not every cough and snickle cut and scratch or bruis and beasting necessitate a trip to the doctor's office or even the hospital most parents can handle these everyday mishaps with a little bit of instruction and the right supplies that's where we come in today we're going to equip you with enough practical First Aid tips and tricks to help any parent become a well-trained Dr mom or Dr dad so send your questions to us because I'm ready to get my answer on for this episode of ask the doc send in your questions to questions at allhealth tv.com or allhealth go on Facebook or YouTube or visit the ask the do page on our website allhealth tv.com welcome everyone to ask the dock the show where we encourage our viewers to send in their health questions I'm nurse Katie and today we're going to empower you to take care of some of those minor medical situations at home first aid and basic life support are crucial forms of assistance offered to somebody in need ensuring they receive immediate care and support a first aider plays a vital role in safeguarding the well-being of others and preventing any further harm the aim of first aid is to preserve life prevent further injury and deterioration of the condition to make the victim as comfortable as possible to conserve strength and promote recovery and put the injured person under Professional Medical Care as soon as possible while providing first aid it is important to observed act quickly and try to remain calm it's also important to provide reassurance to the victim who may be apprehensive or anxious some of the golden rules of first aid is to your personal safety comes first assess the situation and the victim call for help control any kind of bleeding treat for shock be mindful of head and spinal injuries and attend to Burns the main goals of first aid include the three PS preserving life preventing deterioration and promoting recovery let's kick things off with a YouTube question from Ellie hi nurse Katie I recently found out that my first cousin Sarah is allergic to be stings I can't believe I never knew this anyways now I'm concerned that one of my two children might also be allergic what should I do if one of them has an adverse reaction to a sting and what should I do even if they don't have an adverse reaction Ellie I'm so glad you asked me these questions thanks for reaching out but before I answer let's check out this video from the good Folks at Mayo Clinic [Music] ouch I just got stung by a bee I better go inside and ask Alexa what to do Alexa ask Mayo first aid how to treat a be sting you can treat a mild reaction to an insect bite on your own first move to a safe area to avoid more bites or stings then remove any Stingers next wash the area with soap and water if you're experiencing pain use an over-the-counter pain reliever you can also apply a PR more lotion to the injured area look for products that contain hydrocortisone peroxin or lidocaine to learn more about severe allergic reactions say severe allergic reaction for another topic on insect bites and stings you can say symptoms it is now summertime and many people are enjoying the fresh air however with fresh air comes bugs and bees let's discuss what to do if you get stung by a bee first off if the Stinger is present and you are able you can remove the Stinger as soon as possible such as by scraping it off with a fingernail or a credit card if you do not remove the Stinger it will release Venom into your bloodstream and can cause further symptoms such as increased swelling dizziness difficulty breathing and sometimes nausea it is it also increases your risk of developing an infection at the sting site the Stinger looks like a tiny black dot in the sting use a fingernail to remove it wash the affected area with soap and water you can apply a cold compress you can wrap an ice pack in a towel and place it on your skin to reduce the swelling Elevate the affected area of your body to lessen the swelling you can also take an over-the-counter pain reliever as needed eings are painful and can cause itchiness so antihistamines can also reduce skin symptoms and over-the-counter pain medications like acetam minin or ibuprofen can relieve your pain use these medications as directed on the label you can also use calamine lotion or hydrotone cream to ease the itching if the sting is on the arm or the leg elevate it above the level of your heart if you can you can usually put a couple pillows underneath it and that will help if you ever encounter a beasting some people find Relief by using baking soda to neutralize the Venom to try this remedy mix baking soda with water to create kind of a paste and then generously apply it to the affected area cover it with a bandage and leave it on for at least 15 minutes reapplying as needed this method has been used by many including my nana actually who always used to do this for us and I remember feeling instant relief be things can be quite painful and may cause discomfort for a few hours some reactions such as swelling skin discomfort discoloration and itching can last for a few days although severe allergic reactions are rare they can be life-threatening requiring immediate medical attention Swift treatments with epinephrine can lead to a positive outcome if you have a bees sting allergy it's important to always carry an emergency epinephrine auto injector and informed your loved ones about what to do in case of an emergency now you might think you cannot avoid beasting but you can here are some tips be aware of your surroundings if you're outdoors in near flowers or areas where bees are active be careful not to disturb them remove food bees are attracted to foods that you might have at a picnic or outdoor event try to cover foods and clean up any dirty dishes to keep the bees away try not to use any floral scented products bees like flowers or