What should you do if you find someone with a piece of glass sticking out of their arm?

Answer 1

First, call the emergency services (ambulance and medics).

First Aid

Do not try to remove the piece of glass. If the patient is standing, get the person to sit or lay down. Wrap a towel around the glass shard to keep it from moving, but do not move the glass or it could cut nerves or blood vessels.

If there is a lot of bleeding or shooting blood, apply pressure above the wound and raise the arm above the level of the heart. You may need to hold the arm up, or put a pillow or thick blanket under the arm and hand so the whole limb is supported and elevated. If the trauma is to the back of the arm, have the patient lie on his side and you'll have to hold the arm up in the air.

Keep the patient calm.

*If the injured person is a child, you may need an adult to hold the child in their arms and still raise the injured arm above the level of the child's heart.

* Do not give anything by mouth to the person, even water, just in case the person needs surgery; surgery is best done when a patient has an empty stomach to avoid vomiting and aspiration of vomitus into the lungs.