Melode Davis-Hollande, owner of the Davis-Hollande Learner Center, knew exactly what to do when a 1-year old child had a seizure. Her CPR training prepared her for it and she didn’t hesitate.
Little Jasleen Chacon-Fernandez had just woken up from a nap but wouldn’t eat her lunch. The staff noticed that she didn’t look well and tried to take her temperature. As soon as the thermometer went under the girl’s armpit, she screamed and started convulsing. Preschool workers rushed Jasleen into Melode’s office, where she took charge of the situation.
She instructed her staff to call 911. “I’ve worked in child care for 22 years and have never been faced with anything like this before. I was scared and terrified. I didn’t want to lose this child,” Melode recalls. She drew from the annual CPR training she attends, but even with training, you’re in shock, she said.
Jasleen started breathing on her own while in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. She’s expected to make a full recovery and will be back with her friends at the Davis-Hollande center soon.
Melode credits her CPR training with saving Jasleen, and requires all of her staff to be trained and re-trained yearly. You never hope you have to use it, Melode says, but in the end, it could save the life of a young child.
