how comprehensive is your pocket first aid kit

[Tex]

I was looking through my out door gear again. Most of which i'm pretty happy about, but as usuall I glance at my small pocket first aid kit and feel it's very inadequite. It contains: pain killers, some plasters and lip salve. I always find myself thinking why bother and not this dose not leave me feeling too confident.

What bits of the first aid kit are always in the pocket or on the person of you guys?

 

[PC2K]

mine EDC pocket FAK is a heavily modified FAK pack II made by coughlan's, i got 2 qauze, dressing, alcohol swabs, steristrips, plasters, ziplocbag, purification tabs, painkillers and more in it. Wenn i'm in the bush, i carry a large FAK with me. And sometimes even a "The emgency bandage", with me (that bandage eats more space than my EDC FAK.)

 

[Tex]

This is the thing i always come to. As my pack is always why bother with a pocket kit. My main FAK is also very modified. I tend to transfer bits of kit from one to the other. Never comtent with the pocket/personal FAK. It's a constaint dilemma for me

 

[Tex]

mine EDC pocket FAK is a heavily modified FAK pack II made by coughlan's, i got 2 qauze, dressing, alcohol swabs, steristrips, plasters, ziplocbag, purification tabs, painkillers and more in it. Wenn i'm in the bush, i carry a large FAK with me. And sometimes even a "The emgency bandage", with me (that bandage eats more space than my EDC FAK.)

Not sure what EDC stands for can you exsplain............many thanks

 

[PC2K]

EDC= everday carry or everyday crap
FAK= First aid kit.

 

[Toddy]

Don't laugh....essential oils. Tea tree as an antiseptic/insect bite wipe, lavender for smallburns and cuts, bog myrtle as an anti -midge, peppermint for headache, sinusitis and nausea, chamomile for everything skin irritating, rose 'cos it's good for me and meadowsweet for arthritis. I use tiny little 5ml bottles and they bundle together 3cm high by 3.5 cm diameter & weigh very little.
I do take all the usual suspects though, elastoplast, sterile wipes.....etc.

Cheers,
Toddy

 

[Andy]

For a real EDC I have lytex free gloves (St Johns aren't allowed to use lytex gloves anymore) and a face mask

If I'm going for a quick trip to the woods (day trip and not far from help)the likely kit will be
5cmX5cm pad
10cmX10cm pad
triangular bandage
tape

on top of the gloves and mask of course

I'll have so alcohol wipes on me as well but I try and pack some less painful wipes too.

for longer trips I'll increase kit to what I think I may need

 

[Tex]

sound like the sort of thing.

 

[spamel]

I normally carry a largish kit in my pack, as I am with it always in the woods. When I am playing soldiers, I have a kit in my webbing that stays on my body at all times, or is within arms reach.

This is normally plasters, gloves, a bottle of iodine because I like seeing others in pain, some cocodamol and paracetomol, gauze, micro pore tape, zinc oxide tape,various crepe bandages, a triangular bandage, a couple of burn compresses and a hypodermic needle or a needle and thread for blisters.

Obviously I am using this within a military enviornment where things will go horribly wrong if they do go wrong, therefore I tend to take a bit more then I will ever need. I also carry two First Field Dressings on my person at all times, they are for my personal use as you use the dressings carried by the person who is injured.

Remember the old adage: Failure to prepare is preparing to fail, which is my signature on BB, and I may change it here too!!

Spamel

 

[RovingArcher]

I carry my edc FAK inside of an 1.76 oz. Altoids tin (wintergreen) that measures inside, 3 9/16"X2 3/16"X13/16". Contents include 2 4x4 sterile gauze sponges, 6 assorted plasters, 6 ibuprofen (pain/inflamation), 2 imodium AD (anti diarrheal), 4 benedryl (antihistamine), one packet triple antibiotic cream, 2 antimicrobial skin wipes, 3ft. of cloth tape and a victorinox keychain SAK. Oops, needed to add that a partial sheet of moleskin is also in the kit.

I wrapped duct tape around the entire tin where the lid meets the body to help keep water out and placed a couple of ranger bands (bands of sectioned bicycle tube) around the tin to keep everything together as it's fairly full.

 

[wilt]

I keep a personal FAK in my backpack, which I take back and forth to work. I put it together myself by copying the contents list of the “Pocket Medic” made by Adventure Medical Kits. I have a few of their other kits too. The "Fundamentals" and the "Day Tripper." The “Fundamentals” stays in our van (the family vehicle) and I take the “Day Tripper” on our family day hikes. Their newest products, the Ultralight Series, are designed for adventure racers and are packed with quality stuff in an extremely lightweight package. The Ultralight .3 looks like a perfect personal FAK. I have been thinking of getting one.

You can see the kit contents on their web site. http://www.adventuremedicalkits.com/

Mark

 

[OhCanada]

If you truely want a comprehensive kit buy an ambulance. If you want a portable kit you may have to comprimise a bit.

I carry a Adventure Medic Ultralight .3 kit with extras as an EDC.

For hiking I have a AM Ultralight .5 with extras.

I recently found what looks like Q-tips with clear plastic shaft. These are made by www.rougierswab.com. You snap off one tip and the fluid flows to the other end! Haven't tried them on a wound yet but tempted to cut myself on my new knife. I shouldn't have long to wait, i always cut myself with new knives lol.

