cuts / scrapes / grazes

Cuts, Scrapes and Grazes

What to do with skin wounds

If bleeding - follow bleeding advice first

Patients can usually come off the track for assessment

Remove clothing around the affected area

Reasons you should go to ED

you have a bad cut on your face or palm of your hand
the wound is very large or deep
the wound is heavily contaminated
there's something stuck in the cut, such as a shard of glass – do not try to take it out yourself
you lose feeling near the wound or have trouble moving it
you may also need to have an injection to prevent tetanus or be given antibiotics if the cut could be infected.

If the bleeding has stopped, you can clean a small wound and then put a plaster or dressing over it.

Put on disposable gloves if you have some.

Clean the wound by rinsing it with bottled or tap water, or by using sterile wipes.

Pat the area dry using a gauze swab or a clean tea towel.

Cover the wound with sterile gauze or a clean cloth.

Clean the skin around the wound using soap and water. Wipe away from the wound using a clean swab or cloth for each stroke.

Remove the gauze or cloth and put on a sterile dressing or a plaster.

More advanced techniques

Steristrips, wound glue or wound closure plasters can be used in wounds less than 5cm long (with straight edges) that are clean

large grazed areas can be helped wth larger non adhesive dressings

We could cover this on a training day.

Don't forget to carry Paracetamol / Ibuprofen to help with pain control

Please contact us for advice on kit ot buy or visit the store to get our Cuts, scrpaes and grazes first aid kit that contains the following items

Plasters, non adherant dressings, skin glue, steristrips and wound closure plasters