Minor Injuries

First aid is not just about dealing with serious accidents and incidents. We also need to deal with some minor things. We will now look at some different injuries. With a minor cut, you may well just need to clean the area and apply a plaster. Generally speaking, these will heal themselves quickly, but they are always worth keeping an eye on for any possible infection. Blisters can occur if someone is walking with shoes that don't fit correctly, and you can get a friction-type injury. If someone has a blister, then keep the area clean and try to keep it dry, but don't rub it dry because this might burst the blister. Try and just pat it dry. Cover the blister with plaster to reduce the cause of the friction. Or if possible, the person would need to change their shoes or stop what is causing the blisters. Blisters can happen in any workplace. It might well be that you are working with a hammer or a power tool, and this can cause regular blisters on the hands. The important thing with blisters is, don't burst it, because if you do burst it, then there is more chance of infections. The blister is actually there to protect the skin underneath.

So if you burst it, you are exposing that skin. Small scratches don't need much doing to them; an example of a scratch is caused when you go past a thorn on a hedge, it is worth just looking to make sure there is no dirt in the wound, clean the wound and consider using a plaster. Splinters can be caused by a small piece of wood, metal, or plastic. What you need to do is to try and remove them if possible, push it from the base where it is at its deepest and push back through the hole. You may need to remove some of the skin from the top in order to get a grip on it. Once it is out, then clean the area. If needed, place the plaster on the site, but it is not always needed. If you are unable to remove the splinter, you may need to get extra medical help. Thorns can get stuck in the skin quite easily. And with these, you can usually pull them out with tweezers.

With thorns and splinters, make sure the whole item has been removed, and if not, you may need to seek medical help. Advise the patient to keep checking for signs of infection over the following days. The final example of a minor injury we are going to look at is a cut lip. It is not always possible to put a plaster or a dressing on this. So you may need to get the patient to hold a dressing over the wound until the bleeding stops. Ask them to stop talking, because this can open up the wound. Cuts to the lip will usually heal quickly. With a cut inside the mouth, it is not possible to put a dressing on the injury. You may well be able to use some cotton wool or a piece of dressing and hold it over the wound, applying a little direct pressure to aid healing.