Part of being human is having accidents and developing injuries. For whatever reason, my specialty seems to have been burning myself. I have four scars on my right hand alone, all from second-degree burns. Fortunately, none of these burns have affected the performance of my hand, so I am luckier than many individuals who are on the receiving end of harmful heat.
But my experiences have taught me how important it is to know proper first aid procedure for serious burns. You also need to be prepared to handle this type of injury for your own good and that of your family, especially if you have young children that will not know what to do themselves.
First of all, assess the situation. If there is an uncontrolled and/or accidental fire present, put it out if possible. If you cannot, it is more important to evacuate the premises and call the fire department than to focus on treating the burn. That will come later. Your bodily safety may be in continued danger if you remain in the area.
Personal and familial burn first aid is typically not relevant in these cases. More often, kitchen mishaps are responsible for both mild and severe wounds of this kind. Virtually all burned skin will redden, but in particularly intense cases, third-degree burns can occur, which can cause the affected area to turn black and even melt off altogether. If this has happened to you or someone else in your company, call 911 emergency services.
Begin cooling the area right away with clean water. The water does not need to be ice-cold, and you should not apply ice cubes. Just turn the faucet to cool. Beware of turning it on too high, as the water pressure may force damaged skin off.
Keep blister prevention and pain relief cream on hand at all times. This is helpful to keep second-degree burns from blistering and therefore worsening. Ultimately, if your burn doesn't blister over, you will experience a shorter recovery time, which is definitely a relief, as a lingering blister can be very painful. Plus, if it tears open, it can get infected, or at the very least, take an even longer time to heal completely.
Gently bandage the burn, but don't make it too tight. An over-the-counter pain reliever like ibuprofen can also be taken for added pain relief, but make sure that the appropriate dose is administered and that it isn't given to someone that should not be taking an NSAID or naproxen sodium.
With any luck, you'll never even have to use this information. But it is so much better to be prepared in order to stay cool in a heated--even burning--situation!