Mum's lesson after son suffers second degree burns on playground

A Queensland mum has shared a very important lesson.

Posting her story on Facebook, Jessica Mead, one of the mums behind OMG I’m That Mum explained how her 15-month-old son received a second-degree superficial burn on his foot.

"On Sunday we were down at the beach front and the kids were playing happily on the grass with no shoes on. We'd just stopped to have something to eat and in the process of packing up to go home as it was starting to get very hot. I had put Jackson down on the grass to play with a scooter and next minute he raced out to the playground and started screaming," she wrote. 

Adding: "He had no shoes on and the surface was boiling!! Instead of moving, because after all he's still only a little toddler, he just stood there screaming, it was like his feet were glued to the surface.

"I looked at his feet and one foot had blistered immediately, it explained why he was so hysterical. I ran to a nearby tap and let it run on his feet for a while but couldn't calm him down. So we raced back to Kell's (WORST car trip) and jumped in the pool and just kept him cool. After 40 minutes we hopped out and he finally fell asleep. Dr came, second-degree superficial burn!"

Since the incident, the mum said she learned some very important lessons that day and wanted to share. 

"I feel like an idiot, something that should've been so obvious but it happened so fast. I have learnt some very important lessons that's for sure!"

1. Accidents involving children can literally happen in 10 seconds!
2.  Brush up my basic first aid skills
3. Mum guilt, it lingers even when people tell you it was an 'accident'.#lessjudgementmoresupportbecause we are already so hard on ourselves. And it's so easy to be a 'spectator' and judge these stories from the sideline but remember hindsight is a wonderful thing and we all make mistakes. 
4. We did have a laugh, Kellie and I are sometimes pretty hard on our husband's and the risky things they do when playing with the kids or that they are so carefree with foods etc, all these things our husband's do and the kids are totally fine. Queue over-cautious constant nagging mum and bam, still an injury occurs!"

Speaking to The Courier Mail, Mead said: “Our doctor told us Jackson was the third child she had seen that week with similar burns, including another one from a similar park and one from a day care where the staff had apparently forgotten to put away a rubber mat before the kids went outside."

Since the article, many have been quick to criticise the mum.

"Story should be titled Irresponsible Mother Takes No Responsibility For Own Child’s Injuries with a sub-heading of Parent forgets to have child wear shoes," wrote one person. 

Reminding their fans that this was an accident, an update on the OMG I’m That Mum Facebook page says: "People are so quick to judge another parent this day and age. If people bothered to read the entire original article in the first place, they might perhaps understand the ENTIRE situation, and that this was just a warning for other parents/caregivers."

"Jessica did know what to do - she comforted her child after he hurt himself, and treated the injury wonderfully. We sought medical help as soon as we could and they have praised Jessica on her efforts and Jackson is healing fabulously.

"Jessica has felt so bad since it happened, she has blamed herself, what she needs to remind herself though is that accidents DO happen."