What is in your medical/first aid kit, show and tell

[Bowlander]

It depends on your training, i carry a laryngoscope and set of magills forceps, wound glue and sutures and large bore cannulas for decompressing a tension pneumothorax.

Exactly, I did the SLEEC training for work recently and will be carrying a large trauma pack in my vehicle with defib and a small pouch on my belt with blast bandages, celox, tourniquets, np's and a mask.

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Xparent Green Tapatalk 2

 

[sausage100uk]

Whats SLEEC?

 

[GGTBod]

Makes sense carrying this stuff if you've got the training to use it right, i'd personally be itching to put the skills to use like i am with anything i learn, I don't think it is fair for me to be wishing trauma on my fellow travellers so i can put my medic skills to use ethically speaking

 

[sausage100uk]

Lol, give the clumsy person the axe while you stand behind them with a tourniquet.... 😀

 

[GGTBod]

'Go on you'll be fine, how else will you learn to use a machete if you don't swing it about a bit??' stands well back with pack of elastoplasts and antiseptic wipes with a keen look on my face

 

[sunndog]

mine's just tampons and emergancy custard

 

[Corso]

Very impressed, used it pretty much exclusively last year and I thought it was comparable to any DEET based product I'd tried. It lasts a long time and it's much more compact than sprays which appeals to me. Smells good too .

cool did you get it on here?

 

[copper_head]

Yeah from xylaria,

 

[Bishop]

With the DoE summer season upon us in the UK and hordes of young tenderfoots getting their first taste of hiking what would folk here recommend for a humane blister treatment kit?

 

[Dave]

I have no medical training, but have been accident prone for years..

A typical rucksack pack may include...

finger bandage & splint
ear plugs
cotton wool
3M micropure tape
Various pain killers. [Voltarol:diclofenac sodium paracetamol and tramadol, immodium]
Specifically for knee pain, naproxin and co-codamol, are unbeatable.
Diarrohetic [immodium, and entrocalm tablets for stomach upsets, and diocalm tablets, cheap over the counter stuff works well]
aspirin
syringe [for irrigating wounds]
cymex cream [cold sores/cracked lips]
small tube voltarol gel, or better still, a stroner, 10% diclofenac based gel.
small tube solaraze [diclofenac sodium burn gel] This stuff is unbeatable for burns, and burns and cuts are the number 1 outdoor injuries.
cotton ear buds, and cotton balls.
2 plastic straws sealed at both ends with a lighter, with pottasium permanganate inside. Various uses.
Anti fungal cream [daktacort, hydrocortisone]
Antihistamine, benadryl allergey relief.
small vial friars balsam. [High zinc content tint benz for blisters mainly. Also can be used as an expectorant/inhalant]
4x antibacterial wipes
some waterproof plasters [different sizes] And spares to give as gifts.
sterile gauze dressing pads [different sizes. Large trauma dressing included, x5 Regal filmated swabs]
Square cut of absorbent lint.
butterfly sutures
Different antibiotics [flucloxacillin, for affected skin disorders, co amoxicla, and amoxicillin [general]
small pack micropure water tablets, chlorine and some iodine.
Small [fishing]forceps, aquacell ribbon, gauze.
eye wash & small vial of optrex
surgical gloves
small green tick remover.
sliver gripper tweezers.
Emergency dental kit from Lloyds. [For fillings]
Suture kit, x5, no.3 metric curved surgical needle, and monofilament threads. [Best buy on these is ebay, as medical training kits, they send you a skin pad out as well]
A toothbrush holder, with very fine hypodermic needles, and small vials of lidocaine.
Rubber gloves.
And my own meds. Mainly Prednisolone and Methotrexate.
I add or take away other stuff when i need it.
Ive stitched myself up, and performed minor surgery on myself with this kit.

 

[John Fenna]

With the DoE summer season upon us in the UK and hordes of young tenderfoots getting their first taste of hiking what would folk here recommend for a humane blister treatment kit?

Do like the medical teams on the "Marathon des Sables" multi day run across the desert do for competitors do .... rip off the loose flesh as brutally as possible, slather the raw area with some sort of raw acid (to clean it) cover with a totally inadequate dressing that slips and causes another blister. According to my brother this is state of the art French blister treatment...
Perhaps Compeed is better....

 

[GGTBod]

With blisters i have always punctured it with a pinhole and drained it, then padded and plastered it for protection, when you tear the flesh off the pain intensifies dramatically for the size of the wound, is that really how they do it the French way?

Here was me thinking when the French put the effort in and made a way to do things it was usually for the better, like kissing, saying simple things like eating outside (al fresco), special cuddling (le soixante neuf) even saying 'i do not know' (je ne se qua) is better the French way but i don't think i'll be as keen to try their blister advice as i was several of the other things i mentioned, i'm sure there are more.

