Robert Robert - Scouting for Boys

Grit in the Eye

Do not let your patient rub the eye; it will only cause inflammation and swelling, and so make the difficulty of removing the grit all the greater.

If the grit is in the lower eyelid, drawn down the lid as far as you can, and gently brush it out with the corner of a moistened handkerchief.

If it is under the upper lid, pull the lid away from the eyeball, down over the lower lid. In this way the eyelashes of the lower lid will generally clean the inside of the upper one.

Another way, which every Scout must practise, is to seat your patient and stand behind him yourself with the back of his head against your chest. Lay a match on the upper part of the upper eyelid, and then catch hold of the edge of the eyelid and draw it upwards over the match so that it turns inside out. Gently remove the grit with the corner of a wet handkerchief, and roll the eyelid down again.

If the eye is inflamed, bathe it with lukewarm water.

If the grit is firmly imbedded in the eye, drop a little oil (olive or castor oil) into the lower lid. Close the eye, cover it with a soft wet pad and bandage, and get a doctor to see it.

Hysterics

Nervous people, especially women, sometimes get hysterics when excited, crying, laughing, and screaming. The best treatment is to shut the patient into a room and leave him entirely alone till he gets over it. Don’t try to soothe him, it only makes him worse.

Poisoning

If a person suddenly falls very ill after taking food, or is known to have taken poison, the first thing to do is to send for a doctor. Then, if the mouth is not stained or burnt by the poison, make him sick by giving him salt and warm water or mustard and warm water, and try tickling the inside of his throat with a feather. If the poison is an acid that burns, the patient should not be made to vomit, but given magnesia or baking soda in water to destroy the acid. The patient should be kept awake if he gets drowsy.

Smoke, Fumes or Gas

Accidents are continually occurring from escapes of gas in mines, sewers, and houses.

In endeavoring to rescue a person, keep your nose and mouth well covered with a wet handkerchief, get your head as close to the floor as possible, and drag the insensible person out as I have suggested in case of a fire. Drag your patient as quickly as possible into the fresh air—(I say as quickly as possible, because if you delay about it you are very apt to be overcome by the noxious gas yourself)—then loosen all his clothing about the neck and chest and dash cold water in his face. If you find that he is no longer breathing, then treat him as you would a drowned person, and try to work back the breath into his body with artificial respiration.

The bowlines in the rope for dragging an insensible person.

Snake Bite

Remember that poison from a snake bite gets into your blood, and goes all through your body in a very few beats of your pulse. Therefore, whatever you do must be done immediately. The great thing is to stop the poison rushing up the veins into the body. To do this bind a cord or handkerchief immediately round the limb above the place where the patient has been bitten, so as to stop the blood flowing back to the heart with the poison from the wound, and cut the wound still more, to make it bleed, and run the poison out. The poison, when sucked into the mouth, does no harm unless you have a wound in your mouth.

The patient should also be given stimulants, such as coffee, and should not be allowed to become drowsy, but walked about and pricked and smacked in order to keep his senses alive until a doctor takes him over.

Sprained Ankle

Apply a tight bandage. Keep the patient from trying to walk, or put any weight on the foot. Fetch help and have the patient carried home. Keep the foot raised; remove the boot carefully. Apply cold, to relieve the pain and stop the swelling. This is done by wringing out a piece of material or a small towel folded in several thicknesses in very cold water, and wrapping the ankle in it.

If cold fails to relieve the pain hot applications may be a comfort. These are called hot fomentations, and there are several things to remember about them: Pour boiling water upon the folded material, which should then be wrapped in a thin towel or cloth so that you may be able to wring it out. Be sure to wring as dry as possible, otherwise you may scald the patient. Shake the fomentation out, and apply quickly while very hot. When the pain is relieved, leave off the fomentations. Keep the foot firmly bandaged, and make the patient rest for a few days.

Stings

The best antidote for all stings is ammonia. You can remember this by the front letters of the alphabet: (A)mmonia for (B)ee sting. Baking soda is also good. Remove the stinger from a bee with a clean needle.

Suicides

Where a man has gone so far as to attempt suicide, a Scout should know what to do with him.

In the case of a man cutting his throat, the point is to stop the bleeding from the artery, if it is cut. The artery runs from where the collar-bone and breast-bone join up, to the corner of the jaw, and the way to stop bleeding is to press hard with the thumb on the side of the wound nearest to the heart, and to keep up the pressure until assistance arrives.

In a case where the would-be suicide has taken poison, give him first aid for poison (see above).

In the case of hanging, cut down the person at once, taking care to support him with one arm while cutting the cord. Cut the noose, loosen all tight clothing about the neck and chest. Let the patient have as much fresh air as possible, throw cold water on the face and chest, or cold and hot water alternately. Perform artificial respiration, as in the case of apparently drowned people.

A Tenderfoot is sometimes inclined to be timid about handling an insensible man or a dead man, or even of seeing blood. Well, he won’t be much use till he gets over such nonsense. The poor insensible fellow can’t hurt him, and he must force himself to catch hold of himself. When once he has done this his fears will pass off.

How to Carry a Patient

A four-handed seat can be made by two Scouts each grasping his own left wrist with his right hand and in the same way grasping the right wrist of the other Scout with his left hand. If a back is required a three-handed seat is made in much the same way, except that one Scout makes a back by grasping the shoulder of the other. Stretchers may be arranged in some of the following ways:

(a) A door, gate, covered well with straw, hay, clothing, sacking.

(b) A piece of carpet, blanket, sacking, tarpaulin, spread out, and two stout poles rolled up in the sides. Put clothes for a pillow.

(c) Two coats, with the sleeves turned inside out. Pass two poles through the sleeves; button the coats over them.

(d) Two poles passed through a couple of sacks, through holes at the bottom corners of each.

In carrying a patient on a stretcher be careful that he is made quite comfortable before you start. Let both bearers rise together; they must walk out of step and take short paces. It should be the duty of the hinder bearer to keep a careful watch on the patient.

If the poles are short, four bearers will be necessary, one at each corner of the stretcher.

PATROL PRACTICES IN FIRST AID

Training in first aid should be very thorough as the public expects much of Scouts.

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Arrange surprise “accidents” during Patrol or Troop meetings, and let different Scouts take charge.