Got caught out yesterday.

  • Hey Guest, Early bird pricing on the Summer Moot (29th July - 10th August) available until April 6th, we'd love you to come. PLEASE CLICK HERE to early bird price and get more information.

Short_edc

Tenderfoot
May 1, 2020
76
56
Cambs
Hi all hope you have had a wonderful weekend,
I was reminded yesterday that having a first aid kit and everyone having the knowledge to use it is something that il never be without again,
I’ve been working a birch burl kuksa, just bored lockdown play, I have been whittling since I was a kid and I have been a butcher for 8 years and now I’m a chef so I have experience handling sharps, (which turns out means f/a) the wife came out to call me in, ofcourse I said put the kettle on and il be in, well Long story short I managed to slash an 8cm cut across my left wrist which missed all the good bits by mm I was told by the paramedics, I had to tie a dressing gown rope around my arm, and ruined a bloody good tea towel I nicked from work. I couldn’t tell you whilst in shock where my fak was and I hadn’t told the wife, So now I’ve had my stitches and feel like a proper wally and have realised where I went wrong, I have ordered new kits for the house and the car and il be adapting them in turn, and the wife will be going on a course with St. John’s, I’m fine, and got to ride in the ambulance with the lights on lol and the paramedics where amazing and where there in minutes, so just a reminder to stay safe out there friends.
 

The puffin squire

Full Member
May 19, 2020
73
61
Kent
Glad your ok ,could of been much much worse by the sound of it. Yes indeed we take things for granted it's funny all houses are the same fak is usually hidden away somewhere back of a cupboard drawer etc. Maybe houses should be like commercial places and fak clearly on display and accessible. Dealing with the shock and thinking with a clear head is an entirely different matter though. Couple hundred quid for a first aid course is money well spent imo

Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk
 
  • Like
Reactions: Short_edc

TeeDee

Full Member
Nov 6, 2008
10,446
3,650
50
Exeter
Hi all hope you have had a wonderful weekend,
I was reminded yesterday that having a first aid kit and everyone having the knowledge to use it is something that il never be without again,
I’ve been working a birch burl kuksa, just bored lockdown play, I have been whittling since I was a kid and I have been a butcher for 8 years and now I’m a chef so I have experience handling sharps, (which turns out means f/a) the wife came out to call me in, ofcourse I said put the kettle on and il be in, well Long story short I managed to slash an 8cm cut across my left wrist which missed all the good bits by mm I was told by the paramedics, I had to tie a dressing gown rope around my arm, and ruined a bloody good tea towel I nicked from work. I couldn’t tell you whilst in shock where my fak was and I hadn’t told the wife, So now I’ve had my stitches and feel like a proper wally and have realised where I went wrong, I have ordered new kits for the house and the car and il be adapting them in turn, and the wife will be going on a course with St. John’s, I’m fine, and got to ride in the ambulance with the lights on lol and the paramedics where amazing and where there in minutes, so just a reminder to stay safe out there friends.

Kudos for unashamed Honesty.


Do you know with reflection how it actually occurred. ??
 

Short_edc

Tenderfoot
May 1, 2020
76
56
Cambs
Glad your ok ,could of been much much worse by the sound of it. Yes indeed we take things for granted it's funny all houses are the same fak is usually hidden away somewhere back of a cupboard drawer etc. Maybe houses should be like commercial places and fak clearly on display and accessible. Dealing with the shock and thinking with a clear head is an entirely different matter though. Couple hundred quid for a first aid course is money well spent imo

Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk
Couldn’t agree more mate it’s so important to have loved ones prepared too, it’s been a hard lesson to me.
 

Woody girl

Full Member
Mar 31, 2018
4,518
3,457
65
Exmoor
You were very lucky there. I've had an artery bleed on me. It's very scary. .... and spectacular!.
Luckily it was a small wound and I was able to apply pressure and yell for help.
First aid training kicked in quite well.
Glad you are ok now.
I've had to deal with nasty cuts and even car accidents several times. First aid kit and training is a must .
Hope it all heals up nicely.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Short_edc

Paul_B

Bushcrafter through and through
Jul 14, 2008
6,151
1,544
Cumbria
First aid kits? Kitchen pantry X2, van X1 and backpacking kit on bedroom drawers. Add in an old one in the car we rarely use these days and other old backpacking kit boxes in the loft with a good set of ladders up to it.

I could probably place my hands on plasters, large wound dressing and bandages in a few other locations. Then there's the things we can modify to be be used such as a kitchen drawer full of clean tea towels. There's towels and flannels clean in the landing cupboard. Me and my partner know enough first aid to cope with what we're likely to encounter at home. I've done at Johns courses and my partner did first aid through past job.