pry scents if you use hair or skin care products that smell like fresh flowers these may mistake you for one you can also wear protective clothing choose clothing items that cover your skin like long sleeves and pants especially if you're working out or playing Outdoors it's very easy to step on a bee so wear closed toe shoes instead of bare feet when walking in the grass and always remember to stay calm bees aren't aggressive insects and only use a stinger to protect themselves if you SWOT at bees or try to shoot them away you put yourself more at risk of getting stung if you stay calm and let the bee pass by it will go away without harming you now if you do get stung by a bee how do you know if you should go to the ER or not here are some symptoms that might require some immediate attention like difficulty breathing a tight feeling in your chest difficulty swallowing you might develop hives or skin rash swelling all over your body you might feel dizzy or lightheaded and have stomach cramps vomiting or even diarrhea all right looks like our next question is very important and comes to us from Clint who reached out VI our very own website allhealth tv.com Clint asks hi nurse Katie I had a couple of concussions when I was growing up I now have two boys of my own who always rough house with each other so it's just a matter of time until one of them hits his head on something I guess my question is this how can I tell if someone has a concussion and if they do what should I do Clint I said this before this is a very important question anytime you hit your head it's crucial to monitor for those signs of concussion or a serious injury because this is such an important topic I do want to put up a graphic for it so first of all number one severe head or facial bleeding might be a sign of a concussion number two bleeding or fluid leaking from the nose or the ears number number three vomiting number four a severe headache number five change in your Consciousness for more than a few seconds number six black and blue discoloration below the eyes or even behind the ears number seven not breathing number eight if you have any confusion number nine you might be agitated number 10 you might have a loss of balance or feel kind of dizzy number 11 weakness or an inability to use your arm or your leg number 12 your pupils might be unequal in size number 13 you might have slurge speech and number 14 you may develop seizures now children have very similar symptoms of adults but can also have persistent crying they may refuse to eat infants may have a have a bulging soft spot on the front of their head and they might be continuously vomiting administer the following first aid steps while waiting for an emergency medical to help arrive keep the person still the injured person should lie down with the head and shoulders slightly elevated don't move the person unless it is very necessary avoid moving the person's neck if the person is wearing a helmet do not remove it stop any bleeding apply firm pressure to the wound with sterile gauze or a clean claw but don't apply direct pressure to the wound if you suspect anything is wrong with their skull watch for changes in breathing and alertness if the person shows no signs of circulation no breathing coughing or movement begin CPR there are some quick concussion tests you can administer at home concussion tests assess your brain function after a head injury most concussion tests consist of questionnaires or symptom checklists concussion test checks for alertness memory Focus how fast you can think and your ability to solve problems they also check your balance and coordination concussion tests are one of the tools used to diagnose a concussion it is important to know that only medical professionals can examine you or a loved one in in order to needed a test to diagnose a concussion however in some instances you can ask a few questions and gather some information to share with the doctor some questions you can ask may include having the person State their name where they are the time and date and what just happened you can have them spell words or have them spell words backwards sometimes that would help kind of indicate if they have a concussion or not you can ask them do you have a headache do you feel dizzy or nauseous you can also have them follow your finger to see if their movement with their eyes follows the finger or not you can ask them if their speech is normal and have them talk to you and see if it's slurred or not see if they're sensitive to light or sound and also see if there's any changes in their behavior do they seem Restless agitated or confused it is very important to never diagnose a concussion on your own no matter how minor a head injury may seem it's crucial to have it evaluated by a medical professional head trauma resulting in concussion symptoms should be evaluated right away all right our next question comes from an unusual Source me this is probably one of the most terrifying situations any parents parent will experience your child choking now this issue hits close to home for me because my husband almost choked to death a few weeks ago thankfully his friend knew exactly what to do when someone is choking it's important to remember that it is scary and it is a life-threatening situation when an object becomes stuck in the throat or wind pipe it can prevent air from reaching the lungs causing serious distress it's especially common for adults to choke on food while young children may swallow small objects if you or someone else's ch it's crucial to act quickly and administer first aid consider taking a certified first aid training course to learn the he lick maneuver and even CPR so you can be prepared to help in these emergencies if you're the only rescuer you can give black back blows and abdominal thrusts then call 911 or your local