Bee’s sting is not usually considered a big deal that requests medical care. People may develop some mild symptoms such as swelling, itching, redness, and warmth with no severe risks.

However, it is not always the same matter. It can be life-threatening especially for those who have been stung multiple times.

First aid for bee stings

In case of being stung by a bee during a walk, calm down, do not panic, and follow these instructions;

• leave that place to prevent any potential bites. Honeybees die after stinging, other types like wasps and hornets do not die after stinging.
• Remove the sting by sliding your fingernail across it or using a credit card, rather than pulling at it. The longer the stinger stays in your skin, the more venom it will release.
• Try to clean that area with soap and water.
• Apply ice or cold compress to reduce the swelling and pain.
• Take over-the-counter pain relievers as acetaminophen to alleviate the pain that occurs after stings.

Bees sting emergency cases

It is a must to pay attention to anyone who has been stung especially in the case of a child. They might have allergic reactions to the bee stings.

So if breathing difficulty, nausea, hives, dizziness, or swelling in other body parts, they are an alert to anaphylactic shock hazards.

In these cases, call your local emergency services.

You should also seek a doctor’s help if you’ve been stung multiple times or if If you used your EpiPen in response to the sting.

Precautions to avoid insects bites

To prevent stings from bees, wasps, yellow jackets, and hornets:

• Avoid wearing bright-colored clothing with flowery prints.
• Do not disturb
• Keep your windows closed during driving.
• Don’t drink from open soda cans.
• Don’t wear sweet-smelling perfume, hair products, or body products as bees will investigate a human if you resemble a flower.
• If caught in or near a swarm of bees, move away with slow movements.

Resources

Bees sting treatment

How to avoid bees?

Bee’s stings

Written by  Dr/ Naglaa Moustafa

Both first aid kit items and a trained person can be a turning point in whole family life. Particularly the number of accidents occurring per one day is not minor.

First aid kit items

First aid kit items are life-saving in emergency cases until the medical supply is provided. So there should be a suitable container containing the following items either in your car, house, company, or store:

Large safety pins

It is a pin that is usually made of stainless steel. Before using it, make sure it is sterile by using alcohol or flame to avoid infection.

The safety pin is used to fix bandages and remove slivers from the victim’s wound. And in case of blisters, it can be used to drain fluids.

Gauze pad

It is used in continuous bleeding until suitable care is provided. Before using the pads, make sure that your hands are clean and preferably wear gloves to avoid contamination and infection.

Then put it covering all the wound area without touching the part of the pad that will be in direct content with the injury. A Roller bandage or adhesive tape can be used to fix the pad. clothing can be used as an alternative to it.

Tweezers

They are a basic item in the kits. The help provider can use them to remove the debris or stingers found after insects like bees.

Disposable gloves

They are used to protect that person helping the injured from and blood viruses and diseases.

Ice bag

It is used to relieve bones, muscles, and joint injuries.

First aid manual

It will show the way of treating wounds, insect bites, eye injuries, and other conditions. Persons should pay attention to learning these instructions so that they can provide help during a disaster. They should also contact the doctor using the phone to ensure extra supplies and examination to the victim.

Alcohol swabs

They are used to sterilize the wounded area before applying antibiotics. They can also be used in sterilizing tweezers.

Antibiotic ointment packets

They are used to prevent infection. They should be applied after cleaning the wound.

Bandages

Adhesive bandages of different sizes must be found in the kit. Although the traditional bandages are the most used ones, there should be assorted size bandages.

Scissors

They are to help remove and change dressings. Blunt tip scissors are more preferable to avoid injuries during cutting.

Hydrocortisone cream

It is an essential medication that is applied to relieve itching, skin irritation, and inflammation.

Antihistamine

It is used to alleviate allergic reactions such as rashes.

Pain relievers

There should be either Aspirin-based on non-aspirin-based pain relievers to manage aches. Before giving any oral medications, it is a must to ask about the health history and if he is taking any other prescription drug.

