Electrical Shock: Care Instructions (2024)

FAQs

What are the four steps for treating electrical shock? ›

Keep electrical appliances away from wet areas. Electricity and water don't mix. Wear rubber or plastic soled shoes when using electrical appliances, especially in wet areas, on concrete or outdoors. Have safety switches installed by an electrician.

Electric shock (domestic)

If someone has had an electric shock, switch off the electrical current at the mains to break the contact between the person and the electrical supply. If you can't reach the mains supply: Do not go near or touch the person until you're sure the electrical supply has been switched off.

Lay the person down and elevate the legs and feet slightly, unless you think this may cause pain or further injury. Keep the person still. Begin CPR if the person shows no signs of life, such as not breathing, coughing or moving. Loosen tight clothing and, if needed, cover the person with a blanket to prevent chilling.

Brief low-voltage shocks that do not result in any symptoms or burns of the skin do not require care. For any high-voltage shock, or for any shock resulting in burns, seek care at a hospital's emergency department. A doctor should evaluate electric cord burns to the mouth of a child.

First aid for shock includes having the person lie on their back, raising their legs to help blood return to the heart, stopping any bleeding, covering them with a coat or blanket to ensure warmth, and performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), if needed.

The heart is most often affected if the current travels from hand to leg or hand to hand across the body, and this may result in a potentially fatal arrhythmia.

How to treat shock at home? ›

Managing shock

Reassure the patient. Raise the patient's legs (unless they have fractures or a snake bite) above the level of the heart, with head flat on the floor. Treat any wound or burn and immobilise fractures. Loosen tight clothing around neck, chest and waist.

Electricity does not stay in the body but passes through, charging the electrons that cause damage to the victim.

Take these actions immediately while waiting for medical help: Turn off the source of electricity if possible. If not, move the source away from both you and the injured person. Use a dry, nonconducting object made of cardboard, plastic or wood.

This can cause other injuries, such as fractures. Electricity can also cause strong muscle contractions that can cause injury. Again, the extent of the damage caused by the event might not appear for up to ten days. Your doctor will tell you what to look for, depending on the type of shock.

Do not touch them. Turn off the source or move the source away. Once contact is broken, perform primary survey. Call 999.

Managing shock

Raise the patient's legs (unless they have fractures or a snake bite) above the level of the heart, with head flat on the floor. Treat any wound or burn and immobilise fractures. Loosen tight clothing around neck, chest and waist. Maintain the patient's body warmth with a blanket or similar.

There are mainly four broad categories of shock: distributive, hypovolemic, cardiogenic, and obstructive. [1] The wide range of etiologies can contribute to each of these categories and are manifested by the final outcome of shock.