How to Treat An Open Wound

Something an EMT has to care for on an everyday basis is an open wound. They can be big or small, and be anywhere on the body. Proper treatment and care of an open wound is important to avoid the injury getting worse, and preventing any sort of infection or further damage. One of the most important wounds you will have to treat as an EMT, is an open chest wound. This is extremely important because of the threat to life that it imposes on the patient.

 To treat a wound other then the chest you want to clean out the wound and cover it, and you also have to make the decision to see if further action is needed such as stitches. For an open chest wound this works a little differently. The most important thing is to try to prevent any outside air from entering the chest. You want to use an occlusive dressing to form an air tight seal over the wound. Open chest wound treatment include instructing a patient (as long as their conscious) to exhale while this dressing is being applied. You want to tape down 3 of the 4 sides of the dressing. The reason for this is so that when the patient inhales, outside air is not entering the chest because the dressing that has been applied will be sucked next to the surface of the wound. When the patient exhales, air trapped inside can escape through the one side that is not taped down. The application of an occlusive dressing doesn't automatically eliminate all life threats associated with open chest wound treatment because blood and other fluids can accumulate under it and interfere with air being able to escape through it. The dressing would need to be gently removed, the area wiped or dabbed clean, and resealed as you get the patient to a medical facility or wait for help.