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 | Burn Prevention
Our staff are committed to burn prevention. We have partnerships with firefighters, rural and regional health care providers, emergency medical staff and industry leaders to reduce the risk of burns. We are actively involved in our community, working to educate children and neighborhoods about burn prevention. Here are some tips on preventing burns to your child:
 Burns In The Kitchen
- Kitchens are a common place in which children get burned. Keep your child out of the kitchen or in a play pen when you're cooking.
- Never drink or carry hot liquids while holding a baby.
- Don't let kids remove hot food or liquids form a microwave oven.
- Use burners on the back of the stove, and turn the handles of pots and pans toward the back.
- Make sure hot coffee pots and their cords are out of children's reach.
 Burns In The Bathroom
- Prevent burns by checking bath water temperatures with your wrist or elbow before bathing your child. It should be warm to the touch.
- Also, lower the temperature on the hot water heater to 120 degrees fahrenheit or a warm setting.
- Don't leave children alone in the bathrub. A child may turn on the faucet. If the water is hot, the child could be burned. If you have a one-handle faucet, keep it on a cold setting.
- Make sure that your child can't reach hot appliances, such as curling irons and hair dryers.
 Burn and Fire Prevention
- If you have a gas fireplace or wood-burning stove, put a gate around it so your toddler won't touch or accidentally fall on it. Emphasize that the stove is hot and the child should stay away.
- Be sure to have working smoke detectors on each level of the home and outside each sleeping area. Also, have a plan of action in case of fire. Test your detectors monthly and replace batteries yearly. Make sure there are two escape routes from each room. Know and practice your escape plan.
- Avoid putting space heaters in rooms where children play or sleep. Place heaters more then three feet away from drapes, blankets, furniture or other flammable material.
- Keep children away from fires and campfires.
- Keep matches and lighters out of reach.
- Avoid exposing your baby directly to the sun. Your baby's skin is very tender and can easily be sunburned. Sunscreen with SPF 30 and hats can help.
- Gasoline should only be used to fuel engines, not to start or maintain fires.
If Your Child Is Burned
- If your child is burned, remove clothing immediately and run the affected area under a cool water faucet or shower (do not use ice) for five minutes. This will reduce the amount of skin damage caused by the burn by quickly cooling the area. It will also reduce the pain.
- If your child is burned or sunburned, you may use ibuprofen or acetaminophen to reduce pain. If there are blisters, do not break them. Topical sprays or creams are not recommended except for very mild burns, such as sunburn. Do not put butter on a burn. Blistered burns on the hand or face should always be checked by a health care provider.
If you have questions about a burn injury, call the Burn Center at Regions Hospital at (651) 254-2373 or 1-800-922-BURN (2876).
To learn about preventing other types of injuries,
click here.
To obtain this information in a free Burn Prevention For Kids poster,
click here.
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