English for Nurses: Eczema Vocabulary allergy allergies be allergic to a bath have a bath to bathe citrus fruits common cool dairy products eczema elbows fingernail a link to link to something make something worse manage a moisturiser to moisturise perfumed pet rash scratch to be sensitive to short shower skin condition to start something off a trigger to trigger unperfumed wear
Activity: Complete the dialogue using terms from the vocabulary list. Check your answer with the transcript. Nurse: Can you tell me when your daughter started to get eczema? Patient: It started when she was about 6 months old. Nurse: Where does she have the rash? Patient: It s mainly behind her knees. She also has a rash on the inside of her elbows. Nurse: Is there anything that triggers the eczema? Anything that starts it off? Patient: Drinking milk gives her a rash. I think orange juice makes it worse too. Nurse: Yes. Both milk and juice are common triggers. Patient: Can you explain about eczema? I don t know much about it at all. Nurse: It s a skin condition which seems to be linked to allergies. Particularly food allergies like dairy products and citrus fruits. Patient: Oh, I see. Nurse: Many people with eczema are sensitive to wool and should only wear cotton clothes. They are often allergic to pets too. Nurse: How do you manage your daughter s eczema? Patient: The doctor gave me some cream to use every day. It s like a moisturiser. Nurse: That s good. When do you use the cream? Patient: I put the cream on, after she has a bath in the morning. And last thing at night, before she goes to bed. Nurse: OK. Can you tell me how often you give your daughter a bath? Patient: She has a bath every morning. I use special soap, not perfumed soap. Nurse: Unperfumed soap is much better. But, it would be better, if your daughter didn t have a bath every day. What about a quick shower instead?
Patient: I suppose so. Nurse: Do you use any other creams on the rash? Patient: Well, I m supposed to use a steroid cream, if her skin gets very red and inflamed. But, I don t like to use it, because I don t think it s safe. Nurse: I can appreciate your concerns. However, the cream has a very small amount of steroid medication in it. Patient: Oh? How often should I use it? Nurse: It s a short-term treatment. Just use the steroid cream, whenever her eczema flares up. It will stop your daughter itching so much that her skin bleeds. Patient: Oh dear, that s what happened! Her skin was so itchy, that she scratched it until it started to bleed. Now it looks infected. Nurse: Yes, she may need some antibiotics to clear the infection. Nurse: There are some things you can do at home, to make your daughter s eczema easier to manage. One thing which helps is to keep your daughter cool especially at night. It makes it easier to sleep. Patient: OK. Nurse: It would also be better, if your daughter had fewer baths. A quick shower is less drying. Patient: Oh, OK. Nurse: Finally, it s a good idea to keep your daughter s finger nails short, so she can t break the skin, if she scratches. Patient: Thanks. That s very helpful. I ll try those hints at home.
Transcript: Nurse: Can you tell me when your daughter started to get eczema? Patient: It started when she was about 6 months old. Nurse: Where does she have the rash? Patient: It s mainly behind her knees. She also has a rash on the inside of her elbows. Nurse: Is there anything that triggers the eczema? Anything that starts it off? Patient: Drinking milk gives her a rash. I think orange juice makes it worse too. Nurse: Yes. Both milk and juice are common triggers. Patient: Can you explain about eczema? I don t know much about it at all. Nurse: It s a skin condition which seems to be linked to allergies. Particularly food allergies like dairy products and citrus fruits. Patient: Oh, I see. Nurse: Many people with eczema are sensitive to wool and should only wear cotton clothes. They are often allergic to pets too. Nurse: How do you manage your daughter s eczema? Patient: The doctor gave me some cream to use every day. It s like a moisturiser. Nurse: That s good. When do you use the cream? Patient: I put the cream on, after she has a bath in the morning. And last thing at night, before she goes to bed. Nurse: OK. Can you tell me how often you give your daughter a bath? Patient: She has a bath every morning. I use special soap, not perfumed soap. Nurse: Unperfumed soap is much better. But, it would be better, if your daughter didn t have a bath every day. What about a quick shower instead? Patient: I suppose so. Nurse: Do you use any other creams on the rash? Patient: Well, I m supposed to use a steroid cream, if her skin gets very red and inflamed. But, I don t like to use it, because I don t think it s safe.
Nurse: I can appreciate your concerns. However, the cream has a very small amount of steroid medication in it. Patient: Oh? How often should I use it? Nurse: It s a short-term treatment. Just use the steroid cream, whenever her eczema flares up. It will stop your daughter itching so much that her skin bleeds. Patient: Oh dear, that s what happened! Her skin was so itchy, that she scratched it until it started to bleed. Now it looks infected. Nurse: Yes, she may need some antibiotics to clear the infection. Nurse: There are some things you can do at home, to make your daughter s eczema easier to manage. One thing which helps is to keep your daughter cool especially at night. It makes it easier to sleep. Patient: OK. Nurse: It would also be better, if your daughter had fewer baths. A quick shower is less drying. Patient: Oh, OK. Nurse: Finally, it s a good idea to keep your daughter s finger nails short, so she can t break the skin, if she scratches. Patient: Thanks. That s very helpful. I ll try those hints at home.