Every day during the school year, many of us entrust the lives of our children to the man or woman who is driving the bus to and from school. Under ideal conditions, school bus interaction can teach children the importance of keeping calm in a moving vehicle and gives our kids a chance to reflect on the day before and after school. And so we allow people, who we assume to be highly trained professionals, to drive our kids around during what can some of the busiest traffic of the day.

For the record, Pennsylvania’s state-mandated school bus driver training is as difficult as anywhere else in the country. However, it’s not the training that drivers are put through that has some parents concerned, but instead the training they are not receiving.

With the influx of recent school bus accidents handled by our team of Pittsburgh school bus accident lawyers, many of which have been caused by inclement weather conditions, parents have become alarmed that drivers are not generally certified in areas such as CPR and first-aid or trained on how to use an EpiPen in case a child on the bus has an allergic reaction.

In fact, some companies’ protocol is that their drivers not call 9-1-1 directly in case of an emergency. Instead, they are supposed to radio the problem into their dispatch, at which time the dispatch calls 9-1-1 while the driver waits at the scene for police and other such first responders to arrive. People who oppose this method site the fact that drivers are often dealing with mere seconds in the case of an emergency and the issue must be resolved as quickly as possible with as few calls as possible.

However, as far as CPR training goes, even the most expert bus drivers do not feel it’s necessary. One man who was interviewed has over forty years of experience and says that he can only recall two occasions where the use of CPR might have been used while bussing children to school.

Still, many parents just assume that something as simple as a CPR certification is already required for school bus drivers and some parents with children who have preexisting conditions are upset to hear that their kids’ drivers are not trained in first-aid or CPR.

In Pennsylvania, the CPR certification is not required, but drivers are told they should earn the certification if they see fit. State Representative Mark Mustio recently weighed in on the debate, telling reporters, “It seems…that…our bus drivers need to be trained in CPR and…should be required to call 9-1-1.” So disturbed is Representative Mustio, that he has placed the issue in front of Governor Corbett for review.

Our Pittsburgh personal injury lawyers know that it only takes one serious injury or death before parents are demanding school bus drivers be trained and certified in different safety procedures. So, the thinking here is: instead of waiting for something terrible to happen, why not just get it done now? Someday it may save a life.

Source: CBS Pittsburgh, “Local Emergency Medical Professional Sees Void In School Bus Driver Training” 18 February 2014