{"id":8212,"date":"2020-11-17T19:01:29","date_gmt":"2020-11-17T19:01:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/?p=8212"},"modified":"2020-11-17T19:01:31","modified_gmt":"2020-11-17T19:01:31","slug":"injury-prevention-tips-for-thanksgiving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/injury-prevention-tips-for-thanksgiving\/","title":{"rendered":"Injury Prevention Tips for Thanksgiving"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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For millions of New Yorkers, Thanksgiving is\nan important celebration bringing together family and friends over food and\ndrinks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, this rich American holiday is\nalso when Jamaica Hospital Medical Center sees an increase in trauma cases\ninvolving preventable injuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are some tips to help you stay safe\nduring this Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#1 –\nPay close attention to your hands when using cutting tools.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of the most common injuries seen during\nThanksgiving involve kitchen cutting tools like knives, mandolins, graters,\nblender blades, and peelers. These cutting injuries normally occur when someone\nis not paying attention to the placement of their fingers before cutting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avoid distractions like talking to others,\nwatching television, or trying to multitask multiple cooking tasks. Scheduling\nyour food preparation and cooking times in advance may help reduce stress and\nallow you to properly pace yourself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep all sharp objects away from counter\nledges and away from children. When passing cutting tools like knives or\nscissors to others, be sure to practice extra caution and ensure the person\nreceiving the cutting tool has a good handle to prevent dropping it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When clearing out a blender, make sure it is\nunplugged from the wall and pay close attention to the blades. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mandolins are notorious for fingertip\ninjuries, so we recommend you refrain from using them unless they offer special\nsafety features to prevent accidental cuts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you are using a peeler, make sure you have\na good handle on the food you are peeling. Some food, such as potatoes and\ncucumbers can be slippery and cumbersome to hold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lastly, many kitchen sinks have a garbage disposal installed to grind up scraps and other food waste for easy disposal down the drain. Sometimes these garbage disposals can get clogged up. Avoid putting your fingers down the drain. Make sure the electrical switch controlling the garbage disposal is in the \u201coff\u201d position before unclogging the drain.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

#2 –\nPractice extra caution around stovetops, ovens, hotplates, pots, and pans to\navoid burns.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Treat any cooking surfaces with caution or\nassume all pots and pans are hot. Many Thanksgiving injuries involve burns from\nhandling very hot objects without the proper protection like oven mitts. Be\nsure to keep small children away from the kitchen to avoid burning curious\nhands. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If your home has an electric stovetop, always\nmake sure all knobs are in the off position when not in use. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When boiling water or using cooking oil, be\nsure to keep a close eye to avoid boil over or accidentally knocking over a pot\nor pan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Look around before opening or closing the\noven, and always using proper protection to avoid burns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you or someone does get burned, cool it\ndown with water. Do not use ice. Cover the burn with an antibiotic ointment.\nDon’t use home remedies like butter or lard. If the burn blisters or covers a\nlarge portion of skin, make sure to seek medical attention at an emergency room\nor urgent care facility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#3 – Do\nnot drink and drive.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the more tragic and completely\npreventable traumas we see at Jamaica Hospital is a motor vehicle crash due to\ndrunk driving. While sharing memories and food with alcohol is a staple of a\nThanksgiving dinner, no one should be getting behind the wheel of a vehicle\nwhen they are inebriated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Drunk driving accounts for nearly 500 deaths\neach year during the Thanksgiving holiday.[1]<\/sup><\/a>  Do not be a statistic. Keep yourself, your\nfamily, your friends, and others on the road safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you see someone at your home over drinking\nor inebriated, ask them to slow down. Have your guests\u2019 addresses readily\navailable ahead of time in case they need to take a cab, Uber, or Lyft back\nhome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If possible, have someone your trust in charge\nof pouring or mixing drinks for your guests. Having one person keep track of\nthe number of times someone asks for a refill will help you identify who needs\nto be cut off from further indulging in alcohol consumption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#4 –\nMake your home a fall free zone.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have older adults visiting for\nThanksgiving, such as grandparents, great-grandparents, or anyone over the age\nof 65, be sure to make your home easy to navigate and clutter-free. One in four\nolder adults age 65 and older experience a fall each year in the United States.\nFalls are responsible for most injuries and fatalities in the senior\npopulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some ways to prevent falls in your home are\nkeeping all pathways clear of wires, books, shoes, or throw-rugs, keeping\nhallways and all rooms well illuminated, and checking in with seniors to see\nhow they feel after dinner as they may feel tired. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We encourage you and your guests to keep a close eye on seniors to notice if they are acting strangely or require assistance getting to a bathroom, walking up or downstairs, or getting up or sitting down at their seats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#5 –\nFollow all instructions carefully when deep-frying a turkey.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In recent years, deep-frying a turkey has\nbecome a more common cooking method on Thanksgiving. While a deep-fried turkey\ndoes sound delicious, it can be dangerous if used incorrectly leading to\nserious injuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you do decide to deep-fry a turkey this\nyear, make sure you are wearing protective gear and wearing flame-retardant\nclothing. Wear long sleeves and use safety goggles to prevent oil splatter\ninjuries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Only deep-fry a turkey outdoors with plenty of\nspace – at least 10 feet away from your home and away from any low hanging\nbranches. The deep-fryer must be placed on a flat and leveled surface away from\nflammables. Always have a fire extinguisher on hand in case a fire breaks out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Follow all instructions carefully when using\nthe deep-fryer. Do not overfill the deep-fryer with oil. Too much oil can lead\nto overflow and splashing, leading to fires or burns. Never leave the\ndeep-fryer unsupervised. You must make sure your turkey is completely defrosted\nbefore putting it into the deep-fryer. Failing to do so can lead to a fire and\nserious injury.
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All content of this newsletter is intended for general information purposes only and is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult a medical professional before adopting any of the suggestions on this page. You must never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking medical treatment based upon any content of this newsletter. PROMPTLY CONSULT YOUR PHYSICIAN OR CALL 911 IF YOU BELIEVE YOU HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY.<\/strong> <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For millions of New Yorkers, Thanksgiving is an important celebration bringing together family and friends over food and drinks. Unfortunately, this rich American holiday is also when Jamaica Hospital Medical Center sees an increase in trauma cases involving preventable injuries. … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8212","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8212","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8212"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8212\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8216,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8212\/revisions\/8216"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8212"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8212"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamaicahospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8212"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}