A kindergartner at Van Rensselaer Elementary School was on the floor, on his back, gasping for air last week when teacher's aide Cassie McElroy stepped in and performed the Heimlich maneuver, dislodging a foam square the 5-year-old boy had been choking on during a classroom learning activity.
McElroy said she drew on emergency-response training connected to her involvement in youth sports and her medical background. As reported by syracuse.com, she credited that training and background with helping her react in the moment. The incident unfolded in a kindergarten classroom at the school, which is part of the Rensselaer City School District near Albany.
“I never thought in a million years I would have to use that type of training, and it happened,” McElroy said. She successfully performed the Heimlich maneuver and dislodged the foam square from the student's airway, ending what could have been a far more serious outcome inside the classroom.
No Statewide Mandate for Choking or CPR Training
The incident has McElroy calling attention to a gap she says puts other students at risk. The outlet's report notes that New York does not require teachers or teacher's aides to be trained in the Heimlich maneuver or other first-aid techniques for choking, and that CPR training also is not required for teachers and aides.
That lack of a statewide mandate doesn't mean no training exists in New York schools. Under state law, a district-wide school safety team may provide first-aid, CPR and AED training for relevant staff, but that training is voluntary, not required. Separately, lawmakers have floated legislation on the subject: one Senate bill would provide for airway-clearance devices in schools and training for school employees.
An Aide's Case for Mandatory Training
McElroy said more school employees should receive lifesaving training like hers, and she is hoping her experience raises awareness for others to get trained and learn the signs of choking. “My goal would be to make this a mandatory training in schools,” she said, according to the outlet's report.
She urged others not to dismiss the value of emergency training, arguing that even a couple hours of instruction can make the difference in a crisis. For McElroy, the kindergarten classroom emergency last week was proof that the preparation she had received turned out to matter most once she was standing in front of a child who needed it.
