HINTS FOR THE SICK ROOM.

Otago Witness, Issue 3342, 3 April 1918, Page 51

HINTS FOR THE SICK ROOM.

There are many little tilings that will save a home nurse trouble, and make all the difference. in the comfort of tlia patient, and the following tips may be useful to others who have to nurse without outside help. A clinical thermometer should never fca used directly after a patient has taken food; the lightest meal has a tendency to raise the temperature. This is especially the case with children. The temperature should be taken at the same time, night and morning, an hour or so after food. When giving castor oil to a child, a good plan is to put it into hot milk, or else squeeze some orange or lemon juice into a cup, and also rub a little round the rim. Pour in the oil. then add a little rriore iuice. Even cod-liver oil taken in this way will leave no disagreeable aftertaste. This is a splendid tip in a case where hot poultices have to be constantly applied. Half fill a saucepan with boiling water, and fit in a basin the right- size.' When

your poultice cools, put it into the basin—cloth and all, just as you remove it. Have your fresh one quite ready, and place the saucepan where the water will keep at boiling point. When another poultice is required, it is ready to hand. The same one may be used three or four times, unless it is a' mustard poultice, which must be renewed. In cases of emergency, where a hotwater bottle cannot be obtained, there is often sand in the house for cleaning purposes. Sand made hot in the oven and put into a bag is much better than hot salt; it is a heat-conductor, and remains warm a, very long time. A makeshift bed-rest is very quickly managed by turning an ordinary small chair upside down, and placing it in a slanting position behind the patient's back. Pad it with the very softest pillows or cushions you have, and cover with soft drapery.