However, until something serious happens to you you really don't know how you might react to am incident. Shock I reckon isn't predictable in how it might affect you. I've been tested by a climbing accident. I was totally unphased by a smashed up hand and still having to down climb a pitch I had reached the crux of. You have to do what you have to do in guess. Plus I learnt then that the human body has evolved to give you what you need to survive a lot? That incident I felt an initial burn them no pain. Heck I was still hanging off my crushed hand trying to be down climb 5 minutes after the incident happened. Mind totally clear and focused on getting down. Also checking on the others in the group.

I think it's been said but to summarise. When you have an accident you need a few things. First aid kit, knowledge of what to do and the clear head to do it. The first two could lead to the third but not guaranteed.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Short_edc
... I couldn’t tell you whilst in shock where my fak was...

@Short_edc, don't feel too bad about not remembering where the first aid kit was while under stress. An emergency situation does effect our thinking. Which is why many professionals train using "life like" scenarios. The idea is to replicate the emotions of the situation, and to make it familiar when it does happen so it is easier to keep the mind working and follow your training.

Just a week after getting my 16-hour First Aid Certificate, I was driving a windy mountain road on the way to go hiking. In front of me a motorcycle lost it around a corner and went under the wheels of an oncoming pickup truck. I was the sixth person on the scene. But since nobody had medical training, it was necessary for me to assist.

In the wilderness protocol, we ask the patient SAMPLE questions.
S = Symptoms
A = Allergies
M = Medication
P = Past Medical History
L = Last Intake and outputs
E = Environment (hot/cold/hydration/etc...)

When it came to that part of the protocol, I could not remember the acronym SAMPLE. I had used it for 16 hours just seven days prior! I had to stand up, walk away from the patient, and take a few breaths. When I remembered it, I returned and was able to collect the information.

It made me realize my mind was not working normally.

It seems to be a part of our psychology.

- Woodsorrel
 

Van-Wild

Full Member
Feb 17, 2018
1,400
1,221
44
UK
Having recently become interested in EDC and Preparedness I collected all my FAKs together and did a good overhaul. All four were out of date, some by years so I put them to one side and ordered 4 new sets. One for the work van, two for the house and a bleeder kit for EDC.

The vehicle kit is in a soft pouch, rubber banded to my sun visor so I can reach it even if I'm trapped. Its a pretty comprehensive kit.

The two house ones are the same as the vehicle one. I sewed velcro to the back of them both and glued a patch of velcro to the side of the vanity unit in the bathroom and another patch to the side of the kitchen unit. This way I have a kit upstairs and downstairs, both easily grabbed in an emergency to the point of injury. By grabbing the whole kit noone has to worry about opening it up and trying to scrabble handfuls of medical kit to the point of injury and dropping it all along the way. The whole kit moves in seconds. One upstairs, one downstairs, dependant on position of the casualty, seconds saves lives.....

My bleeder kit I put together myself and its contained in a Patagonia mini lite 1ltr hip pack/bum bag/fanny pack. It now goes everywhere with me. Its contents I put together myself. Emergency Care Bandage (Israeli field dressing), tourniquet, NAR S Gauze, NAR Quikclot dressing and non-latex gloves.

The out of date FAKs I used to teach my wife and kids how to stop a bleed.

Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk
 

TLM

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Nov 16, 2019
3,092
1,623
Vantaa, Finland
You were lucky but sometimes that is needed too. If nothing important was cut you'll have a nice scar.

In a few years you'll here some questions about psychological troubles. That happened to my father long ago when he cut his wrist shafting an axe.

The fog of trouble. That is why soldiers are taught very simple things over and over again, those might remain available in a fire fight, for some they do for some not.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Short_edc

Short_edc

Tenderfoot
May 1, 2020
76
56
Cambs
Having recently become interested in EDC and Preparedness I collected all my FAKs together and did a good overhaul. All four were out of date, some by years so I put them to one side and ordered 4 new sets. One for the work van, two for the house and a bleeder kit for EDC.

The vehicle kit is in a soft pouch, rubber banded to my sun visor so I can reach it even if I'm trapped. Its a pretty comprehensive kit.

The two house ones are the same as the vehicle one. I sewed velcro to the back of them both and glued a patch of velcro to the side of the vanity unit in the bathroom and another patch to the side of the kitchen unit. This way I have a kit upstairs and downstairs, both easily grabbed in an emergency to the point of injury. By grabbing the whole kit noone has to worry about opening it up and trying to scrabble handfuls of medical kit to the point of injury and dropping it all along the way. The whole kit moves in seconds. One upstairs, one downstairs, dependant on position of the casualty, seconds saves lives.....

