Six Scenarios To Prevent That Can Lead To Injuries Requiring Electrical Injury Care

It's important to understand the potential severity of electrical injuries and to do whatever you can to prevent them. It's scary for patients to experience an electrical injury that requires electrical shock care. Injury prevention is always better than the cure.

Understanding what scenarios often give rise to electrical injuries can help you to prevent this type of injury. The following are six scenarios to prevent that can lead to injuries requiring electrical injury care.

Children have unsupervised access to outlets or electrical appliances

Severe electrical injuries are especially devastating when they happen to children. Unfortunately, children are generally especially susceptible to electrical injuries because they are curious and unaware of electrical hazards.

That's why it's essential to always supervise children when they are around electrical appliances and outlets. It's also important to put outlet plug covers over outlets if you have children in your home. 

Electrical devices with frayed or damaged cords are used

The plastic or rubber covers over electrical cords are essential for ensuring safe operation. It's unsafe to use an electrical device with a frayed or damaged cord. You should have a damaged electrical cord repaired or replaced before using the device to which it is connected. 

Homeowners attempt to do electrical repair work themselves

It's not a good idea to try to perform complicated electrical repairs in your home if you're not a professional. This can lead to electrical injuries that require emergency treatment. You should hire an electrician when you need electrical work done in your home. 

People unplug electrical devices before they've turned them off

Many people have a bad habit of unplugging electrical devices that are still turned on. It's important to understand that electricity moves through the plug and cord of an electrical device that is turned on. It's, therefore, possible to experience an electrical shock if you pull the plug on a device that's turned on.

Get in the habit of always turning electrical devices off before you unplug them to prevent a trip to the health care clinic. 

Too many electrical devices are plugged in at a single outlet

If an outlet is overwhelmed with too many cords, this can cause overloads that lead to electrical shock. Having too many devices plugged into a certain outlet can also create a fire hazard. This means that you need to avoid plugging many electrical devices into the same outlet to prevent injury. 

Outlets located in the kitchen or bathroom are not equipped with GFCIs

If an outlet located near a water source doesn't have a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI), it's possible that electrical shock injuries can occur in the event of a ground fault.

A GFCI quickly shuts off power to such outlets when a ground fault occurs to prevent electrocution injuries from electricity coming into contact with water. 

For more information, contact an electrical injury care service near you.