emergency number for help if another person is there have that person call for help while you give first aid if you're alone and choking call 911 or your local emergency number right away then give yourself abdominal thrusts also called the highl maneuver to remove the stuck object with other people you need to watch for these signs of choking one or both hands clutched around the throat a look of panic shock or confusion the inability to talk they might have strained or noisy breathing they might have squeaky sounds when they are trying to breathe they might be coughing which may be either weak or forceful their skin lips and nails may change color turning blue or gray and they might even lose Consciousness so to clear the airway of a choking infant that's younger than one years old you want to sit and hold the infant face down on your forearm rest your forearm on your thigh and hold the infant's chin and jaw to support the head place the head lower than their trunk and then you want to thump the infant gently but firmly five times on the middle of the back use the heel of your hand Point your fingers up so that you don't hit the back of the infant's head and the gravity will help with the back thumbs and should release the blockage if a choking person can cough forcefully let that person keep coughing coughing might naturally remove the stuck object if a person can't talk cry or laugh forcefully then it's time to give first eight so for for a child of one to an adult you want to give five back blows stand to the side and just behind a choking adult for child you want to kneel behind them place your arms across the person's chest to support the person's body bend the person over at the waist to face the ground strike five separate times between the person's shoulder blades with the heel of your hand if this doesn't work then you want to give five abdominal thrusts if the back blows don't remove the stuck object give five abdominal thrusts also know as as the HL maneuver then alternate between five blows and five thrusts until the blockage is dislodged some sources only teach the abdominal thrust which is okay and to give abdominal thrust to somebody you want to stand behind the person for child kneel down make a fist with one hand and put it just above the person's belly button grab the fist with the other hand press it into the stomach also called the abdomen with a quick upward thrust as if trying to lift the person up for a child use gentle yet firm pressure to avoid any damaging the internal organs if the person becomes unconscious start CPR with chest compressions and rescue breaths now if the person does go unconscious sometimes you need to clear the airway because the blockage might be right there in the throat so if the person is unconscious lower the person to the ground with the back on the floor floor and arms to their sides if you can see the object r a finger into the mouth to sweep out the object never finger sweep if you cannot see it as you risk pushing the blockage deeper into the airway this is very risky with young children and if the person remains unconscious and not breathing begin CPR if the person is pregnant or you can't get your arms around the stomach you want to give chest thrust put your hands at the base of the breast bone just above joining of the low ribs press hard into the chest with a quick thrust this is the same action as the high maneuver and continue to repeat until the blockage is removed from the airway all right in case you missed it the first time here's another opportunity to find out where to send in your questions send in your questions to questions allhealth tv.com or allhealth go on Facebook or YouTube or visit the askthe do page on our website allhealth tv.com all right this next question comes to us from our Instagram page Bella's question is Nurse Katie my daughter Holly is your stereotypical tomboy she likes playing soccer skateboarding and catching frogs with the boys and just like the boys she comes home with assorted cuts and abrasions what's the best way to treat them at home and when should I take her to the doctor hi Bella great question and thanks for reaching out minor cuts and SCP traits can often be treated at home you may need to seek medical care if you notice the injury becomes infected the following guidelines can help you for main minor cuts and scrapes at home so number one you want to wash your hands this help avoids any kind of infection number two you want to stop the bleeding if there is any minor cuts and scrapes usually stop bleeding on their own if needed gently press the wound with a clean bandage or cloth Elevate the area until the bleeding stop number three you want to clean the wound rinse the wound with water keeping the wound under running water will lower the risk of infection wash around the wound with soap but don't get soap in the wound and don't use hydrogen peroxide or iodine both can irritate the wound even further remove any dirt or debris with tweezers cleaned with alcohol see a healthc care professional if you can't remove any debris number four you want to put on an antibiotic or petroleum jelly you want to put on a thin layer of an antibiotic ointment or petroleum jelly like Vaseline or aquafor to keep the surface moist and help prevent the scarring number five cover the wound you can put a bandage rolled gauze or even a Band-Aid and help help it hold in place with paper tape cover the wound keeps it clean if you just have a minor scraper or scratch you don't need to cover it and number six you want to change the covering do this at least once a day or whenever the covering becomes wet or dirty you might also ask when are stitches needed there are other guidelines to follow stitches might be needed for any cut that is split open or gaping cuts that are longer than a half inch usually need