Some of us get panic when our child has an accident at home or in school.  If it happens in front of us and we do not have any knowledge of what to do, just calm down and make emergency phone call or take the child to the nearest clinic or hospital.  If you can’t drive, please don’t just depend on the husband by calling him and waiting for him to fetch you and the injured child to doctor’s.  I heard some women told me their experiences!  Get help from neighbor or get a cab/taxi!  At them same time, take our a First Aid Manual book to equip yourself with some basic first aid information.  The best is to join some first aid workshop so that you can have a hands-on learning.  For those who are very familiar with first aid, just relearn and refresh your memory.  Share with us your experiences!  Well, lets begin our learning journey…

Cut

Bleeding from small cut is easily controlled by pressure and elevation.  When the bleeding stops, apply antiseptic on the wound and adhesive bandage.  The wound will heal by itself in a few days.

What if it’s a big cut..?  What if the bleeding non-stop…?  I get nausea when I see too much blood.  My whole body will tremble uncontrollable.  I just pray that I’ll manage to overcome if this incident does happen.

We need to act fast to prevent or minimize the risk of infection on the wound.  If bacteria enters the wound, they may multiply in the damaged and swollen tissues.  Toxin or poisonous substance might be released and spread through the nervous system beneath the skin causing muscle spasms and paralysis.

Take action :

1. Wash your hands thoroughly and put on disposable gloves if possible before you attend to the wound.
2. If the wound is dirty, clean it by rinsing lightly under running water, or use an alcohol-free wipe.
3. Rinsing under water also helps to rinse off loose foreign particle.  You may use tweezers to remove the foreign object such as glass from the wound.
4. Pat the wound dry with a gauze swab and cover with sterile gauze.
5. Elevate the injured part above the level of the heart.
6. Avoid touching the wound directly.
7. Clean the surrounding area with soap and water.  use clean gauze swabs for each stroke.  Pat dry.
8. Remove the sterile gauze from the wound.  Apply an adhesive dressing.
9. Consult a doctor if the cut is deep or expose to infection.

Nose bleed

It’s quite common to have young child bleeds in school.  This is due to the ruptures of tiny blood vessels inside the nostrils due to picking, sneezing, blowing of nose and even high blood pressure.  We need to stop nose bleed immediately to control loss of blood and to maintain an open airway.

There are few cautions that we need to remember :

• If bleeding follows a head injury, the blood may appear thin and watery.  This may indicates that the skull is fractured and fluid is leading aroung the brain.
• If the nosebleed lasts longer than 30 minutes, take the child to hospital.
• If bleeding stops and then restarts, reapply pressure.
• Do not let the head tip back.  Blood may run down the throat and induce vomiting.

Steps :

1. Ask the child to sit down.  Tilt his head forward to allow blood to drain from the nostrils.
2. Tell the child to breathe through his mouth.
3. Pinch the soft part of the nose, just below the bone.
4. Hold for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the bleeding stops.
5. The child might be worried by nose bleed.  Reassure him and give him a bowl to spit or dribble into.
6. While pinching the nose, advise the child not to speak, swallow, cough, spit or sniff as any of the actions may disturb blood clots that formed in the nose.
7. Apply a cold damp towel or ice bag across the forehead to help stop bleeding.
8. Once bleeding has stopped, clean around the nose with lukewarm water.
9. Try get the child to sit quietly for few hours and avoid him from pick or blow the nose again.  You may read him a book and do some simple coloring/painting activities to distract him.

Head injury

This can happen if the child falls down from a slide, table etc and hit his head on something hard.  If he loses consciousness, open the airway and check breathing.  Get help immediately if you do not know how to place her in the recovery position.

If the child is conscious and the head is bleeding, you need to :

1. Gently apply pressure with a clean towel/handkerchief to stop bleeding.
2. Replace with a sterile dressing over the wound.
3. Secure dressing over the wound with a roller bandage.
4. Help the child to lie down.
5. Ensure his head and shoulders are slightly raised by putting some pillows underneath them.
6. Call ambulance.

Have you checked your First Aid Kit?  If you haven’t for a long time, it’s time to check it and replenish whatever is necessary.  Also have a First Aid Manual at home or in school for reference.

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