The Maori Mother and the Child by Keritapu

COMMON ACCIDENTS IN THE HOME Burns and scalds are the commonest, and also the most serious and disfiguring of accidents in the home. BURNS: Should this happen in your home, quickly lay the child down flat, wrapping him in a blanket, or something to put out the flames. This having been done, cover the burnt area with clean linen and rush the child to hospital. Don't try to remove any clothing. SCALDS: Cover scalded area with clean linen and keep child warm, but don't stop to remove any clothing. Rush to hospital. Burns and scalds remain sterile at first and the hospital will keep them this way if you get there quickly enough. Do not put messy oily dressings on them. Large burnt or scalded areas should be treated in hospital, and not at home. You can, however, treat small burns at home. PREVENT ACCIDENTS in the home by putting things out of a small child's reach. Electric flexes, etc. Tea-pots on ranges, poisons, matches,

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Keritapu who writes about health for Te Ao Hou is a Maori woman with years of experience as a District Health Nurse in Maori areas tablets in any form, medicines, knives and scissors should all be watched carefully. SWALLOWING OF OBJECTS OR POISONS: Out of curiosity small children will put things into their mouths, up their nostrils and into their ears. Swallowing a peanut has been fatal merely because it lodged in the wind-pipe and eventually going into the lung caused loss of life. Had it gone into the stomach death would not have resulted. DRINKING OUT OF TINS and bottles is another common habit of small children who are crawling. Careless adults often leave poisonous liquids where small children can reach them. A fatal case has been recorded of a small child who because he was very thirsty, drank out of a tin containing unlabelled liquid, thus causing his death. Numerous cases of this type have taken toll of small lives, Put things containing poisons out of small children's reach. SUFFOCATION: From time to time we read of small babies having been smothered and suffocated. Sometimes this happens in the mother's bed. There has been steady teaching over the years to the effect that babies and toddlers are healthier as well as safer, not only in their own beds, but in separate rooms wherever possible. More often the suffocation of a baby happens in its bassinette or cot, or from getting his head through the cot bars. The precautions against such accidents are surely easy. See that any cot or bassinette you may buy has the bars close enough to prevent this type of accident. Make sure also that bed clothes and pillows are firmly placed where the baby sleeps. A frequent visit to the baby's cot or bassinette is well worth while. NAIL PUNCTURE WOUNDS: It is quite common for a child playing, to run a nail into his foot wherever boxes with nails are left lying around. There is always the danger of infection in a foot or hand. This can be quite serious as to lead to crippling. Should horses and cattle be about there is the further danger of tetanus or lockjaw. Immediately a child is hurt in this way, wash the affected limb with warm soapy water, dry, then paint with an antiseptic lotion and put on a clean