 

[Bluffer]

With the DoE summer season upon us in the UK and hordes of young tenderfoots getting their first taste of hiking what would folk here recommend for a humane blister treatment kit?

A roll of zinc-oxide tape (the sticky white fabric tape) from a high street pharmacy or supermarket.

Cheap, easily available, disposable and effective. It's what the professionals use.

Keep It Simple Stupid

 

[Blaidd]

Mines gone AWOL in a move but..

Electrical tape. (The sticky helps healing (urban legend).)
Roll of gauze bandage. Thought I'd get some self sticking bandage. Good for the dogs, too.
2 Melolin pads (3" x 3" I think) can be cut smaller.
Burn gel. For when you haven't got 15 minutes of cold running water)
Honey kept in small sections of straws and sealed. (Put on small cuts and abrasions is brilliant for keeping them clean and helps healing)
Superglue (good for head slices as used on me by A&E)
Butterfly sutures (I'm not licensed to stick pointy things in people)
Sealed tube of eyewash. (One of the most common problems I've come across is stuff in peoples eyes)
Tick tweezers.
Alcohol wipes (if things get bad you can suck them) (joke, unless you're in Saudi))
Nitrile gloves

Duct tape isn't in the kit but around.

I need to get some more zinc oxide tape type stuff.. Good for feet and sprains.
If someone else knows what they're doing I've usually got a curved needle and dental floss.

 

[Quixoticgeek]

Do like the medical teams on the "Marathon des Sables" multi day run across the desert do for competitors do .... rip off the loose flesh as brutally as possible, slather the raw area with some sort of raw acid (to clean it) cover with a totally inadequate dressing that slips and causes another blister. According to my brother this is state of the art French blister treatment...
Perhaps Compeed is better....

Do I detect a hint of cynicism ? It often feels like that when on the receiving end of any blister treatment.

Last time I was trained the view was that if at all possible avoid bursting the blister. While you have the blister unburst you have a barrier to infection. Unfortunately this tends to become a bit more difficult when you are doing any physical activity and it's a blister on your foot. If you do have to burst a blister, in order say to continue your hike, then the thing to do is to make the smallest hole you can.

Any dressing to go on a foot in a hiking boot in summer has a pretty horrible environment to work in. A pair of magnums, in summer got so hot inside that they melted the adhesive of ducttape (used in desperation when the tape in my first aid kit failed me).

Ultimately the best way to treat blisters is to not have get them in the first place. Good fitting shoes, sensible socks.

Julia

 

[Blaidd]

I'd go with that Julia. I have no personal experience of blisters except as a youngster (running away from dinosaurs), but the consensus seems to be that as soon as you begin to feel a "hot spot" then you should stop and deal with it there and then.

 

[Bluffer]

The 'acid' in Johns story was probably tinc-benz.

It helps things stick together - skin on skin, tape on skin.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend it unless you are interested in discovering the pain threshold that can be reached before passing out.

It usually took three medics to apply tinc-benz, one applying and the other two to either hold the casualty down, or peel him off the ceiling when you'd done it

 

[Graveworm]

Superglue (good for head slices as used on me by A&E)

A&E would have used Dermabond not superglue, different stuff and they would have cleaned the wound first and done it in a clean area. I couldn't see anything in your kit to clean and debride a wound enough to use surgical glue.

 

[Jim_aramis]

With the DoE summer season upon us in the UK and hordes of young tenderfoots getting their first taste of hiking what would folk here recommend for a humane blister treatment kit?

A lot of trail runners use Kinesio tape for blister prevention. The tape is porous, the glue heat activated and the tape can adhere for days. I have a roll but have not used it in anger yet.

 

[racer66]

So I have a larger first aid pouch that would be in the car or at camp if long term. All the usual things celox etc.

This is my light hiking toiletry first aid pouch. In a 1l ultra sil clear view dry bag.

I just picked up a travel bottles set from lidl for £1.50 and the small screw top tubs are great for decanting larger creams into. The third one will have suncream. The list for the rest is
Mepore dressing
2 x gauze badge
1 x tampon
Safety pin
Non alcohol wipes and antiseptic wipes
Dioralyte sachets
Extra power pain tablets
Ibruprofen,Tramadol,Co-dyramol, Solpradol, Morphine slow release patch
Aware these are not to mix but give a wide range of pain relief when out for a few days and carrying an injury to get home.
Antiseptic cream
BP jelly
Plasters
Compeed
Condom
Sugru
Zinc oxide tape
Toothbrush, tooth paste and travel towel. Pocket hand wash.

I carry a small alcohol jelly on my waist belt of bag normally for easy access.