General information, not medical advice. In an emergency, call triple zero (000).
If someone may have heatstroke
healthdirect calls heatstroke a medical emergency. First, call triple zero (000) and ask for an ambulance.
Then, while you wait for the ambulance, cool the person down in whatever way you can:
- If they are conscious, give them small sips of a cool drink.
- Lie them down in a cool room or a shady spot, and stay with them.
- Take off or loosen any extra clothing.
- Sponge or spray them with cool water, or lay wet towels or wet clothes over them, then fan their damp skin.
- If they are conscious, put them in cool water or under a cool shower.
- Put cold packs on their cheeks, on the palms of their hands and on the soles of their feet.
- If they are unconscious, lay them on their side with the mouth facing down and the chin up. You may need to do CPR.
Check with a doctor before giving aspirin, ibuprofen or paracetamol to someone with heatstroke: healthdirect says it will not help and can cause harm.
healthdirect’s first aid for heatstroke, every step kept, in plain words. The original is on healthdirect’s heatstroke page.
Heatstroke or heat exhaustion?
The steps above are for heatstroke only. Heat exhaustion is a separate condition, and NSW Health says it must be treated because it can quickly develop into severe illness.
healthdirect describes the difference. With heatstroke, skin may be red, hot or dry, body temperature rises suddenly above 40°C, and sweating stops or drops, though someone who has been exercising may still be sweaty; the tongue may be dry and swollen, with intense thirst; there may also be confusion, slurred speech, poor coordination, aggressive or strange behaviour, seizures or loss of consciousness. With heat exhaustion, body temperature stays normal or only a little higher, the skin feels cool, pale and clammy, and the person keeps sweating, usually heavily.
For heat exhaustion, follow the first aid on healthdirect’s heatstroke page, which also says when heat exhaustion needs a call to triple zero (000).
Safe Work Australia’s first aid, in full
Safe Work Australia wrote this first aid for workplaces, so it speaks of “the worker” and of protective equipment. It is quoted here whole, in its own words and its own order, under its five conditions. The source is Safe Work Australia’s page on first aid for heat-related illness. Above the five conditions, Safe Work Australia’s page says: “If you think a person may have heat exhaustion or heat stroke, call an ambulance immediately.”
1. Dehydration
“Dehydration symptoms
Seek medical advice if symptoms don’t improve or are severe.
Dehydration symptoms include:
- mild to severe thirst (remember that thirst is satisfied before fluid loss is fully replaced)
- dry lips and tongue
- slowed mental function and lowered performance
- reduced or dark urine output.
First aid for dehydration
- Drink water.
- Avoid caffeinated, carbonated and alcoholic drinks, and salt tablets.
- Loosen tight clothing and remove unnecessary clothing, including personal protective equipment (PPE).
- In cases of extreme heat or dehydration, replace electrolytes.”
2. Heat rash
“Heat rash
Heat rash is an itchy rash with small raised red spots on the face, neck, back, chest or thighs.
Seek medical advice if symptoms don’t improve.
First aid for heat rash
- Move worker to a cooler, less humid environment.
- Keep the affected area dry and remove unnecessary clothing, including PPE.
- Apply a cold compress.”
3. Heat cramps
“Heat cramps symptoms
Heat cramps are painful and often incapacitating cramps in muscles, particularly when doing demanding physical work.
Seek medical advice if symptoms don’t improve.
First aid for heat cramps
- Stop activity and have the worker rest quietly in a cool place until recovered.
- Give the worker an electrolyte solution.”
4. Fainting
“Fainting symptoms
Fainting (heat syncope) can happen while standing or rising from a sitting position.
Seek medical advice if a worker faints.
First aid for fainting
- Lie the worker flat immediately with their legs slightly raised.
- Do not raise the head.
- Treat as for heat stroke.”
5. Heat stroke and heat-induced illness
“Call ambulance immediately if heat stroke is suspected
Heat stroke symptoms include:
- dehydration, thirst, and reduced or dark urine output
- sweating
- elevated body temperature
- weakness or fatigue
- headaches and dizziness
- nausea
- muscle cramps.
Severe symptoms include:
- the worker stops sweating
- skin can be pink, warm and dry, or cool and blue
- clumsiness or slower reaction times
- disorientation or impaired judgement
- rapid or short breathing
- rapid weak pulse, pounding pulse or heart palpitations
- tingling or numbness in fingers or toes
- visual disturbance
- vomiting or an unwillingness to drink.
- irritability and mental confusion
- collapse, seizures and unconsciousness
- cardiac arrest (the worker is unconscious, has stopped breathing and has no pulse).
Not all heat-induced illness symptoms will be present.
First aid for heat-induced illness
- Call 000 and evacuate by ambulance immediately
- Update the ambulance if the worker seizes or becomes unconscious and follow all directions given by emergency crew
- Follow all instructions given by ambulance operator
- If cardiac arrest occurs, follow DRSABCD action plan
- Move the worker to a cool place with circulating air.
- Lie the worker flat.
- Remove unnecessary clothing, including PPE.
- Loosen tight clothing.
- If practicable, immersion in a bath of cold water is the most effective cooling means possible.
- Immerse the worker (whole-body from the neck down) in a bath of cold water (preferably 1–7˚) for 15 minutes.
- Continuously observe the worker to ensure an open airway in case of any change in their level of consciousness.
- If cold bath is not available, or is not reasonably practicable to use, use a combination of the following as available:
- Cool the worker by splashing cool or cold water on their skin or sponging their skin with a damp cloth.
- Make a wind tunnel by suspending sheets around – not on – the worker’s body, and use a fan to direct gentle airflow over the worker’s body.
- Apply cold packs or wrapped ice to the worker’s neck, groin and armpits.
- Give an electrolyte solution with sugar – do not attempt to give oral fluid if the worker is not fully conscious.
- Shivering is an automatic muscular reaction which warms the body. It will make the body temperature rise even further.
- If the worker starts shivering:
- stop cooling immediately and cover them until they stop
- once they have stopped, recommence first aid treatment.”
Source: safeworkaustralia.gov.au © Commonwealth of Australia.
Keeping a home cool in extreme heat
healthdirect’s advice for very hot weather includes keeping the house cool by closing windows and curtains in the day and opening them at night, and using fans or air conditioning. If you have neither, it suggests going somewhere air-conditioned, such as a public library or shopping centre. It also suggests visiting or phoning at-risk friends, family and neighbours when it is hot, and warns never to leave a child or an animal by themselves in a car, even if the windows are open or the air conditioning is running.
Heat is easier to meet prepared. NSW Health suggests checking, before hot weather arrives, that air conditioners and fans are working properly, and energy.gov.au says servicing should be done by a licensed technician, so a unit that is not working well is one to have a licensed technician look at before summer.