SLV Talk’s March Edition

• Top 10 First Aid Mistakes & What You Should Do Instead…
• Financial Tips If You’re Planning On Having Children Soon…
• Fun Facts and Laughs: Things Your Plumber Won’t Tell You,Useful Education Websites, And More…
• Trivia Challenge: How smart are you? 
• Real Estate Q&A: What Homework Should I Do  Before I Get A Loan To Buy A Home?…

According to the Red Cross, these are the 10 most common first aid mistakes and what to do for each situation. By knowing the correct response in an emergency you can help someone survive until help arrives, and make recovering from personal injuries faster. Mistake #1: Putting butter or ice on burns. Do This Instead: You should rinse the area with cool water and cover with a raw egg. The egg will seal it from oxygen and stop the burning process. Then use a sterile dressing so you don’t damage the skin tissue. If the burn is severe, see a doctor. Mistake #2: Inducing vomiting with your finger or by taking “syrup of ipecac” when a poisonous substance is swallowed. Do This Instead: Call the Poison Control Center at 1-800-222-1222 or your doctor. Inducing vomiting can be even more harmful. Don’t eat or drink anything unless directed by a medical professional. Mistake #3: Treating a bleeding limb by applying a tourniquet. Do This Instead: Pad the wound with sterile gauze, apply direct pressure and wrap the wound securely. Get medical help if the bleeding doesn’t stop, the wound is deep, or is caused by an animal bite. Mistake #4: Applying heat to a sprain, strain, or fracture. Do This Instead: Put an ice bag on the injury for 20 minutes to reduce swelling, and use a barrier between the ice and skin. Mistake #5: Moving a car accident victim away from the scene. Do This Instead: Leave the injured person in place until paramedics arrive – unless the car is on fire, in an unsafe location, or the person is not breathing and you have to perform CPR on a flat surface. Mistake #6: Rubbing when there’s a foreign substance in your eye. Do This Instead: Rinse the eye with tap water. Rubbing it could scratch the eye. Mistake #7: Using hot water to thaw a cold extremity. Do This Instead: Gradually warm the extremity by soaking it in lukewarm water. Drastic temperature change can cause further damage. Mistake #8: Rubbing alcohol on the skin to reduce a fever. Do This Instead: Lower the fever by giving ibuprofen. If a high fever continues for several days, see a physician or go to the ER. Using alcohol may cause alcohol poisoning, especially in young children. Mistake #9: Treating an allergic reaction to bee stings at home. Do This Instead: Call an ambulance if the victim has breathing problems, tight throat, or swollen tongue. Delaying professional treatment for a respiratory reaction could be fatal. Mistake #10: Applying ointment to a cut or scrape, then covering it with a bandage, and leaving it untended to heal for a few days. Do This Instead: First, wash the wound with soap and water. Bandage it and change the dressing twice a day. Since fresh air allows the wound to heal, it’s best not to use ointment, which can keep the wound moist. Use a looser dressing at bedtime so the wound can get air.

About to add to your family? Here are insurance and savings tips:

• Review your health insurance before you get pregnant (if possible). Most group health plans must cover maternity care, but 87 percent of individual plans do not. Under health care reform, in 2014, maternity and newborn services must be covered by all new plans sold to individuals and small businesses and by plans sold on state-based insurance exchanges. If you don’t have insurance for the child, see options at www.insurekidsnow.gov.

• Purchase adequate life insurance. Experts suggest you want to have around $250,000 of life insurance per child. Estimate how much you’ll need at www.lifehappens.org.

• Invest in a 529 savings plan for your child’s education. A “moderate” college budget for an in-state public college is between $15,000 and $20,000 per year, while a moderate budget at a private college can be up to $45,000 each year. Learn about 529 plans and use the college cost calculator at www.collegesavings.org.

Things Your Plumber Won’t Tell You . . . •  Monday is a busy day – that’s when wives call to get help repairing what their husbands did over the weekend. •  Loose toilet handles are an easy fix. The part costs under $5. A plumber will charge $100 just to show up. •  If your garbage disposal jams, it is easy to follow instructions in the manual to reset it. Useful Education Websites . . . •  www.scholaready.com — Learn how to take your child to the next level. •  www.time4learning.com — Help your child with interactive lesson demos. •  www.kulsara.com — Check out the math and science videos for kids Have A Laugh — “Odd Interview Questions” . . . Glassdoor.com reports that companies are getting creative in asking job interview questions. Prepare yourself in case you get asked something like this: •  “If you were to get rid of one U.S state, which would it be and why?” Forester Research •  “How many cows are in Canada?” Google •  “How many quarters would you need to reach the height of the Empire State Building?” Jet Blue •  “What songs best describe your work ethic?” Dell 

Tune in next month for the answer…..