Rebuilding my 1st Aid Kit

[sweeper]

I took a look at what I had in my 1st aid kit a month ago and found that most of the outer packaging on bandaids and Gauze pads were deteriorated and no clue as to how old the creams were. I started a search for a new kit. Most of the kits had too many miscellaneous items or in a container I didn't want.
Finally I stumbled on 1st Aid Refill Kits. I bought 10 unit refill from Global Industrial. This also let me use my old kit that I bought in the 80's and it was cheap.

http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/s...rst-aid-kit-refill-for-10-unit-first-aid-kits



The kit cleaned out and the creams in the upper right were trashed.



I used most of the refill except the bandaids, 3x3 pads, (both better quality on hand) 5x9 Trauma Pad, and after the pic decided to not use the triangular Bandage. I put 4 of each of the items in the kit and bag up the rest.

 

[Grandpa Paddler]

Kevin, thanks for the post. Reminds me to dig out my kit and make sure fresh and full. I'm generally hustling around trying to update it the night before the 1st trip of the season.

 

[wgiles]

As a person who normally just carries a couple of band-aids in his back pocket and considers that his first aid kit, I was reminded a couple of weeks ago that it is not always that simple. While out in the woods one morning, I cut my fingertip. Not a bad cut, but being a fingertip, it did not want to stop bleeding. The only way that I could get it to stop was direct pressure, which did work. I didn't want to stop for twenty minutes to wait for the wound to clot, so I put a band-aid on my finger and went back to fixing breakfast and breaking camp. That didn't work, as my fingertip continued to bleed slowly. It was more of an inconvenience than anything else. I finally stopped and held pressure long enough to stop the bleeding and then put a band-aid on with some extra tape to keep it from coming off my finger. It was a reminder to be more careful and to be better prepared for such an occurance.

 

[Muskrat]

Most first aid kits don't suit my needs very well. What do I need a hundred bandaids for? Death of a thousand cuts in the woods? My kit is minimal and I'm more concerned with serious injuries like broken bones or cuts requiring stitches. A FEW band aids, antiseptic, superglue, duct tape, and a SAM splint. Everything but the splint fits in a waterproof 50 ml centrifuge tube, with several wraps of duct tape around the tube. I sometimes bring clotting powder, but I need to get some in bulk so I can repackage it to my liking.

 

[Iskweo]

Sweeper...ours is about that size too. We include things like polysporin, afterbite, Tylenol/advil, cold remedies, Visine and a myriad of bandages and such to deal with the everyday cuts and scrapes. A more serious injury would test my first aid skills to be sure but I feel we are prepared to deal with the most likely events. Part of being prepared is knowing what your limitations are and when to seek help from other sources.
We do have contingency plans to send one person for help if necessary.

Christy

 

[sweeper]

And that's the thing. I left the 5x9 Trauma pad, the triangular bandage out of the kit, at that point I figured I'm cutting up spare clothes.

I like the small packets of antibiotic ointment and such. I can bring 4 of each and not a whole lot of small bottles and tubes.
I have done the cold remedies, tylenol, etc but never use them. In a group most people bring their own, I don't use tylenol at home so I'm counting on not needing it in the woods.

 

[dougd]

I did the same thing with my first aid kit when I did my last long trip a few years ago, it's a good reminder to go check it again. Funny how those band aides "dry" out. My guess is I'll be replacing stuff before the next trip in May. Thanks for the reminder!

 

[wgiles]

Besides the band-aids, one other thing that goes in my back pocket is a bandanna. In a pinch, it can be many things first aid. I usually carry an oversize one.

 

[Guest]

One thing I have found helpful to keep in the first aid kit, both in my smaller personal kit or in the big group kit, is a Zip-lock for use as a “trash bag”. The band aid wrappers and etc go into that bag and I know exactly how much of what I used and need to replace after a trip.

The big group 1[SUP]st[/SUP] aid kit is probably overkill overstocked, but after some eliminations and additions there is nothing there I want to remove. That kit is in a 3-compartment rollout medic’s bag, stored inside a small dry bag. The dry bag is marked on two sides with big block letters “1ST AID”, so there is no confusion in a group about what and where it is.

