First aid training vital for bush parents

But for every problem, there is a solution. Across all corners of the country, there are mums and dads, carers and neighbours playing their part in making sure our bush kids get the care and attention they deserve.

People like Maddison and Josh Hutchinson of Ballarat, Victoria who, having completed a baby and child first aid course, knew how to perform CPR on their six-month-old baby son when he suddenly stopped breathing until the ambulance arrived. It saved his life.

It's a nightmare no parent should ever have to endure.

As a paediatric critical care nurse of more than 17 years, I knew something was wrong with my six week old baby when she wasn't breathing or feeding like she normally would, so I took her to hospital, where she was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect.

I was one of the lucky ones who could identify something was wrong, and knew what to look out for. Not everyone does. Enter The Sisterhood Project.

I've teamed up with my sister to launch The Sisterhood Project, a registered Australian charity that addresses the unfair health disadvantages faced by rural children by teaching parents and caregivers life-saving skills, from infant and child first aid, to identifying preventable illness.

Our mission is simple: save children's lives through education, what to do in an emergency, and breaking down barriers to that education.

As a mum to three now-happy-and-healthy kids living and working in country Victoria, I know firsthand the challenges of healthcare in the bush.

The statistics speak for themselves.

According to the latest Royal Flying Doctor Service 'Best for the Bush, Rural and Remote Health Baseline' report, when compared with people who live in major cities, rural and remote residents are 2.9 times more likely to be hospitalised, 2.8 times more likely to be hospitalised for reasons that are potentially preventable, and 2.7 times more likely to die from potentially avoidable causes.

And while we always welcome more funding and resources to adequately address the obvious rural healthcare shortage, we are helping change statistics before it is too late.

First aid training has been shown time and time again to have a big impact on the outcomes of adults and children who suffer cardiac arrest as a result of an accident, injury or a respiratory disease.

If we can train one more parent to perform first aid or CPR or how to identify a preventable illness, it means one less patient having to travel to an already over-capacity hospital. It means more patients with critical needs can be seen sooner. It means more lives saved.

I went to see Maddi cradling her son York in the hospital, knowing she and her husband Josh had saved his life because of this training. I want everyone to have the opportunity for that same outcome. No matter where they call home.