Cooking an extravagant dinner for your family and friends can be fun and exciting, but it can also be dangerous at the same time. If you are not used to using the sharp knives that are needed to dice, peel, or slice some of the vegetables that may be needed for the fancy recipe you are planning to make, there is a chance that you could hurt yourself when trying to master the new technique. If you have a slight miscalculation when slicing the vegetables and accidentally cut off the tip of your finger, you need to know what to do. Use the following guide to do if you miscalculate your cutting and lop off a fingertip while cooking.

Control the Bleeding

The first thing you will need to do is control the bleeding from your finger. When you cut off the tip of your finger, there is a good chance that a lot of blood while start flowing from your finger right away. Wrap a dish towel around the end of your finger and apply pressure to the area. This will help to control the bleeding so you do not lose too much blood.

Protect the Fingertip

Have someone find the tip of your finger that was cut off and place it in a zippered sandwich bag. You do not want to put the tip in water or directly in ice because the wetness will cause the digit to shrivel.

Put the Tip on Ice

Place the bag with the tip into another bag that has ice in it. You want to be sure to keep the tip as cold as possible to ensure that the finger does not start to dry out or shrivel so the doctors can reattach it.

Go to the Emergency Room

Have someone drive you straight to the emergency room. You could start to feel dizzy or even faint from the blood loss so you do not want to try to drive yourself to the hospital if at all possible. When you get there, explain the situation and the medical team should start working on your finger right away.

Once your fingertip is reattached, you should feel sensitivity in it eventually. There are some people who can never feel the tip of their finger again after it has been reattached because of the damage to the nerves in the finger though. Everyone's situation is unique and you may be able to feel yours though. Then, you can follow up with a primary doctor, like one at Burnsville Family Physicians.