The First Aid Kit

StG58

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Orygun, the wet side...
Yup, should have one of those, and training to go with it.

Don't go nuts with the first aid kit. Really. Most of the medical problems you'll run into are minor, or beyond your skill set and above your paygrade. Take a good first aid class. Carry the basics like analgesics, bandaids, and such. I always build my own kits because the stuff in the cheapo premade ones are usually crap. And expensive for what you actually get. Build your own for your conditions. Get slivers? Get tweezers. Lots of poise oak in the area? Throw in some poison oak remedy. Gauze squares are useful. Butterfly bandages come in handy.
 
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Come on Frank...it's a placeholder for now.

Just had my first aid card renewed, and the EMT teaching the class had some very interesting things to say about first aid in the field. He offroads, and his kit is very simple.
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I recently completed a 2 day NOLS Wilderness First Aid class. The instructor made an interesting distinction between "clean" and "sterile". Clean realistically being the best you hope to obtain in a field situation.

He showed (10) 4" gauze squares unwrapped and repacked using a vacuum bag and sealer. There was a very large difference in the packed volume between using the original packaging and the repacked squares. You still maintain the clean requirement and keep the kit size smaller.

Something to consider.
 
The basics work fine; most injuries are minor. Cuts, scrapes, splinters, etc. My basic kit is 4x5 pads, bandaids, steri strips, tweezers, tourniquet, Isreali bandage, Quickclot gauze, and a few other little things I cannot recall. Fits in a small pouch and is portable.
 
I have been an EMT (and EMT trainer) and a National Ski Patrol Outdoor Emergency Care Technician (and instructor trainer) for almost 30 years and I also believe in KIS theory. I carry a jump kit the size of a small back pack (think day pack). What do you want to do besides minor cuts, scrapes etc? You want to insure an airway so I carry orotharyngeal airways- in a small ZIP LOCK bag- they help keep the airway open during transport. Stop the bleeding-besides all the gauze stuff mentioned I carry a couple of tampexs. Great for applying pressure to a major bleed. Super glue works great for sealing cuts, even fairly large ones. Stabilize injuries-broken bones- I carry a kit of splints. They lay flat and take up very little space. With these I can even fashion a cervical collar to stabilize the injury during transport. In the bottom part of this pack is a stethoscope, PB cuff, and blood sugar test kit. PB cuff makes a great tourniquet. Lastly, I carry several cravats all carefully ironed to 1, make them close to sterile and 2, to make them much easier to handle. Then I folded in 3 inch or so wide rolls, in a zip lock bag to keep them clean and dry. With these I can fashion a whole host of things from slings to bandages and in a pinch a dressing. Almost everything in my pack is in a zip lock so even if the pack gets soaked the important stuff stays dry and clean.

Ya my kit may be a bit bigger than what you are thinking but I can, and did carry it on my back while ski patrolling in Europe. It fits nicely in the back of any of my vehicles. AND more importantly as OP mentioned, get the training to save a life.
 
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Agreed. I use super glue on cuts all the time. Heals them twice as fast!

Being a full time ski patroller exposed me to dry, cold and all of us had split finger tips. Super glue tubes were a must in the patrol shacks at the top of the hill. Damn those splits hurt!
 
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Being a full time ski patroller exposed me to dry, cold and all of us had split finger tips. Super glue tubes were a must in the patrol shacks at the top of the hill. Damn those splits hurt!

I've had a few deep cuts that needed stitches that I used superglue on instead. Surprisingly they healed just fine with nothing left behind except a scar.
 
I've had a few deep cuts that needed stitches that I used superglue on instead. Surprisingly they healed just fine with nothing left behind except a scar.
Granted it is the "medical grade" but glue is used in surgery all the time.
 
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I have been an EMT (and EMT trainer) and a National Ski Patrol Outdoor Emergency Care Technician (and instructor trainer) for almost 30 years and I also believe in KIS theory. I carry a jump kit the size of a small back pack (think day pack). What do you want to do besides minor cuts, scrapes etc? You want to insure an airway so I carry orotharyngeal airways- in a small ZIP LOCK bag- they help keep the airway open during transport. Stop the bleeding-besides all the gauze stuff mentioned I carry a couple of tampexs. Great for applying pressure to a major bleed. Super glue works great for sealing cuts, even fairly large ones. Stabilize injuries-broken bones- I carry a kit of splints. They lay flat and take up very little space. With these I can even fashion a cervical collar to stabilize the injury during transport. In the bottom part of this pack is a stethoscope, PB cuff, and blood sugar test kit. PB cuff makes a great tourniquet. Lastly, I carry several cravats all carefully ironed to 1, make them close to sterile and 2, to make them much easier to handle. Then I folded in 3 inch or so wide rolls, in a zip lock bag to keep them clean and dry. With these I can fashion a whole host of things from slings to bandages and in a pinch a dressing. Almost everything in my pack is in a zip lock so even if the pack gets soaked the important stuff stays dry and clean.

Ya my kit may be a bit bigger than what you are thinking but I can, and did carry it on my back while ski patrolling in Europe. It fits nicely in the back of any of my vehicles. AND more importantly as OP mentioned, get the training to save a life.

I spaced out that you were an EMT and Trainer. Remembered that you were Ski Patrol.

The thing that really bothers me about some folks and their first aid kits is they are carrying a ton of stuff that they are not trained to use. Now, you, as an EMT have skills that very few do. You also have a ton of practice and practical experience under your belt. Your first aid kit is going to be much different than mine, or @jgaz with his more advanced training. One of the points that I try to make is that your first aid kit should match your skill set.
 
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Dermabond is the medical grade stuff. It is flexible and has a numbing agent as well as being sterile. Although I have used various super glues with great success. I have that too, being a Paramedic married to a RN has its perks:D
 
I was married to one once-—-a long time ago.
 
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Don't forget 4 to 6 triangular bandages to go with the gauze pads. Google "sealed trauma bandage". Carry one or two and double seal all your stuff in good quality freezer rated zip-locks.
 
Put a decent size stack of Wash 'n Wipes in a good heavy-duty ziplock bag into your first-aid kit too. I'm old enough to have had to perform first-aid on the trail several times and having Wash 'n Wipes to clean some of them up before bandaging them made things go a lot better. Being cleaned up that way was greatly appreciated a lot by the one being bandaged too. No, it doesn't sterilize the wound but that's not usually practical or realistic to do after a trail accident
 
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Put a decent size stack of Wash 'n Wipes in a good heavy-duty ziplock bag into your first-aid kit too. I'm old enough to have had to perform first-aid on the trail several times and having Wash 'n Wipes to clean some of them up before bandaging them made things go a lot better. Being cleaned up that way was greatly appreciated a lot by the one being bandaged too. No, it doesn't sterilize the wound but that's not usually practical or realistic to do after a trail accident

I carry a small bottle of saline along with another small bottle of eye flush. Wash n wipes have a chemical in them that causes a bad reaction for some people. As a last resort flush a wound with clean water and wipe off crap with a piece of the gauze.
 
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