Each of the three compartments in the medic’s bag is labeled (“Drugs & Ointments”, “Dressings & Bandages”, “Wrap,Tape & Tools”). There is a handy slot in that pouch that contains a laminated list of exactly what is in each compartment, so I’m not searching the contents of each compartment for the little bar of antibacterial soap or mole skin.

Jim is right, I do like labeling things.

 

[scoutergriz]

I've been a wilderness junky, former scouter, DND cadet trainer, and 1st aider for decades. In the last 30-40 years I've seen more than enough really nasty injuries- an amputated finger, An axe to the calf, crush injuries, and several hundred stitches, scraped eyes, and broken bones! (kids and their parents!!! )
I tend to go a little overboard with my 1st aid supplies. I carry all the usual along with splinter AND tick tweezers, forceps, a haemostat, (clamp),iodoform sponges, Some eye patches, a couple of tampons (insert in nose to stop uncontrolled bleeding)Pedialyte, maxi pad for large wounds ( better than gauze dressings- more absorbent and won't stick, more water resistant), A small 5cc vial of witch hazel (antiseptic and astringent, anti inflammatory), Watergel (water and alcohol based cooling gel- NOT an ointment), and elliptical surgical staples for a quick, safe, and very easy to remove wound closure. Clean the wound well with the iodoform sponge, use the forceps to pull wound closed, hold the stapler against the skin, push the paddle until it clicks, and lightly bandage, check the wound often for redness or heat. Elliptical staples stand up a little, allowing them to be snipped and pulled out without digging for them, ONLY to be used when steri-strips won't work!) I also include a match safe to sterilize needles before digging out deep splinters or picking out debris that the sponge wont get, and a small headlamp.I carry a small pad and pencil for notes- I can write down the details (type and location of injuries, last meal, vitals and steps taken. I can send the notes with the patient for the ER doc's. The pouch is padded with precut closed-cell foam that can be pulled out and used for splints and padding.
My kit is inventoried, cleaned, and repacked every spring as part of my spring gear-up, or after use.

 

[Chip]

My first aid kit is too big and heavy, but I stuffed some more stuff in there after the time my buddy slipped while climbing up a bank and impaled his thigh on a jagged stick. The stick ripped a big flap of flesh and penetrated about 4" into the inner thigh about halfway between groin and knee, so it was a serious wound. I flushed out the wound with an H2O-betadine, wrapped the thigh with gauze tape, stuck him back in his canoe and he paddled himself off the river. It took half a day to get off the river and into an ER. While the stick missed the femoral artery, I later got the willies thinking about "what if." What if he'd of nicked that artery? So, I added a hemostat, stitching supplies, and clotting compound. I'm not a trained first responder, so God help the person I have to use them on. But if I'm faced with a wound with a spurting artery, at least I have some tools.

Regarding expiration dates on medications, I am not obsessive. I once read a study done for the Army that said, basically, most medications remain effective long after their expiration dates. Expiration dates are selected by the manufacturers and represent a date that they guarantee the stuff is 100% as good as the day it was made. Medications may remain 100% effective long after the expiration date, and even when they do start to degrade, can still be highly effective. So, to my cynical way of thinking, expiration dates are mostly for marketing purposes. I did replace some of the OTC meds in the kit after about ten years. Nothing is forever.

 

[yellowcanoe]

I don't tend to carry much.. After 30 years on the ambulance I got tired of throwing out ratty bandaids, sterile squares and trauma pads of various sizes.. Much never gets needed.

I carry Nu Skin, duct tape, antibiotic, sterile 4x4/s , EMT shears, immodium, tylenol. If you are in the woods the splints are there. Much of what you decide to carry rests on your level of comfort using the tool. I would like to carry Magill forceps but don't. I do carry sugar gel packs. Insta Glucose is a brand. It tastes awful but I have heard of lots of hypoglycemia on canoe trips. I have used insta glucose just as part of work. Kerlix is nice but I can do the same with double sided duct tape( you put it together yourself)

Bandaids are kind of useless but here is a trick to helping them stay put on knuckle and finger.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Band-Aid-modifcation-to-improfve-flexibility-and-k/

I don't tend to carry more than a couple of betadine swabs.. Any more needed and that person you know is going to surgery Ergo a PLB.. I don't know how to use a haemostat properly nor to stitch.

