Good Health. Please read through the useful hints, tips and how to guides below.

Normal body temperature is 37°C. A minor fever is 37.25°C, and a high fever is 40°C.

Normal adult heart rate is 60-80 beats per minute. Normal child heart rate is between 90-120 beats per minute.

Place three fingers (not the thumb - its pulse will interfere with the reading,) about 1 cm from the base of the thumb on the wrist. Count for 30 seconds and double the number.

Animals

If the skin is broken, infection can enter the body. Apply pressure with a clean cloth to stop bleeding, and seek medical advice about tetanus shots and, if necessary, stitching.

Bees or wasps

Scrape away sting, being very careful not to squeeze it and therefore introduce more venom into the wound. Apply an icepack to reduce swelling. Treat stings near the mouth and throat as serious - apply icepacks and seek medical attention in case airway becomes blocked. For those allergic to stings, treat as for snake bite.

Bluebottles

Wash affected skin with vinegar to relieve pain. Do not rub with sand.

Snake bite

Immobilise the limb! Keep the bitten limb absolutely still - do not even remove clothing. Apply a wide pressure bandage over the bite as tightly as you would for a sprained ankle and bandage as high as possible. Apply a splint to the limb and bind it firmly to as much of the limb as possible. Do not remove the bandage till medical attention is received. If correctly applied, bandages can be left on comfortably for several hours.

Do bring the snake if it can be safely killed. If not, try to identify it. Do not wash the wound, or cut it, or apply a tourniquet.

Ticks

Do not try to pull out a tick. Apply kerosene or turpentine and leave for 30 minutes. If it has not been dislodged by then, seek medical attention. If it has, make sure it has all come out. Wash and apply antiseptic.

To prevent
methylated spirits
A week before you start walking, running, or wearing new shoes, rub feet well with methylated spirits each day.

Heavy bleeding for 3-5 minutes can sometimes result in death, so act quickly. Apply pressure to the wound or pinch the edges together firmly, whichever is quick and easy. Apply a pressure pad and hold or bandage in place firmly.

Raise the wounded part higher than the heart. Seek medical attention.

Light bleeding will stop by itself. Wash the wound and cover with a clean dry dressing.

Pinch the soft lower part of the nose together for 10 minutes without interruption so a clot can form.

Apply a pad to the socket and have the patient bite on it firmly.

This could be a sign of serious head injury. Place the patient in the coma position and do not plug the ear. Seek immediate medical attention.

Symptoms of broken bones can include pain near an injury, swelling and bruising, inability to move or use the limb, distorted limb, protruding bones. If you suspect a broken bone, quickly cover any wound with clean cloth, protect the break with padding or bandaging, but do not bandage over the break. Immobilise the joints on either side of the break, and if possible support the injured part by bandaging it to another part of the body lone leg to another, or an arm to the chest). Ensure circulation is not impaired. Seek medical attention.

Smother flames immediately with a large thick cloth, towel, blanket or rug. Cool the burn with cold water but not ice. Immerse fingers or limbs, but for larger areas apply a thick cloth pad soaked in cold water. Renew pad as it dries and warms. Continue for 10 minutes or longer if pain is severe.

Burns swell, so remove rings, bracelets, etc. Elevate a burnt limb to reduce swelling.

Cover burn with large clean cloth and bandage lightly. Do not use butter, creams or antiseptics, or try to remove charred clothing sticking to the skin.

Get medical help for serious burns.

Immediately remove any clothing soaked in hot liquids, so long as it is not stuck to skin. Treat as for burns.

Protect your hands and immediately remove any chemical-soaked clothing. Flush away the chemical from skin under a lot of running water.

Give conscious patient sips of cold water. Get medical help before the throat swells.

Twelve first steps

Try to park your car with hazard lights flashing where it will warn other motorists and protect you and other victims. Do not panic. Deal calmly and reassuringly with injured or shocked people.

1 Switch off ignition of damaged car and apply handbrake.

2 Do not move injured unless there is real danger from fire or fumes.

3 Check that unconscious patient is breathing.

4 Check that unconscious patient has clear airway (remove blood or displaced dentures).

5 If necessary, give mouth to mouth resuscitation: if the head is bent forward, very gently bend it back, not sideways.

6 Control severe bleeding with pressure, but beware of broken bones.

7 Check quickly in case other victims have been thrown out of the car and are out of sight.

8 Ask someone to slow down or stop oncoming traffic (they should wear or wave something white at night.

9 Send for ambulance or police, giving details of location, the injured, theaccident.

10 Put dressings on patient's wounds, but do not move them from the car.

11 If possible, immobilise suspected fractures so long as patient does not have to be moved too vigorously.

12 Move any hysterical but uninjured people out of the way. Leave in the care of a firm, sympathetic person. Ensure people suffering shock are kept warm and reassured.

Observe the victim

Do not allow a choking or coughing person to leave the room alone - watch to ensure they do not collapse.

Observe the victim

Do not allow a choking or coughing person to leave the room alone - watch to ensure they do not collapse.

