Fig. 61.—Putting the baby into a wet pack.
If the baby has frequent loose movements; seems feverish; vomits and cries as though he had pain, stop all food and give nothing by mouth but water, until the doctor comes.
If you care for your baby, yourself, through an attack of summer complaint you will find that the doctor’s instructions are directed toward keeping the baby cool, clean and quiet, while he, himself, gives very careful attention to the question of feeding.
It is clear, then, that the baby should be lightly clad and kept quiet and undisturbed, in a cool shady place, out of doors as much as possible. During the warmest part of the day, however, he will often he better off in the house, in a room with the shutters closed. But while keeping the baby cool, you must bear in mind the harm that may be done by chilling him or exposing him to a cold draft or wind. The doctor may want him to have several baths daily, possibly tub baths, at a temperature of 100° F., or cool sponge baths. Packs, also, are given, for they not only cool the baby but quiet him as well, if he is restless. These packs may be cool (80° F.); tepid (100° F.) or hot (105° to 108° F.) according to the baby’s needs.
Fig. 62.—The baby in a wet pack with a hot water bag at his feet and cold compress on his head.
It is a simple matter to give a pack and you will enjoy doing it for you will actually see that your baby will grow quieter and more comfortable as you give it. Cover the bed with a rubber and sheet and bring to the bedside a basin containing a sheet wrung from water of the specified temperature; a basin containing ice and compresses for the baby’s head and a flannel covered hot water bottle at 125° F., for his feet. The baby is laid on the upper half of the folded wet sheet, and an upper corner wrapped about each arm, as in Fig. [61], and the sides folded around his legs. The lower half is brought up between his feet and used to cover his entire body, being tucked around his shoulders. The hot water bottle is placed at his feet and an ice compress on his head, as in Fig. [62]. If the sheets are wrung from warm or hot water, the baby is covered with a blanket after he is put into the pack.
Fig. 63.—Diagrams shoving the successive steps in putting the baby
in a pack.
Should your baby have summer complaint, remember that even a mild attack predisposes to another and you will have to be even more watchful and painstaking than ever, in your care of him. He will have to return to his customary diet very slowly, or he may not be able to take his usual amount of nourishment at all until the weather turns cool. Even though he gains no weight it is important to avoid taxing his digestion since it is already being threatened by the heat.