Types
of First Aid Kits
"Poor
Man's" First Aid Kit
Making
something out of nothing. The need to be creative is essential
when in the outdoors. For example when hunting, you can dismantle
your gun, unload it, take the barrel and blow through the
end to create a trumpet-like noise. This does take some practice,
but is an excellent mechanism for alerting a member of your
party that you are lost, hurt, or possibly both. Use cellophane
from a cigarette pack to cover a wound. It is an excellent
improvised bandage and somewhat non-adherent. It can also
be used for sucking chest wounds and to carry water. Yes,
not a lot of water, but a few ounces nevertheless which is
better than nothing when you are confronted with dehydration.
My
father’s tackle box when fishing was the front pocket
of his shirt--a few hooks a few weights, and a pocketknife.
I swear he routinely caught more fish than others with their
tackle boxes filled with exotic lures! A plastic bag with
tape, gauze, bandages, Ibuprofen or Acetaminophen is really
all you need for a poor man’s daypack for a day on the
lake or in the woods. I would add a whistle and metal match,
which will be discussed in the next section.
Day
Pack / Weekend Pack
Whistle:
If lost or unable to ambulate due to a broken ankle or leg,
one cannot yell long enough or loud enough to alert others
that you need help, especially if the wind is not in your
favor. A whistle can be used. It is very loud and carries
very, very well. It is recognizably a common sound for help.
Metal
match: A fantastic tool to start a fire, even in
a light rain. A cotton ball saturated with Vaseline® is
great tinder for starting a fire with a metal match.
Knife:
You do not need a knife with a blade larger than a 3”.
It is just not necessary, and will increase your chances of
cutting yourself.
Duct
tape: Multiple uses.
Bandages,
gauze: For lacerations and abrasions.
Plastic
Ziploc® bags: To hold your items and medications.
These plastic bags can be used as irrigation devices for wounds.
You can carry water in them. They can be used as a nonstick
dressing. For irrigation, they can be filled with water. Poke
a very tiny hole in one corner and squeeze like you are decorating
a cake, an excellent device for irrigating out wounds.
Safety
pins: Safety pins can be used to attach the sleeves
of your shirt to the chest area of your shirt, creating a
makeshift sling. This is just one example for this multi-purpose
item.
Toilet
tissue and Kleenex®: Obviously you would place
these items in a Ziploc® bag to keep them dry.
Ace®
bandage or wrap: Also excellent and have many uses,
for pressure dressing bandages and for sprains to mention
a couple.
Over-the-counter
medication:
- Ibuprofen:
You can take up to 4 tablets, which is 800 mg. of Ibuprofen
for pain, every 8 hours with food. Please be advised of
allergies to medication one might have. Ibuprofen can trigger
asthma attacks in asthmatics. Be aware of this.
-
Acetaminophen: You can take 2 tablets every 4-6 hours for
pain. It is very safe to take 3 Ibuprofen and 2 Tylenol
every 8 hours at the exact time for moderate to severe pain,
especially in the outdoors. This works very well as a moderate
analgesic.
- Imodium
AD®.
-
Diphenhydramine (Benadryl®). Wound use (although not
recommended): Take liquid Diphenhydramine, soak a 4 x 4
gauze and apply to the wound. It does have a very mild analgesic
affect, and will stop some pain. Again, Diphenhydramine
has not been approved or recommended for this use, but it
will not cause harm to you and it does work.
-
Rolaids® or Tums®.
-
Afrin® nasal spray (Side note: Afrin nasal spray can
be used on wounds to help stop bleeding. This works very
well.)
-
Sun block.
- Lip
balm (for chapped lips). Lip balm can also be used as a
fire starter by saturating cotton material. It is a great
fire starter because it contains Vaseline® (petroleum).
-
ASA (aspirin). I usually take four 81-mg. tablets, chewable
preferably, and wrap in aluminum foil so they stay dry.
I usually double wrap them by wrapping in cellophane and
then aluminum foil to keep watertight. Recommended use:
In sudden onset chest pain, if one is concerned about possible
myocardial infarction (heart attack), the first line of
treatment is for 81 mg. tablets of aspirin. This should
always be carried in your pack if someone in your party
has history of cardiac or has experienced chest pain in
the past.
Medical
kit for 7-days or Longer
The following
is a list of items for a 7-day first aid kit, whether camping,
hiking, hunting or fishing. Always remember to take into consideration
the climate where you are going, tropical vs. deciduous vs.
winter or summer weather. The medical kit is not all inclusive.
There are other things that should be added to fit your needs.
Individuals wearing eyeglasses should always bring an extra
pair and/or contacts. It is important to consider how many
people will be coming along, along with the sex of the individuals.
A 7-day kit should also include a metal match and fire starting
ability like weatherproof matches. Some of the best weatherproof
matches we have found are from REI.com. Caution should be
used when buying weatherproof matches. They should be tested
first, even though they are touted as wind and waterproof.
This author has found that many are not. However REI.com has
some of the highest quality weatherproof matches.
- Know
how to use what you carry.
-
Replenish outdated medication.
- Practice.
People rarely practice techniques such as starting a fire
with metal matches, splinting, etc.
-
Container. Holds the contents of your medical kit. Your
container should be a well-recognized, bright colored bag,
easy to see amongst your other supplies. It must be waterproof.
For the purpose of this website, the medical kit we will
outline will be for non-medical individuals.
Medical
Kit Contents:
- All
purpose scissors, able to cut cloth, including denim, duck
tape, gauze of various sizes.
-
Medi-rip® (Medi-rip® is a self-adherent) bandage.
-
Splints, preferably a SAM® splint.
-
Ace® wrap.
-
Topical antibiotic (make sure no Neomycin®; approximately
10-12% of the population is allergic to Neomycin, and causes
local redness, and itching.)
-
Topical steroid cream, great for bites and rashes.
-
Gloves.
-
Oral rehydration salts.
-
Water purifier, either through filtration or tablets.
-
Cotton-tipped applicator/Q-tips®, great for everting
eyelids, looking for foreign bodies.
-
Forceps.
-
Superglue (Krazy glue®).
-
Vaseline® or petroleum jelly.
-
Paper tape.
-
Sterile dressings.
-
Lip balm.
-
Sun block.
-
Non-adherent dressings, Telfa®.
-
Steri-strips.
Dental
Kit:
- Floss.
-
Cavit® filling material. I have used this product on
a couple of occasions and it has not worked very well; however,
it is this author’s experience that use of this product
is better than having nothing at all.
-
Oil of Cloves for pain relief.
-
Zinc oxide.
Medications:
- Imodium
AD®.
-
Diphenhydramine (Benadryl®).
- Afrin®
nasal spray.
-
Rolaids® or Tums®, antacids.
-
Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen.
-
Meclizine, over-the-counter for motion sickness.
-
*Pepto Bismol® (*Watch for aspirin allergies. Pepto
Bismol® does have aspirin in it).
-
Antibiotic cream.
-
H2 Blockers like Pepcid®.
-
Milk of Magnesia®.
-
Metamucil®.
-
Deet or Picaridin, which is a new product the manufacturer
Cutter is using which works well and does not have the odor
or toxicity of Deet.
-
Antihistamine eye drops.
-
Baby wipes and toilet paper are a must.
-
Tampons for their obvious gynecological use. However, they
may also be used for nosebleeds.
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