KONTAKT 2 (2018) 124–129 Available online at www.sciencedirect.com journal homepage: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/kontakt Original research article Preliminary results of teaching frst aid to 5–6 year old children – a longitudinal study Bálint Bánfai a *, Krisztina Deutsch a , Attila Pandur a , Henrietta Bánfai-Csonka b , József Betlehem a a University of Pécs, Faculty of Health Sciences, Institute of Emergency Care and Health Pedagogy, Pécs, Hungary b University of Pécs, Department of Emergency Medicine, Pécs, Hungary ARTICLE INFO Received: 2017-11-01 Received in revised form: 2018-01-26 Accepted: 2018-03-12 Published online: 2018-06-26 Keywords: First aid Children Helping attitude Basic lifesaving activities Kindergarten ABSTRACT Objective: Basic lifesaving activities should be taught in early childhood to develop helping attitude. Our goal was to teach up-to-date theoretical and practical basic frst aid using the method of play for kindergarten children. Methods: 51 children visiting kindergarten in two areas of Hungary were involved in the survey, which took place between September and November 2011. Te training consisted of two sessions with theoretical and practical games about frst aid. As well as the frst steps, which concerned how to examine and handle an unconscious patient and how to call an ambulance, the most frequently occurring injuries were also performed in diferent playful situations. In the third session, children were tested on their skills and a month later they were re-tested. Te tests measured the children’s problem-solving skills and their basic knowledge about diferent scenarios requiring frst aid. Te statistical analysis was made with the SPSS 17.0 software using the Chi-square test and t-test. Results: Te maximum point score of the test was 38 points. Te average point score of the frst test was 16.94 points and the second resulted in higher scores (17.5 points). Te diference between the results was signifcant (p < 0.05). Te results showed attitudinal diferences between boys and girls (p < 0.05). Conclusions: 5 and 6 year old kindergarten children can learn the basic concepts, but fewer children are able to act adequately in complex situations. A playful method of teaching frst aid can improve children’s knowledge and helping attitude. © 2018 Jihočeská univerzita v Českých Budějovicích, Zdravotně sociální fakulta. Published by Elsevier Sp. z o. o. All rights reserved. * Author for correspondence: Bálint Bánfai, University of Pécs, Faculty of Health Sciences, Institute of Emergency Care and Health Pedagogy, Vörösmarty street 4, 7621 Pécs, Hungary; e-mail: balint.banfai@etk.pte.hu http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.kontakt.2018.03.003 KONTAKT XX/2: 124–129 • ISSN 1212-4117 (Print) • ISSN 1804-7122 (Online) NURSING Please cite the article: Bánfai B, Deutsch K, Pandur A, Bánfai-Csonka H, Betlehem J. Preliminary results of teaching frst aid to 5–6 year old children – a longitudinal study. Kontakt 2018; 20(2): e120–e125; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.kontakt.2018.03.003 9 771212 411601 01 2016 • Volume 18 • Issue 1 • ISSN1212-4117 (print) • ISSN 1804-7122 (on-line) Introduction Sudden medical emergencies from various causes are among the most common causes of death all over the world. Most of the accidents occur at home and the victims are usually children [1]. Based on the WHO data [2], 2000 children (under 18 years old) die from accidental injuries worldwide every day. According to the European Association of Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion (EuroSafe) data, around 3000 children die from injury in the European Union (EU) every year, and this number represents 28% of all deaths