'Can be life-saving': Ex-paramedic explains why you need to keep your child in their car seat if you've been in an accident

There are a lot of parenting tips out there, but this one from an ex-paramedic could save your child from serious injury if you're in a car accident. 

Nikki Jurcutz, the founder of Tiny Hearts Education and a former paramedic, shares a lot of safety guidance online, and this new piece of advice is worth banking. 

If you are in an accident with a child in the car, leave them in their car seat. 

"If you are a parent, I need you to listen up," she said in the video. 

Watch the video above. 

"If you are involved in a car accident with your little one, leave them in their car seat.

"Paramedics will arrive on scene, they'll assess the speed that you were travelling, the direction of the collision and the potential injuries that your little one has sustained." 

Jurcutz added that paramedics will be able to tell you if it is safe for you to remove your child. 

If it is safe to do so, she advised you sit in the back seat next to your child to keep them calm, comforted and distracted until help arrives. 

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But she knows this isn't always possible, especially if it's not safe to stay in the car, so in that case take the whole seat out. 

Jurcutz said the advice had helped a mum who follows her account when she was in a car accident with her two- and four-year-old. 

"The impact of a car accident can be significant on a little body," she wrote in the caption of the post.

"Serious spinal injuries and internal bleeding can be hard to recognise from the outside."

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Jurcutz noted that when paramedics are on the way, these are your options.

"If possible, leave the child in the car seat, do not remove and wait for paramedics' instructions," she wrote. 

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"If you need to remove your child from the car due to danger i.e. traffic hazard, unclip and remove the entire car seat with the child still in harness or use sheets to cut the straps (after a car accident, most car seats need replacing)

"If the situation is time-critical, i.e. car is smoking, or your child is reading CPR or airway management or maybe is just thrashing around and potentially causing more harm, remove the child from the car seat carefully.

"If conscious, hold them still against your body until paramedics arrive."

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She finished the post with an important note: "Keeping your child still and calm in a situation where a potential spinal injury or internal injuries have occurred can be life-saving." 

A lot of parents thanked Jurcutzfor sharing the tip, noting that it's not something a lot of people think about until they're in the situation.

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