Assembling a First Aid Kit

[bertusgeert 1]

I'm assembling a first aid kit. Most of the ones on the market are crap, so I'm putting together my own. I'd like to collect your opinion on what to include/exclude.

The idea is to make it semi-modular. That is, if I do an afternoon hike with my camelback, I take only essentials (list A). If it's a 4 day hike, I take more serious stuff (list B). Also a kit for my paraglider (C), when I go mountainbiking similar to hiking, for when I go rockclimbing, for travelling, and one I keep in the car. They can all be pieces of the same kit.

Any experience with good (or bad) kits? I've been told AMK is good but not optimal. Money is not an issue, this is the kind of thing $20 won't cover.

P.S. No, I haven't taken the Wilderness First Aid class yet, although it's on my to do list.

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As jy dom is moet jy bloei!

[jrmrangers 0]

I actually know for sure there is a thread about this, i remember twardo had some good ideas. Look it up

Wait , I pull what first?

[JohnRich 4]

I like your moduler idea, because one of my first comments was going to be that what you need in a kit depends upon what kind of activity you'll be doing.

Super-glue is one of the handiest items I carry, for glueing shut small cuts or cracked finger skin during dry desert trips. The tubes are small and weigh virtually nothing.

[warpedskydiver 0]

Get some zeroclot, a suture kit, a roll up litter, an assortment of clamps and IV kit along with some morphine syrettes.

[grimmie 173]

Take the first aid class first.

You'll then know how to use what you pack.

The biggest need for a wilderness kit is to stop the bleeding. Gauze and cling tape work well.

[warpedskydiver 0]

Zero Clot, a military tourniquet(they never go bad and are light) some foam surgical tape 2" wide (can be used to cover wounds and or secure bandages) a mylar blanket for exposure or shock, aspirin, ibuprofen, some glycol (for diarrhea or starting a fire) a few cotton balls, a flint and striker. Cling wrap and a few sticks makes a nice splint or holds dressings and keeps wounds clean, it can seal up a sucking chest wound if you leave a flap open on one side.

[skydiver30960 0]

Quote

Get some zeroclot, a suture kit, a roll up litter, an assortment of clamps and IV kit along with some morphine syrettes.

That'd be awesome, if he has an MD who can act as his medical director, and the necessary certifications to administer IVs and narcotics.

Those of you in the military have some very convenient loopholes around that particular civilian requirement, as I understand it.

Bert: Good to see you sticking with it! I know you say the retail kits are shabby, but if you haven't gone there yet check out Galls.com. It's a pretty common, big mail order company that deals with Fire, Rescue, and Police with some military items as well. They have a HUGE selection of kits, ranging from tiny to big enough to stock an ambulance, and some (not all, but some) are actually very reasonably priced for what you get. I bought one of their middle-of-the-road kits when I first started EMS and have used the HELL out of it in the seven years since.

My experience, after all those years hauling around that bag: less is actually more. I used to pack every possible thing I could into that kit, thinking I'd be a one-man-life-saving-machine. Fact of the matter is, I never used (and never WOULD have used) the vast majority of that stuff. Hypothetically, I may have, in the past... not admitting to anything online or anythiing... but I MIGHT have hauled around IVs and fluids for example; but stopped when I decided the risk of carrying "perscription only" equipment without said perscription outweighed the frequency with which I used it (never).

The single most important thing to have in your kit: training. You mentioned the wilderness EMT course, cool idea. No matter what your planned "theater of operations" is make sure you have the right training. It'll teach you how to do best for your patient, how to PROTECT YOURSELF (physically and legally), and help you understand your scope of practice. In turn, this will go a long ways to help you understand what needs to be in your kit.


Otherwise: gloves, a good CPR mask, a reflective vest if you think you'll ever come across issues on the roadway, a variety of bandages and tape, some saline bottles for washing out wounds and eyes, trauma shears, a roll of SAM splint (worth its weight in gold), simple little things like stiptic pencils and "sting swabs" to manage the annoying little things, and a generously sized bottle of hand cleanser. Such a kit has helped me help others (including more than a few DZ-related injuries) many, many times.

A good jump bag (or tick bag, or squirrel kit, whatever you want to call it) is like a good rigger's kit: it's made, not bought. Get yourself something that comes with the basics and has a little room to grow, and as you go along you'll decide for yourself what is worth carrying.

Elvisio "be safe!" Rodriguez

[warpedskydiver 0]

Superglue is great for closing small wounds, bleeding is an immediate concern, infection can be treated when you get to the hospital.

[warpedskydiver 0]

What military? hey I gotta go play XBOX they are calling for formation.

[ryoder 1,387]

Quote

Zero Clot, a military tourniquet(they never go bad and are light) some foam surgical tape 2" wide (can be used to cover wounds and or secure bandages) a mylar blanket for exposure or shock, aspirin, ibuprofen, some glycol (for diarrhea or starting a fire) a few cotton balls, a flint and striker. Cling wrap and a few sticks makes a nice splint or holds dressings and keeps wounds clean, it can seal up a sucking chest wound if you leave a flap open on one side.

"Shoot, a fella' could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas with all that stuff."

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[cocheese 0]

eye drops/contacts.
Tumms or Rolaids.
Marker and some paper to write on to leave notes for rescue people or yourself etc.
Swiss army knife.
garbage bags and sandwich bags etc. paper towel compressed into one small bag.
fire kit.
tape.
string.

[BillyVance 34]

a bottle of Jack Daniels for pain, and sterilizing a gaping wound.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[Anvilbrother 0]

All you need is a bottle of jack and an old dirty towel:)

Postes r made from an iPad or iPhone. Spelling and gramhair mistakes guaranteed move along,

[mutumbo 0]

like someone already said, take a WFR class first. just yesterday i got back from a RMAP (remote medicine for advanced providers) class, which is geared for paramedics-MDs. i learned alot about what you can use in various ways.

as far as the kit goes, its mostly personal preference, but i will never leave home again without some cloth athletic tape, kerlex, and kling. so much can be done with those three things. beyond that its all personal preference really.

my instructors survival/med kit could fit in something just bigger than an altoids box. its all in how creative you can get, and hes about as good as they come.

Thanatos340(on landing rounds)--
Landing procedure: Hand all the way up, Feet and Knees Together and PLF soon as you get bitch slapped by a planet.

[Krip 2]

Duct Tape.

Cell phone.

Boobs.

One Jump Wonder