Must-know four-step guide on how to help someone who has been stung

Knowing exactly what to do if someone has been stung can make the difference between survival or death.

Here, pulling together advice from the NHS, the British Red Cross and First Aid For Life, MailOnline tells you what to do…

The NHS stresses that you should follow four simple steps, starting with making sure the area is safe. “Think of your own safety,” says a leaflet from NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

First Aid for Life, a course provider, adds: ‘Before rushing to help the victim, it is important to remember that it is a crime scene.

“Take a moment to make sure the area is safe and that you are not putting yourself in danger.”

After checking you are safe to approach the victim, apply pressure to their wound with “whatever is available”, says the NHS.

This will act as a ‘plug’ to stop the blood from escaping, helping to create a clot and stop the bleeding, or at least slow it down.

Call 999 and keep pressure on the wound until an ambulance arrives, says the NHS. If you can’t make the call yourself, get someone else to do it, it adds.

Here, MailOnline pulls together advice from the NHS, the British Red Cross and First Aid For Life and tells you what to do… Call 999 and keep pressure on the wound until an ambulance arrives, says the NHS. If you can’t make the call yourself, get someone else to do it, it adds

The British Red Cross echoes the advice, adding that if there is an object embedded in the wound, do not remove it.

‘This can make the bleeding much worse,’ it says. ‘Put pressure around it.’

First Aid for Life says anything stuck in the wound is ‘likely to stem bleeding’, adding: ‘Note that most perpetrators do not leave the weapon in the victim.’

If the victim is bleeding profusely, they may bleed through and soak the object you use to maintain pressure.

In this case, the NHS advises to remove the soaked item – potentially a jacket or other item of clothing – and replace it with a new one.

You should also not wash the wound because it can also make it bleed more.

Soapy water is only suitable for minor cuts to remove dirt and animal bites if they are not bleeding profusely, says the NHS.

Some people may worry about getting an infection or infecting the person they’re helping, but the NHS says that as long as you don’t have a cut yourself, it’s unlikely to be a problem.

But if you want to protect yourself, a plastic bag or gloves can act as a barrier.

If not enough blood flows through the body, the victim may look pale, feel cold and dizzy, warns the Red Cross.

This is a physical response to an injury called shock.

Different from the emotional response of feeling shocked, it can prove life-threatening, making it important to act quickly.

If you suspect someone is going into shock as a result of the stab wound, first apply pressure to the wound and call 999 if you haven’t already, says the NHS.

Then lay them down and lift their feet higher than the rest of the body. Advice from the NHS says that “this keeps their legs higher than their heart, helping to increase blood flow to their brain and heart.”

The Red Cross also advises to keep soothing them and wrap them in coats and blankets to keep them warm.