EAST AURORA, NY – In a press release, Fisher Price has said that the children’s toy brand will add thoracotomy tools to its popular medical kit, which currently includes a stethsocope, otoscope, thermometer, blood pressure cuff, syringe, and a variety of hemostatic dressing and tourniquets, in response to the growing desire among parents that their children be educated in the practice of emergency trauma management.
“We’ve seen first-hand the importance of teaching children to manage battlefield wounds, where the number one priority is to stop visible, external bleeding. But internal bleeding can be even more dangerous and everyone should be equipped with the tools and skills to save their friends and classmates from a penetrating chest wound. Fisher Price can help introduce your children to the concept of a thoracotomy and cardiac massage and have fun doing it.”
Reactions to the announcement have been generally positive. A spokesperson for the American College of Emergency Physicians told Gomerblog that “a child is never too young to learn how to crack a chest,” but added that the procedure is generally seen as a last-ditch effort to save lives, and Fisher Price may have been better off adding bags of crystalloid to introduce children to the basic principles of fluid resuscitation. A spokesperson for Fisher Price said that they had considered introducing both saline and blood products to the kit but had run into regulatory hurdles that have delayed their release.
The kit will include a toy scalpel, blunt scissors, a wire saw, and several hemostats, and will be available in stores in time for the summer shopping.
