Care of the Burn Patient

Linda Asks:

In my middle grade novel my main character’s dad was a fireman in NY.
He was present during the collapse of the World Trade Center buildings.
He was burned severely and is in the hospital – near death.

My main character remembers his last conversation with his Dad in the hospital right before he dies.

The dad is hooked up to all kinds of beeping machines and is wrapped in white gauze.
After he talks to his son for the final time, he pushes a button for more morphine.

Questions:

Do they still wrap burn patients in gauze?
Is morphine used on severely burned people?

Jordyn Says:

From the point of view of your character– yes, burns are wrapped in gauze. They are specialized dressings, but a character aged 10-13 could perceive it as gauze only.

Yes, morphine is still used for pain.

My only concern is this character having a conversation with his dad. You don’t describe the nature of how he was burned, but a severely burned patient, particularly one close to death, is likely on a breathing machine and, therefore, unable to speak to his son.

You could change the scene to be that he’s so sick that they are getting ready to intubate the character’s father, and the medical team gives them a few moments to talk before they put the father on the breathing machine. He could still die quickly after from his injuries.