A burn is an injury to the skin that happens from touching something hot. Scalds are burns from hot liquids or steam.

If your child gets a burn or scald, first make sure the area is safe and there’s no risk of further injury to your child or yourself. Take your child to a safe place if possible.

Remove any clothing, watches or jewellery around the burn immediately, if they aren’t stuck to the burn. Leave any blisters alone.

Treat the burn under cool running water for 20 minutes. If your child is upset or too cold, cool the burn for a few minutes at a time over the next three hours.

Cool the burn, not the child. Stop cooling the burn after 20 minutes. Keep your child warm because hypothermia can happen quickly in children.

Cover the burn with a loose, light, non-sticky dressing like plastic wrap or a plastic zip lock bag. Raise burned limbs to reduce swelling and pain.

Don’t apply ice, iced water, lotions, moisturisers, oil, ointments, butter or flour, creams or powders to the burn. This will make the damage worse.

Call an ambulance on 000 if the burn is to your child’s face, airway, hands or genitals, or if the burn is larger than the size of your child’s hand.

Go to your GP or a hospital if the burn is the size of a 20-cent piece or larger, or if it’s deep, raw, angry or blistered. Also go if the pain persists or is severe, or you’re not sure how bad the burn is.