Abstract:
Abstract: The present study describes initial burn injury care in Tanzania-materials applied, sources of information,
reasons for applying the materials, and time to a health centre-in order to suggest ways to optimize initial care. Eight
small studies were conducted in which burn-injured patients were interviewed who had been admitted to referral
hospitals in four regions in Tanzania. Most burn injuries in Tanzania occur in the home cooking area, and it was
found that the first responders were family members, friends, and neighbours. A total of 710 burn victims were
interviewed. Twenty-four different materials were applied to the patients’ wounds. The most common application
was honey. Only 14.3% of the victims received the recommended form of care: application of cool water. It was also
found that nothing was applied to the wounds of 17.5% of these patients by first responders. Sources of information
on burn treatment were family, friends and neighbours, and, less often, health workers or the media. Most of the
burn victims’ households had enough water to enable administration of recommended initial care. The main impediment
to the provision of appropriate initial treatment of a burn appears to be lack of correct and useful knowledge
about what to do immediately after the injury. A two-pronged educational approach should be used to improve care.
A national mass media campaign should start immediately to inform ordinary citizens about proper initial treatment
of burns. In addition, curricula of all schools that train health workers need to be reviewed for accuracy, and appropriate
knowledge about initial care of burn victims should be added if necessary. Measures to improve burn first
aid, are relatively easy, even in a low-income country such as Tanzania.
