Lesson 6 - Poison and harmful substances

Lesson 5 - Seizures or Fits

Lesson 4 - Fracture

FRACTURE - A broken bone requires emergency medical care. Your might have a broken (fractured) bone if
1. you heard or felt a bone snap
2. have difficulty moving the injured part
3. if the injured part moves in an unnatural way or is very painful to the touch
Rx -
a. For a Suspected Broken Bone:
Do not move a child whose injury involves the neck or back, unless he or she is in imminent danger. Movement can cause serious nerve damage. Phone for emergency medical help.

1. If the child must be moved, apply splints around the injured limb to prevent further injury. 
2. Leave the limb in the position you find it. The splints should be applied in that position.
3. Splints can be made by using boards, stack of newspapers, cardboard, or anything firm, and can be padded with pillows, shirts, towels, or anything soft.
4. Splints must be long enough to extend beyond the joints above and below the fracture.
5. Place cold packs or a bag of ice wrapped in cloth on the injured area.

b. If a child has an open break (bone protrudes through the skin) call the doctor immediately.

c. If there is severe bleeding, apply pressure on the bleeding area with a gauze pad or a clean piece of clothing or other material.
Do not wash the wound or try to push back any part of the bone that may be sticking out.

Lesson 3 - Sprains & Strains

SPRAIN - A sprain occurs when the ligaments, which hold bones together, are overstretched and partially torn.

STRAIN - A strain is when a muscle or tendon is overstretched or torn.

Sprains and strains generally cause swelling and pain, and there may be bruises around the injured area.

For a Suspected Sprain or Strain:
If the injury involves the neck or back (even if there is no pain), do not move the child unless in imminent danger. Movement can cause serious nerve damage. If the child must be moved, the neck and back must be completely immobilized first, ideally with at least one other person assisting you. Keeping the head, neck, and back in alignment, move the child together as a unit.
Phone for emergency medical help.

Rx - For sprains and strains includes rest, ice, compression, and elevation (known as RICE).
Rest: for at least 24 hours, rest the injured part of the body.
Ice packs (or cold compresses): apply for up to 10-15 minutes at a time every few hours for the first 2 days to prevent swelling.
Compression: wear an elastic bandage (such as an ACE bandage) for at least 2 days to reduce swelling.
Elevation: keep the injured part above heart level as much as possible to ease swelling.
Do not apply heat in any form for at least 24 hours after an injury. Heat increases swelling and pain.

Lesson 2 - Scratches & Cuts

SCRATCH - is different from cuts because it is only in the top superficial layer of the skin & has little or no bleeding. If it runs deep & blood vessels or nerves are involved, then there might be bleeding & pain
Rx -
a. Wash to remove dirt

This serves multiple purposes -
1. Cleans the area avoiding infection
2. Reduces swelling
3. Reduces pain

b. DONOT cover scratches with anything, they should be left open to heal
c. Often no medicine is needed for scratches



CUT - Same as scratches, only difference is that in cuts there is bleeding & if they are deep then pain also
Rx -
1. If the bleeding is NOT too heavy, then the cut is shallow - you only need to wash the area
2. If there is a lot of bleeding / heavy bleeding, it means that the cut runs deep into the skin and touches the nerves -
a. You need NOT wash the area, the most important thing is to STOP BLOOD LOSS
b. Blood loss can be controlled by applying pressure with hands or after placing a clean kerchief over the wound & then applying pressure
c. DONOT cover the cut with anything other than cloth, no cotton/tissues
d. The DOCTOR would need to apply medicine on cuts