Any expired drug should be discarded.

Thermometer

It is necessary for the household first aid to measure body temperature regularly.

Resealable plastic bags

They are used to make ice packs.

Diarrhea medication

Calamine lotion

It acts as a drying agent for poison ivy, oak sumac, and skin rash.

First aid blanket

It is beneficial in lessening heat loss caused by thermal radiation, water evaporation, and convection.

Resources

FIRST AID KIT

WOUND DRESSING

Written by  Dr/ Naglaa Moustafa

The term “personal protective equipment” (PPE) refers to a group of products (e.g. safety helmets, safety footwear and harnesses, eye protection, gloves, high-visibility clothing, etc.) designed with the aim to protect users against low-, medium- and high-level hazards.

There are eight types of personal protective equipment critical for the defense of users against hazards.

Head protection

It’s will help you avoid any harm that may come to you from falling materials or swinging objects. Moreover, the head protectors are designed to protect you from knocking against stationary objects.

Head Personal Protective Equipment e.g., Helmets; Hard hats; Bump Caps; Guards.

Activities related: Oil and gas works location, construction, work in tunnels, driving motorcycles.

Hand protection

Potential hazards to hands and arms include skin absorption of chemical or biological hazards, chemical or thermal burns, electric shock, bruises, abrasions, cuts, punctures, fractures, or amputations.  Protective equipment includes gloves, finger guards, and arm coverings.

Examples of hand personal protective equipment e.g., Helmets; Hard hats; Bump Caps; Guards.: different types of work gloves and gauntlets; and wrist cuff arm nets.

Activities requiring hand personal protection equipment: construction and outdoor work; oil and gas works, chemicals and hazardous elements; manual handling of abrasive or sharp objects.

Eye and face protection

Selecting the most suitable eye and face protection should take into consideration the following elements:

• Ability to protect against specific workplace hazards
• Should fit properly and be reasonably comfortable to wear
• Should provide unrestricted vision and movement
• Should be durable and cleanable
• Should allow unrestricted functioning of any other required PPE

Injuries can be avoided simply by wearing the proper eye and face personal protection equipment. As examples of such PPE can be mentioned the following ones: Safety glasses and goggles; Eye and face shields; Eyewear accessories; Over specs; Visors.

Respiratory protection

Respiratory Protective Equipment (RPE) is a particular type of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), used to protect the individual wearer against the inhalation of hazardous substances in the workplace air.  Respiratory Protective Equipment like breathing apparatus, full face or half-mask respirators, powered respirators, protective hoods, disposal face masks, detectors, monitors, etc. Adequate training on how users should use the equipment is always required.

Hearing protection

People should wear a hearing protector if the noise or sound level they are exposed to is close to or greater than the occupational exposure limits (OEL) for noise. For most jurisdictions, this occupational exposure limit is 85 decibels (A-weighted) or dBA.

Examples of hearing protection equipment:

• Earplugs and defenders;
• Noise meters;
• Communications sets;
• Acoustic foam.

Foot protection

The foot protection equipment is designed to protect the feet and legs against various hazards, such as extreme temperatures, crushing, piercing, slipping, cutting, chemicals and electricity.

As examples of foot protection equipment can be pointed out following ones:

• Safety Boots and shoes;
• Anti-static and conductive footwear.

Body protection

Some jobs require full-body protection, while others require only special protective clothing for the parts of the body exposed to possible injury.

Examples of body protection equipment:

• Life jackets;
• Clothing for specific weather conditions;
• High-visibility clothing;
• Harnesses, and others.

Height and access protection

The height and access protection equipment must be inspected periodically by a competent person to ensure it is still fit for use and the health and safety of users is not threatened in any way.

As examples of height and access protection equipment can be mentioned in the following ones:

• Fall-arrest systems;
• Body harnesses;
• Lowering harnesses;
• Rescue lifting;
• Energy absorbers, and others.