Just a reminder if you impale something and it is in there stuck...don't remove it.. This is tempting to do and sometimes presents difficulties as in showing up at the ER with a patient and a section of iron fence in his abdomen.

What you do depends on where you go and how many of you there are and any other resources you may have.

 

[boatstall]

I don't tend to carry much.. After 30 years on the ambulance I got tired of throwing out ratty bandaids, sterile squares and trauma pads of various sizes.. Much never gets needed.

I carry Nu Skin, duct tape, antibiotic, sterile 4x4/s , EMT shears, immodium, tylenol. If you are in the woods the splints are there. Much of what you decide to carry rests on your level of comfort using the tool. I would like to carry Magill forceps but don't. I do carry sugar gel packs. Insta Glucose is a brand. It tastes awful but I have heard of lots of hypoglycemia on canoe trips. I have used insta glucose just as part of work. Kerlix is nice but I can do the same with double sided duct tape( you put it together yourself)

Bandaids are kind of useless but here is a trick to helping them stay put on knuckle and finger.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Band...ibility-and-k/

I don't tend to carry more than a couple of betadine swabs.. Any more needed and that person you know is going to surgery Ergo a PLB.. I don't know how to use a haemostat properly nor to stitch.

Just a reminder if you impale something and it is in there stuck...don't remove it.. This is tempting to do and sometimes presents difficulties as in showing up at the ER with a patient and a section of iron fence in his abdomen.

What you do depends on where you go and how many of you there are and any other resources you may have.

That is a very practical bandaid modification. Thanks.
30 years of ambulance service deserves a major THANKS

 

[Bothwell Voyageur]

I tend to rely on porous tape for a quick fix, just keep on wrapping until it sticks! Tegaderm dressings or similar are great for covering wounds once the bleeding has stopped, they are transparent so you can see what's going on under there.

I have use small plastic vials at work so I nabbed a couple and carry 1cc of iodine in case I need to clean a wound.

I am not sure I would want to try stitching or stapling a wound unless my patient was unconscious!

 

[yellowcanoe]

I haven't even tried to look for Teggies.. thanks for the idea.. The 4x4 size is practical and I see Nexcare makes some bandages with Tegaderm for knuckles and fingers.. Very useful
PS, Leave the paper on while applying...
Part of our learning curve of starting IVs and using Tegaderm was peeling the paper edge too early before application to the skin.. If you wanna mess... that is the way to go Tegaderm loves to stick to itself.

 

[Guest]

Some time back a CT’er recommended Vet Wrap as a useful wilderness 1[SUP]st[/SUP] aid bag addition. A friend who is a horse vet is bringing me some next month to have a looksee. I’ll let y’alls know.

 

[sweeper]

My Vet in training step daughter brings the butt rolls home and I've thought it would be more useful then an Ace Bandage
https://www.amazon.com/Adherent-Adh...981853&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=vet+wrap+3&psc=1

 

[jish1969]

Vetwrap is only a couple bucks at your local chain pet store, just remember to unroll it and stretch it out before you apply it, because if you don't it will constrict and cut off circulation. As a vet tech I've seen some ugly stuff when people use it wrong on their pets, it becomes a tourniquet. I would definitely recommend it though.

 

[DanOver]

I'm glad to see FAKs being used, thought about and carried. For me, there is the boo boo kit - for minor cuts, scrapes, burns, etc. and there is the TRAUMA kit. The first has duct tape, Tic key, tweezers, NSAIDs, Benadryl topical and tablets and imodium along with various sized bandaids and a tube of neosporin. The Trauma kit has a tourniquet, Israeli Trauma bandage, heavy bandage, space blanket, medical shears, pen light, forceps and a few different sized sutures along with a nasopharengal airway.

Guys, get with the 21st century - buy some Israeli Trauma bandages, YOUtube how to use them and you will be very happy you did.

 

[NorseScotsman]

Good idea to go through and ensure your first aid kit is up-to-date and you know what is in it. Something more important, in my opinion, is to ensure you have some form of First Aid training. I did a Wilderness First Aid course three years ago. As my training was expiring, this time I opted for a Wilderness Advanced First Aid course through Wilderness Medical Associates. Although these types of courses take time/money, I believe they are well worth the investment. Such courses are much more practical than any standard First Aid course. I would highly recommend taking a Wilderness First Aid course if you spend any time in the backcountry.