Medicine is: Benzalkonium Chloride 0.11%w/w for the antiseptic swap
and Benzocain 15% w/w for the insect bite swab

And I usually carry a tube of ointment.

 

[Minotaur]

I also carry Tea Tree and Lavender. Have you tried Tiger Balm? It is the Malaysia cure all. Try red and if you cannot get on withit, down grade to white. It is basically, a herbal deep heat, but works so much better i.e. you can rub it on your temples to cure a headache.

Has anyone any experience with this : -

"QUICK-CLOT

Blood loss causes 50,000 civilian deaths a year in the United States alone, particularly from automobile accidents. By equipping potential victims with a means to stop blood loss, QuikClot dramatically improves the survival of accident victims.

QuikClot, a granulated mineral substance whose exact composition is proprietary, offers a dramatic new solution to promoting hemostasis. Rather than adding elements to blood as other hemostatic agents do, it acts like a molecular sieve, rapidly separating fluids from blood. This concentrates the blood's clotting factors in the wound and almost immediately forms a strong, stable clot that stays in place until the patient can reach a physician's care.

Because QuikClot is inert, it poses little or no risk of allergic reaction, a critical improvement over other hemostatic products, all of which are either biological or botanical. It also poses no inherent risk of disease transmission, so that it is safe to leave in the wound until further medical care is available. In comparative testing, QuikClot was the only product that resulted in a 100% survival rate. In addition to its effectiveness, QuikClot is affordable for everyone. A life-saving single application sells for $27.00 and $30 for the mini double-pack.

This product has become especially popular with coumadin patients that take blood-thinning agents due to a variety of medical reasons. These medications reduce clotting of the blood, turning a scratch into a potential life-threatening event. "

My future father in law has the bottom problem and I do Bushcraft and a bladed martial art so am becoming very interested in the above product.

Thought the forum might find it interesting because no-one had mentioned anything like this. A blunt knife cut is easy to stop. A sharp knife cut can be a nightmare, just think razor cuts.

 

[Tex]

Hi Minotaur

Some guy had heard about this extreme deep heat balm and brough it along to rugby one Saturday. We used to rub the deep heat cream on very tops of your leggs and thighs. On cold days it would warm you up. So on this day we used the tiger balm instead. The game had to be stopped so everyone could take a shower to try and wash it off, some guys got it right at the tops of their legs if you know what i mean . The shower only made it worse, what a day.

 

[Toddy]

I carry my edc FAK inside of an 1.76 oz. Altoids tin (wintergreen) that measures inside, 3 9/16"X2 3/16"X13/16". QUOTE]

No offence intended Roving Archer, but I've translated the sizes.
I grew up using Imperial measurements, but we've had metric weights and measures so long now that I find I struggle to imagine a size from fractions.
The tin measures 9 x 5.5 x 2 cm.
Pretty neat, my EDC fits into one of the little curved rubber/plastic waterproof slide boxes. (No name on it, I bought it in Tiso's). Total weight about 150g but it's 10 x 9 x 2.5cm.

I never thought of taking Tiger balm, it's good stuff, didn't know it came red and white though.
The meadowsweet seems to work without adding heat, which is pretty good for hot, sore, swollen joints or the knees throb from carrying too much or standing around all day. I also carry anti-histamine tablets, fish and cleg bites are hellish for me.
I make a peppermint ointment that is great for cooling sore, rubbed and swollen feet and ankles at the end of a long day....recipe available Makes you wonder why I did Archaeology doesn't it?

Cheers,
Toddy (who's dyeing all afternoon, Ivy berries, oak galls, madder roots, birch leaves and buckthorn bark ....does anyone have buckthorn growing where they could get hold of a couple of prunings for me?)
M

 

[Toddy]

Thought the forum might find it interesting because no-one had mentioned anything like this. A blunt knife cut is easy to stop. A sharp knife cut can be a nightmare, just think razor cuts.

Are they suggesting this stuff for major wounds? Presumably so if they're talking about blood loss deaths otherwise.
I carry a piece of styptic, but it's only really of much use for those little cuts on hands that just won't stop bleeding long enough to get a plaster on.

Toddy

 

[RovingArcher]

I carry my edc FAK inside of an 1.76 oz. Altoids tin (wintergreen) that measures inside, 3 9/16"X2 3/16"X13/16". QUOTE]

No offence intended Roving Archer, but I've translated the sizes.
I grew up using Imperial measurements, but we've had metric weights and measures so long now that I find I struggle to imagine a size from fractions.
The tin measures 9 x 5.5 x 2 cm.
Pretty neat, my EDC fits into one of the little curved rubber/plastic waterproof slide boxes. (No name on it, I bought it in Tiso's). Total weight about 150g but it's 10 x 9 x 2.5cm.

None taken. Thanks for the translation. Eventually I will find a watertite container that is relatively flat and lite weight for pocket carry.

 

[spamel]

Tiger Balm is excellent, you can also get a liquid ointment which is very similar to deep heat.

The balm is very good for headaches when rubbed on the temples, I like to smear a bit in my nostrils when I have a slight cold and when my nose is blocked. Only use a little bit though!!

It is apparently good for flatulence aswell, although I'm not to sure where you are supposed to put it for that!!!

Spamel