First aid training should not be mandatory for teachers in the territory, says the president of the Yukon Teachers Association (YTA).

Responding to questions from the Star recently, Sandra Henderson said the recently-elected YTA executive met last Monday and discussed the issue after it was raised by members of the Takhini Elementary School Council.

The council is circulating a petition. It has also approached Education Minister John Edzerza on at least two occasions in an effort to have all teachers in the territory trained in basic first aid and level B CPR.

Henderson said while members of the YTA executive did discuss the possibility of mandatory first aid, they were not in favour of such a move.

'We do not want this to be a condition of employment,' said Henderson. Such a condition could create complications for teachers in terms of employment expectations, she added.

'We do not believe that all members are capable of first aid, nor should they be expected to be a primary responder in medical emergencies,' said the educator of 50 years.

She said although she didn't feel the training should be mandatory, there were a number of Yukon teachers, approximately one in seven, who had first aid certification which had been completed on a volunteer basis.

'There are 107 teachers that have completed first aid,' she said.

Earlier this month, Takhini council member Marlene Dunstan approached Whitehorse media stating her council was advocating the training to promote the safety of children in schools but had received a cool response from Edzerza after relaying its concerns to him on several occasions.

'As a parent, my first and foremost concern is the safety of my child,' said Dunstan. 'As a school council member, I make a commitment to students and parents that all kids have access to quality education and have a safe learning environment.

'How much is a child's life worth?' asked Dunstan. She believes the $50,000-plus it would take to certify all teachers in the territory is not too much to pay to ensure a child's health and safety.

She also said she didn't understand why school bus drivers and daycare workers are required to have first aid training but teachers are not.

At the time Dunstan publicly aired her concerns the territory's superintendent of schools, Colin Kelly, said he believed schools are already adequately equipped to handle medical emergencies.

'I believe what we have in place presently is (adequate),' Kelly said, explaining that more than 10 per cent of staff in Yukon schools are already trained.

He also said the government had already expressed a willingness to fund such training for teachers if they wished to have it.

'We also provide them (teachers) with professional development funding, so if they want to take first aid training, the money is there.'

Kelly said the reason bus drivers and daycare workers are required to have first aid training is because, unlike teachers, they work in isolation with children.

According to St. John's Ambulance, basic first aid training and level B CPR would include:

ï Recognizing and treating shock, non-breathing patients, choking, bleeding, limb fractures and minor wounds.

ï Administering CPR; and

ï Recognizing and treating head and spinal injuries.