Overview
The severity of a burn is going to be based upon how big the burn is, which this is going to show whether you should go to the emergency room or not. If a victim is being burned, you have to first remove the basis of the burn in order to safeguard both the victim and yourself. Once the hazard has been controlled, examine the victim to see if they are breathing, take care of any blood loss, and take action to control or avoid shock.
Whatever type of burn that you have, here are the first steps that you need to follow:
- Rinse the burned area with cool water
The severity of a burn is going to be based upon how big the burn is, which this is going to show whether you should go to the emergency room or not. - Phone for 911 if the burn is too severe for you to handle
- Put on some lotion or gel for burns
- Use ibuprofen for the pain relief as you need
Effectively Treating Burns
In order to truly understand how to treat burns, we are going to look at each step with more detail:
- Use cool water and run this over the burn. You do not want to utilize high pressure, as this can cause even more damage to the burn. You only want to use cool water, not ice water, as this can damage the skin even further. If you have called an ambulance, keep running cool water over the burn until the paramedics arrive.
- If the skin is black or blistered, call 911 immediately. Other reasons to call 911 include if the burn is on the face, the genitals, on the wrist, arm or leg. Also, if the burn is covering the hand or the food. If the area is larger than the size of your chest, then 911 should always be called.
- Utilize a cooling gel or lotion on the burn to help cool this down. Never use butter out of the fridge, as this can cause more damage to the skin even though it may feel as though it is cooling.
- Pain relief can be used. However, if the pain is too much, you need to see a doctor.
Tips for Dealing with Burns
- Always get medical assistance when the burn is accompanied by paleness, or when you feel light-headed or confused.
- Always dress in loose and silky clothing while healing with a burn. Tighter clothing can make the burn worse while it is healing.
A victim with severe burns should get arterial fluids and be removed from the heat source immediately. If the skin burn is negligible, the victim should be assessed by a medical expert when possible given that the burn can easily become septic if the open wound is left unattended.