Stop the bleeding first with firm, direct pressure. Cleaning comes after.
First aid · First aid course
Clean a wound and spot infection
Out in the woods, a small cut can become the biggest problem because it gets infectedinfection Germs growing in a wound. Watch for redness that spreads, swelling, heat, pus, a bad smell or a fever.. The survival manual says some infection is almost certain in a long emergency, so the skill is cleaning a wound well, keeping it covered, and catching infection early.
Why this matters
In the wild or after a disaster, an infected cut can become life threatening because help is far away. A good cleaning in the first hour is the best protection.
The survival manual's open treatment, leaving deep wounds open to drain, is very different from home care, and it is there for good reasons.
What you need
- Clean water (boiled and cooled if possible), soap, gloves, tweezers, clean dressings and tape.
- A squeeze bottle or a clean zip bag with a pinhole to rinse with force.
10 to 15 minutes to clean and dress; a few minutes each day to check it.
Step by step
Wash your hands, or put on gloves. Germs on your hands cause many infections.
Rinse the wound with lots of clean water, poured with some force, like from a squeezed bottle with a small hole. Rinse, do not scrub. Wash the skin around it with soap and water.
Pick out dirt or splinters you can see with clean tweezers. Do not dig deep.
Cover it with a clean dressing and a bandage. Change the dressing every day, or whenever it gets wet or dirty, and look at the wound each time.
Do not seal a deep wound shut in the field. The survival manual says to leave it open so pus can drain. A small, clean, gaping cut can be pulled together with butterfly strips.
Signs of infection: more pain, swelling, redness or warmth around the wound after the first day or two, red streaks spreading from it, pus, a bad smell, or a fever. Red streaks or a fever mean get to medical care fast.
If it is infected and help is far away, the manual's treatment is a warm, wet compresscompress A pad of cloth, wet with cold or warm water, held on a sore spot. on the wound for 30 minutes, three or four times a day, keeping it draining, and drinking plenty of water. Anyone with a deep, dirty wound or an animal bite needs a doctor and may need a tetanustetanus A serious infection from germs in soil that get in through a wound, even a small puncture. It makes muscles lock up, starting with the jaw. shot.
Tips from survival instructors
- Rinsing with plenty of clean water matters more than anything you put on the wound afterward.
- Keep wounds covered and dry, and change the dressing whenever it gets wet or dirty.
Common mistakes
- Scrubbing hard inside the wound. The fix: rinse with lots of water instead.
- Sealing a deep, dirty wound shut. The fix: leave it open to drain and cover it.
- Not checking under the bandage. The fix: look at the wound every day.
- Ignoring red streaks or fever. The fix: get to medical care fast.
Practice it safely
Make a rinse bottle from a clean water bottle with a pinhole in the cap and add it to your kit. Practice dressing a pretend cut on a friend's arm, and learn the five signs of infection by heart.
Quick check
How often should you check and change a wound dressing?
- Never; leave it alone
- Every day, or when wet or dirty
- Once a week
Show the answer
Every day, or when wet or dirty
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Before you rely on thisA learning tool, not a replacement for training. In an emergency, call 911.