welcome to BUS.
first of all ... if you
do ever have to go to the doctor, for any reason -- it's your right not to have to explain why you're hurt. there's actually a lot of discussion on here about the various laws doctors have to follow, whether or not they're morally obligated to ask if they feel a cut is as the result of SI, etc . ... and there are some really useful posts around here, along those lines. check out the
sourcebook forum ... there should be a post in there called
Patient's Bill of Rights ... i'll post the link back here if i find it.
however, i totally understand your not wanting to go to the doctor. i'd go ahead and treat the wound like you're talking about already. try to clean it really well, treat it with saline like you said above, and keep treating it with antibiotic ointment ... neosporin rocks my world. change bandages daily.
as for how dangerous an infection is ... depends on how deep the cut is. if it's deep enough that an infection could get into your bloodstream, that's not good. and if there's some question about that, and it doesn't go away soon ... take care of yourself. go to the doctor.
but if the cut's relatively shallow and the infection relatively mild, and you treat it properly for a few days, it shouldn't be very dangerous. it'll have to be a judgment call on your part.
take care of yourself. i hope you find it helpful here.
~b