice are highly contagious and can spread quickly from person to person, especially in group settings (schools, child-care centers, slumber parties, sports activities, camps, and even playgrounds).
Though they can't fly or jump, these tiny parasites have specially adapted claws that allow them to crawl and cling firmly to hair. They spread mainly through head-to-head contact, but sharing clothing, bed linens, combs, brushes, and hats can also help pass them along. Children and teens are most prone to catching lice because they tend to have close physical contact with each other and often share personal items.
Having head lice is not a sign of uncleanliness or poor hygiene. The pesky little bugs can be a problem for kids of all ages and socioeconomic levels, no matter how often they do - or don't - clean their hair or bathe.
However, you can help to prevent getting lice - or from becoming reinfested with lice - by taking the following precautions:
  • try to avoid head-to-head contact at school (in gym, on the playground, or during sports) and while playing at home with other children.
  • Don’t share combs, brushes, hats, scarves, bandanas, ribbons, barrettes, hair ties or bands, towels, helmets, or other personal care items with anyone else, whether they may have lice or not.
  • Do not lie on bedding, pillows, and carpets that have recently been used by someone with lice.

 
Adult Help
Explain why you need adult help in case of accidents The cubs(s) need to think about this and realise for themselves why they can’t do it all on their own in such situations.
 
Pass a message, including an address, from one adult to another. Run a RELAY style Game. You could also play Chinese Whispers, so show how important it is to ensure the listener has got the right details from you as well.
 
Explain how to use a mobile phone and a public phone and discuss the steps you would take to make an emergency call. DISCUSS, then utilise a free mobile to mobile call to another leader/friend. Ensure the person on the other end of the call has the list below to make the call as realistic as possible.
What happens when you call Triple Zero (000)?
  • When you dial 000, your call is connected to the Telstra Emergency Call service centre
  • You will be asked "Police, Fire or Ambulance?"
  • Advise the operator of the service you require. If you are calling from a mobile or satellite phone the operator will ask for other location information
  • Your call will immediately be transferred through to the emergency service you request, who will take details of the situation
  • Stay on the line, speak clearly and answer the operator's questions You will be asked to provide details of where you are, including street number, name and nearest cross street, and locality. In rural areas it is important to give the full address and distances from landmarks and roads, not just the name of the property. If travelling on the motorways or along rural roads include details or towns or nearest exits passed through.
  • Don't hang up until the operator has all the information they need, if possible you will be asked to wait for a police officer at an arranged location.

    Also, be aware that on mobile phones, if you have no credit, 000 will still work, and if you are out of range, but able to reach ANY other network, then "112" is an international, multi-network number that will automatically redirect to the nearest emergency service such as "000".

    •  

 

© 2008 Ian Moggs - rights are given for copying and printing for personal use or use in cub-scout or similar groups.