Did you know that the 4th of July is our most dangerous holiday? There are more injuries over the Independence Day weekend than for any other holiday! So, now is a great time to review a few basic first aid tips.

As a nursing assistant, you’ll probably find yourself in emergency situations more often than the average person. Whether you work as a CNA in a hospital, a nursing home, an assisted living center, a client’s home—or somewhere else—there may come a day when your first aid skills are needed. You need to know what to do until a nurse, doctor or paramedic takes over.  Let's take a look at a couple of scenarios that might apply during the holiday weekend:

It's summer.  It's hot outside.  Where you live, it may be really hot!  Soaring temperatures put people at risk for heat exhaustion, a dangerous condition that occurs when the body can't sweat enough to cool itself off.  If someone has been out in the sun and complains of weakness, fatigue, headache, dizziness and is sweating profusely, you should:

Get the person out of the heat.

Sponge the person with cool water.

Encourage the person to rest and--when the nausea passes--give the person plenty of water or Gatorade to prevent dehydration.

Fireworks are fun...but they can also be very dangerous.  If you are with someone who suffers a burn, you should:

Protect the person from being burned any worse.

Remember that cold water is the best treatment for minor burns.  It lowers the skin's temperature and lessens the severity of the burn.

Avoid touching the burn with anything other than a dressing.  This decreases the risk of infection.

Would you like to know more about basic first aid?  You'll find many more tips in the Basic First Aid inservice at www.justforcnas.com.  It covers some CPR basics, choking, cuts and other wounds, falls and more!

And, from all of us at Just for CNAs, we wish you a happy--and accident free--Independence Day!

Until next time,

Linda

Linda Leekley BS, RN