sutures if you have any cut on the face longer than about a fourth of an inch you need to be seen by a medical professional because they mean it may need to close it with sutures or even glue and any open wound that needs sutures should be seen as soon as possible ideally they should be checked and closed within six hours to prevent wound infections now we discussed when you might need stitches and how to treat the injury but when is it essential to seek immediate medical intervention some things might be if your skin is split open or gaping if you have severe pain and it doesn't improve after two hours of taking a pain medication if you have a child that is less than one year old you need to be seen immediately if there's any dirt in the wound that isn't gone after 15 minutes of scrubbing or irrigating if there's any skin loss from the bad scrape or if it goes very deep if there's a cut or scrape that looks infected and or if you have not had a past tetanus shot all right what do we have here this question is from Isaiah who reached out to us on allhealth tv.com you should really go check it out when you get a chance it's chalk full of great information all right Isaiah Isaiah asks hi nurse Katie my daughter Kimmy is susceptible to nose bleeds just like her old man she lives with her mother in Los Angeles where the air is much drier than it is in Florida this combined with allergies causes my baby's nose to bleed what can we do next time to stop the bleeding quicker Isaiah I'm really sorry to hear about Kimmy's nose la you say I might suggest getting a humidifier as well as some nasal sailing to help keep her nose from getting too dry now let's talk about stopping the bleed I understand that dealing with nose beds can be very concerning nose beds also known as epistaxis happen when a blood vessel in the lining of the nose bursts they can be caused by various factors such as an infection injury any allergic reaction nose picking or the insertion of an object into the nostril it's important to remember that while nose blades are a common occurrence in children they're typically not considered serious so how do you stop and nose bleed fast first you want to pinch the nose you want to sit down at a table lean forward and firmly pinch the soft part of your nose just above your nostrils like right about here and you want to hold for 10 to 15 minutes do not remove do not look and see if it's stopped just do it continuously for at least 10 to 15 minutes lean forward and try to breathe through your mouth if there's any blood that collects in your throat spit it out into a bowl if you're actively bleeding bleeding after 30 minutes you should probably head to the ER particularly if you're experiencing any other symptoms such as Li headedness or dizziness now after your nose bleed stops here's what you should not do for the next 24 hours number one do not blow your nose number two do not pick your nose number three refrain from drinking hot drinks or alcohol and number four do not do any heavy lifting or strenuous exercise so what should you do after a nose bed try to lay flat as much as possible raise your head on a pillow while you sleep and number three put a thin layer of a saline or water-based nasal gel inside your nose all right we got one more question here from Sadie Satie asks hi Katie I just saw a story on the news about a child who suffered third deegree Burns because of an accident in the kitchen with three young kids we've been very lucky with no Burns but luck is going to run out so we want to make sure we know more about types of burns and how to treat them hi STI I love the fact that you are being so proactive I also have three kids so I understand the chaos that comes with them Burns commonly occur by direct or indirect contact with heat electric current radiation or chemical a agents Burns can lead to cell death which can require hosil and can be fatal there are three levels of burns first deegree Burns which is affect only the outer layer of skin they cause pain redness and swelling second deegree Burns affect both the outer and underlying layer of skin they cause pain redness swelling and blistering they're also called partial thickness Burns third degree burns affect the Deep layers of skin they are also called full thickness Burns they cause white or black and burn skin the skin may be numb and you may experience no pain with these Burns now it's important to remember that burns can be a very serious and painful injury having more than one type of burn at the same time could be particularly difficult to deal with major Burns require immediate medical attention to prevent scarring disability and deformity Burns can be the result of the following a house fire a car accident playing with matches and even some kitchen accidents all right now let's talk about some kind of first a we can do with just some minor burns if someone is on fire well that's a major burn if someone's on fire tell the person to stop drop and roll then follow these steps you want to wrap the person pour water on the person and call 911 you want to make sure that the person is no longer touching or burning on any of the smoking materials do not remove burned clothing that's stuck on the patient's skin and ultimately you want to get them to the the ER as quick as possible and remember it's crucial to do following two burn victims don't apply anything to the burn don't breathe blow or cough on the burn to try to cool them off do not disturb the blistered or the dead skin do not remove clothing that is stuck to the skin and do not give the person anything by mouth if there is a severe burn all right well thank you for watching this this is it on ask the doc send in your questions to questions allhealth tv.com or allhealth go on Facebook or YouTube or visit the askthe do page on our website allhealth tv.com