First Aid in Practice: This article is to give you a basic idea as to what has to be done on the event of minor everyday incidents. These methods do not apply to serious injuries and hence do not compromise with these methods.

• Bleeding- In the situation where there is a minor injury, raise the hand or the leg that is bleeding, or lay the injured person down if the bleeding is on the body. Apply pressure where there is bleeding for two to four minutes. Once the bleeding is stopped, cover the bleeding area with a clean dressing. Do not rub or disturb the area containing the blood clot. One has to be careful with the type of bleeding. If there is heavy bleeding, or bleeding caused due to deep wounds, place pressure on the bleeding point and take the person to the hospital immediately.
  
  
• Burns- If hot liquids etc. are dropped over the body through the clothes, first remove the source of heat (the equipments that caused the burns) away from the person. Remove the hot clothing of the person where the hot object was dropped, but do not remove the cloth which appears to be stuck to the skin. Cool the burn with cold water for 15 minutes to reduce the tissue (skin) damage. Cover the wound with a dry dressing. Check that the dressing is not sticky and douse not stick to the damaged skin. If the burns are extensive, keep the person lying down and make him cool his body by giving him a lot of drinks till he is taken to the hospital.
  
  
• Bruises- A bruise is when there is swelling of skin due to bleeding under the skin, that id blood clot. A bruise can occur when you hit a hard object and immediately your skin turns black or dark red. There is no external bleeding. In cases of bruises, cool the area with an ice pack. Keep the pack of ice for about twenty minutes to reduce further bleeding under the skin. No other treatment is required. Consult a doctor if you want to reduce the pain so that the doctor may provide you with necessary pain killers.
  
  
• Sprains- A sprain is a pulled ligament. A sprain usually occurs at the joints such as ankle or knee. An X-ray is usually taken to confirm that the sprain is not a fracture. The area is delicate and adds great pressure while walking and therefore making it difficult to walk. First, stop walking as soon as possible and then put the injured part in ice water for ten to twenty minutes or apply a pack of ice over it. After that, apply bandage to reduce further swelling. Keep the injured part raised for several hours after injury. It is better to keep your leg over two pillows while sleeping.
  
  
• Fractures- A fracture can be identified, if during an accident, someone has pain over a bone or has difficulty in using that part of the body. Do not let the victim put any weight over the fractured area. If any arm or shoulder is fractured, support the parts using a sling. A sling is a band of cloth that is tied around a person’s neck and is used to support a fractured or injured arm. If a triangular bandage is not available, you can tuck the hand of the injured arm into a buttoned shirt at chest height. The shirt area that is buttoned act as a support for the injured arm. Get the casualty to the hospital.
  
  
• Neck injuries- These injuries can happen after an accident or as a result of sports activity. Do not allow movements of the neck. Place the patient’s neck gently over the ground, supported by a roll of towel or rolled newspapers etc. to keep the neck still but comfortable.
  
  
• Cuts and Wounds- Minor cuts can be dealt with first aid. In case of cuts, wash the dirt away from the injury with water or antiseptic liquids. Put pressure on the area until bleeding stops which might take around two to four minutes. Then clean it more thoroughly and apply plaster. Do not let the sticky part cover the wound. In case of cuts due to glass, pieces of glass might also be embedded to the wound. In those cases, cover the area around the object and do not pull out the object (glass piece) as it might result in further bleeding.
  
  
• Smokes from fires- Inhalation of smokes can cause suffocation to the lungs making it difficult to breathe. Do not enter the area filled with smoke. Find a room with a window. Put some hindrance objects such as towels or clothing etc at the bottom of the door to prevent the smoke from entering into the room. Try to stay low on the ground in a smoke filled area. Cover your nose or mouth with wet cloth during the smoke to keep out the fumes from you.
  
  
• Fainting- People may faint when the blood pressure falls. They start feeling dizzy and slowly collapse. When someone faints, help them to sit and bend their head between their knees. Or you can lay them down and raise their legs to a level above their head. Do not let the person to sit or stand for around ten to fifteen minutes until the person feels they have come back to normal. Provide the person with some drinks and snacks if the person has not eaten anything.
  
  
• Foreign bodies in eyes- Some tiny particles (foreign bodies) and splashes can cause irritation to the eyes resulting in watering and redness of the eyes. To remove the irritant, first locate the irritant by pulling up the eyelid and then gently wipe away the irritating object with clean tissue or cloth (handkerchief). Otherwise you can also pour cool water over the eyes or splash some cool water under the tap without touching or rubbing your eyes and blink a few times under water. Do not try to remove an object that seems to be stuck on the eye. Get medical help if you are not able to remove the object easily or if the vision seems to be blurred.
  
  
• Nose bleeds- Nose bleeds are mostly caused due to colds or heat. To deal with a nose bleed, lean forward, and firmly pinch the soft part of the nose just above the nostrils for ten minutes. During this time, breathe through the mouth. After the ten minute period, do not try to blow or wipe your nose for the next couple of hours. If bleeding continues, visit the hospital.
  
  
• Bee sting- Brush the sting off the area on the body. Use tweezes if available. Tweezers are like tongs with two handles. Place the tweezers as closer to the skin as possible and pull the sting out.  Do not squeeze to remove the bee sting. Apply cold dressing to reduce swelling. If the bee sting is on the mouth, suck on ice cubes.
  
  
• Swallowed objects- Swallowed objects like coins usually does not cause much problems compared to sharp objects like pieces of glass can cause problems. Give plenty of fluids. Seek the hospital if the object swallowed is large that is more than one centimeter.
  
  
• Choking- When food is struck in the throat, breathing becomes difficult. The person on choking may be coughing, or holding his throat or sometimes faint. The method applicable for adults and older children is in the direction of first remove the objects that causes the obstruction in the throat if possible or get the person to lean forward that is to bend and try to cough. Next slap the person between the shoulders couple of times to force the object out. For choking babies, bend the baby down with the head placed well down and slap the baby on its back.
  
  
• Electrical Shocks- If you find someone under electrical shock, first turn off the mains before attending the situation or attempting anything. Do not get yourself directly in contact with the victim or the electrical appliance that caused the shock. If you can not turn off the electricity, you have to separate the person from the electrical appliance with a wooden object as wood does not conduct electricity, which means electricity does not pass through wood. The wooden object can be a wooden stick, broom, chair etc. Using the wooden object, push away the electrical appliance or the victim’s limb from each other. While doing that you should also be protected from the shock as human body is a good conductor of electricity. Hence, you must stand on a dry chair or paper while doing this. Grab a book that is around or a telephone directory which seems to be a good insulator. Treat the person for wounds or burns and call medical help.
  
  
• Sun burns- The sun burnt skin turns red, hot and tender. Get the person out of the sun and cool the person with cool water or cooling cream. Give plenty of fluids. If the burns are extensive, get medical help.
  
  
• Heat stroke- Heat stroke can appear a few minutes after exposure to hot atmosphere or heat. It might result in nausea and head ache. Remove the victim from heat and take him to a cool area and remove his heavy clothes off and fan him. Put wet clothes or towels on him to reduce the temperature quickly.