Teachers’ Knowledge of Basic First Aid in Public, Private, and International Primary Schools in Erbil City, 2024–2025

Background and Aim: In Erbil City, primary school teachers often face situations that require immediate first aid, yet their level of knowledge may vary depending on training, school type, and experience. This study aimed to assess the knowledge of basic first aid (BFA) among teachers in public, private, and international primary schools. Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted from January 12th to June 21st, 2024, in 19 primary schools in Erbil City, including 10 public, 5 private, and 4 international schools, using systematic sampling method. A structured questionnaire was employed to gather data on demographic characteristics, BFA training background, emergency experiences, and knowledge of first aid across domains such as CPR, choking, trauma management, and general emergencies. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 20 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Descriptive statistics were used, and Chi-square tests were applied to assess associations between knowledge levels and demographic or training variables. Results: A total of 264 teachers participated, of whom 39.0% were from public schools, 38.6% from private schools, and 22.3% from international schools. Overall, 35.6% of teachers had attended BFA training, with those trained achieving significantly higher knowledge scores than untrained teachers (p < 0.001). The mean knowledge score was 6.78 ± 2.86, indicating a fair level of knowledge overall. Training type and frequency were strongly associated with knowledge level, while gender was not significant. Younger teachers and those with more years of training showed better performance in cardiac, choking, trauma, and general emergency domains. Conclusions: The study demonstrated that primary school teachers in Erbil generally had fair knowledge of basic first aid, with training being the strongest predictor of higher knowledge. Expanding practical and theory-based training programs is essential to equip teachers with adequate first aid skills, ensuring student safety and effective management of school emergencies.