Could maggot therapy be taught in primary schools?

ABSTRACT

We conducted a small pilot study examining the opinions of school teachers across five Welsh primary schools on the possibility of introducing grand challenges (such as antibacterial resistance), and concepts to help solve such challenges (such as the use of living maggots to help treat infected wounds) to pupils at a young age. Our questionnaire-based study found that most teachers felt that this was indeed possible, with the majority feeling that pupils in Years 5 and 6 would be the most relevant and best years in which to introduce these concepts. With regards to introducing maggots to children as being positive and beneficial creatures, almost 50% of teachers felt that squeamishness may be present in children of all years, but that disgust and dislike of maggots would exist to a greater degree in older children. Our exploratory results suggest that with further research, this important biological concept could be introduced in the curriculum of primary schools, when perhaps less engrained negative perceptions, and more educated awareness of the positive benefits of using maggots as a treatment for wound infections may be achievable.

KEYWORDS:

• Maggots
• maggot therapy
• antibacterial resistance
• wound infection
• primary school Years 1–6

Acknowledgments

Huge thanks to Dr Clare Lehane for her advice and input into this project and manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.