The breathing coughing victim

Only part of the airway has been obstructed, so make the victim try strong definite coughs instead of little ones. For a small child or baby who cannot understand, treat as for severe obstruction.

Severe or total obstruction

Lower the victim's head (an adult can bend over, a child can be laid over the knees, and an infant can be held firmly upside-down) and give three hard, deliberate blows between the shoulder blades. If this does not work, use the `abdominal thrust'.

Abdominal thrust

Position yourself behind the victim with your arms around their body. Position your hands one on top of the other halfway between the bottom of the breastbone and the navel. Make a fist with the hand nearest the victim's body with the thumb against the body. Give a hard thrust upwards and inwards and the object may be expelled. Do not allow it to slip back down the victim's throat. Try 3 firm thrusts then blows on the back. Repeat.

For a small child or baby, place them on your knee or on the floor and use 2 fingers of both hands to press.

If the victim is lying on the floor use the heels of your hands in the same position and thrust inwards and upwards.

If the victim loses consciousness and stops breathing, begin artificial respiration immediately. If no air is passing the object, carefully probe with a finger in case the object is at the back of the throat. Seek medical aid in case internal injuries have resulted from the thrusts. (This is rare, but it's best to be safe.)

Turn off the power!

Electricity can kill - not only the victim, but an over-hasty helper. Do not touch the victim until they are no longer in contact with the electrically live object. Either turn off the power at the switch or main switch, pull out the socket, or separate the victim from the electrical current. Do not use your hands, or anything wet, or of metal. Use a wooden chair or stick or handle, or a thick cloth, a rope, or (if your shoes are dry and, if possible, you are standing on thick carpet or a rubber mat) give the victim a strong kick.

First aid for electrocution

If the victim is no longer breathing, begin artificial respiration. Check for other injuries such as fractures or burns. Even a small mark on the skin should receive medical attention - it might cover a deeper burn. Even if the patient recovers, watch them closely, they might still collapse later. Medical advice should be sought.

Protect the patient's limbs by moving furniture away or placing buffers appropriately. Remove false teeth if possible, but if the jaws are tightly clenched, don't attempt it. Don't put anything in the patient's mouth.

juice of 1 lemon | 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

To prevent some headaches, mix and drink while still fizzing.

Heart attacks present different symptoms, but some include a chest pain varying from something like bad indigestion to a vice-like pain which can also extend to neck, shoulder or arm. Alternatively, the patient may be very breathless with bubbly breathing but no pain. Patients may sweat, be blue, breathless, have a weak, fast pulse or suffer nausea. Loosen tight clothing, allow plenty of fresh air, but keep the patient warm. Speak firmly but reassuringly. If the pain does not disappear after 10 minutes of rest, get the patient to a hospital as quickly as you can, by ambulance if necessary. Do not let the patient make the decision; patients who do, usually do not survive.

1 teaspoon brown sugar | white vinegar

Moisten sugar with vinegar and take to cure hiccoughs.

glass of water

Pinch nostrils closed, drink a glass of water, breathe out deeply, then don't breathe in for the count of 10.

With the patient on their back, rapidly scoop out anything in the mouth. Tilt the head back, open the mouth and pinch the patient's nose shut. Take a deep breath, seal your lips round the patient's mouth and breathe out steadily. Your breath will enter the patient's chest causing it to rise. Take away your mouth, look sideways to ensure the chest has risen and is falling while you
take another breath. When the chest has fallen repeat the process. Continue until expert help arrives.

If the patient's mouth cannot be opened, seal the lips and blow into the nose instead.

With babies and small children, clamp your mouth over their mouth and nose and give small puffs for a young baby rather than a steady breath. Breathe more gently for children than for adults.

If the patient vomits, quickly clear out the mouth and continue resuscitating. If natural breathing begins, watch carefully in case it stops and be prepared to start resuscitation again.

If there is no pulse after resuscitation, begin heart massage with expiring breaths. Kneel beside the patient, place one hand on the breast bone and the other over it. Keep the arms straight and lean briskly and hard on the chest to squeeze blood out of the heart. Continue at the rate of 60-80 per minute.

Shock can occur after any accident or sudden illness, and if serious, can result in death. Symptoms include faintness, pale clammy skin, rapid faint pulse, nausea or vomiting, irregular breathing, and thirst.

First aid for shock

Stop any bleeding. Move the patient as little as possible, dress any wounds and immobilise any fractures. If possible, lie the patient down with feet raised. If drowsy or unconscious, place in the coma position. Keep warm with a blanket or clothing and speak calmly and reassuringly. Do not give food or drink (allow the patient to suck on a moistened handkerchief if very thirsty). Seek medical attention if required.

baking powder | water

Make up a paste and apply to mild sunburn for relief.

honey glycerine lemon juice pure alcohol or toilet water

Mix 1 part of pure alcohol with 2 parts of other ingredients, place in a jar and shake well till mixed. Apply to sunburn for relief.