My bleeder kit I put together myself and its contained in a Patagonia mini lite 1ltr hip pack/bum bag/fanny pack. It now goes everywhere with me. Its contents I put together myself. Emergency Care Bandage (Israeli field dressing), tourniquet, NAR S Gauze, NAR Quikclot dressing and non-latex gloves.

The out of date FAKs I used to teach my wife and kids how to stop a bleed.

Sent from my SM-G970F using Tapatalk
There’s some good advice there mate, I appreciate the chat, I’m looking into a bleeds kit, I have always used lifesystems kits as a base for building on, so that’s what I’ve done, orderd some different sizes and will add gear to them depending on where the kit will live,
 
  • Like
Reactions: Van-Wild

Tony

White bear (Admin)
Admin
Apr 16, 2003
24,128
1
1,875
53
Wales
www.bushcraftuk.com
Yeah, thanks for sharing this, it's a good reminder to all of us that no matte what we're always venerable and need to be prepared.

I've been throwing spikes, knives, axes and other things a lot lately and every time a spike sings past me, or I tap a rebounding knife aside I think I really should have a kit out with me and and easy to reach wound dressing rather than rely on being able to shout loud enough to get someone from in the house...
I will be good from now!!!

Thanks edc!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Short_edc

Short_edc

Tenderfoot
May 1, 2020
76
56
Cambs
hey Tony hope your keeping well,
I was hoping some might learn from my error, but I think even if I had read something like last week it still might not have been enough, Complacency kills and I got lucky this time, but this is my second bad accident in two years (broke my radial head cycling requiring surgery and 6 months recovery) SAME ARM! and I won’t allow myself to be unprepared again, accidents happen ofcourse, but it’s how we react and respond to them that can make all the difference. Il be edcing a basic ifak and bleed kit from now on,
 

Wildgoose

Full Member
May 15, 2012
776
429
Middlesex
Hey Dee, what bothered me the most is the speed in which it all happened, looking back i had just become complacent, in more ways than one, I’m definitely not ashamed, it was completely my fault and have learned from it
I nearly took my thumb off with an axe when I was 17. Same complacency and about 20 seconds before shock set in.
luckily my dad was a firefighter and took the lead.
We have first aid kits in the cars and house but I also keep a couple of compression dressings in the bag I store my knives and axes in.
if you don’t have any decent dressings PM me your address and I’ll pop some in the post.
 

TeeDee

Full Member
Nov 6, 2008
10,446
3,650
50
Exeter
I nearly took my thumb off with an axe when I was 17. Same complacency and about 20 seconds before shock set in.
luckily my dad was a firefighter and took the lead.
We have first aid kits in the cars and house but I also keep a couple of compression dressings in the bag I store my knives and axes in.
if you don’t have any decent dressings PM me your address and I’ll pop some in the post.

Just interested in what you call/consider a 'decent' dressing and more importantly why? You talking IDF Dressing?
 

Short_edc

Tenderfoot
May 1, 2020
76
56
Cambs
@Short_edc, don't feel too bad about not remembering where the first aid kit was while under stress. An emergency situation does effect our thinking. Which is why many professionals train using "life like" scenarios. The idea is to replicate the emotions of the situation, and to make it familiar when it does happen so it is easier to keep the mind working and follow your training.

Just a week after getting my 16-hour First Aid Certificate, I was driving a windy mountain road on the way to go hiking. In front of me a motorcycle lost it around a corner and went under the wheels of an oncoming pickup truck. I was the sixth person on the scene. But since nobody had medical training, it was necessary for me to assist.

In the wilderness protocol, we ask the patient SAMPLE questions.
S = Symptoms
A = Allergies
M = Medication
P = Past Medical History
L = Last Intake and outputs
E = Environment (hot/cold/hydration/etc...)

When it came to that part of the protocol, I could not remember the acronym SAMPLE. I had used it for 16 hours just seven days prior! I had to stand up, walk away from the patient, and take a few breaths. When I remembered it, I returned and was able to collect the information.

It made me realize my mind was not working normally.

It seems to be a part of our psychology.

- Woodsorrel
Hey woodsorrel, it’s more that I hadn’t shown my wife what to do in the event something happened, If I had she might have been able to get to the kit, but now
And for getting excited about going in the ambulance with the lights on. :)

Hope you’re ok and it heals quickly.
:crutch::surrender:
Those two paramedics are fantastic people, as are they all. And thanks mate
 
  • Like
Reactions: woodsorrel

BCUK Shop

We have a a number of knives, T-Shirts and other items for sale.

SHOP HERE