First aid kits

Anyone have a recommended brand, or suggestion for first aid kits for vehicles? I would like something that is pretty comprehensive, as I spend a lot of time in very remote areas, often with multiple people.

It looks like Andventure Medical makes some nice kits, but I thought I would throw the question out before I ordered anything.

 

Make your own. Pocket mask, gloves, a splint, CAT tourniquet, a couple of Ace elastic bandages, and some 4x4s. That will take care of a lot of problems.

 

I don't promote buying a pre-assembled kit; they rarely have everything you want, they have extra crap that is useless, and you are paying a premium for the convenience of having it pre-assembled.

If you have an associate who works in fire, EMS or the hospital, contact them to... liberate... some items for you. Otherwise, assemble your own by buying what you need or improvising with "non medical" stuff. See below.



This is my small, door pocket kit. It is a 4"x6"x3" tactical pouch that was being thrown away at work. It has stuff you would use most frequently for minor injuries in it. Band aids, a pair of gloves, some 2x2, some tape, some ibuprofen, alcohol pads.



My "main" kit is an old EMS bag partition pouch that was also being thrown away at work. It is used for legit trauma stuff. It has hook velcro on the bottom so it sticks to carpet. It contains a pocket mask, gloves, shears, 2 cravats, medical tape, 2x2s, 4x4s, 5x9s, a large trauma pad, a burn pad, ice pack, gauze, CAT tourniquet, emergency blanket, quick-clot bandage, some ziploc bags, and gorilla tape. Gorilla tape is actually a very handy medical tool - using it you can stop bleeding, immobilize an extremity (in conjunction with a stick or something), secure a person to a backboard, etc. The ziplocs can be used with tape to make a chest seal if needed.




Not really "first aid" but don't forget a fire extinguisher. I keep mine zip tied with heavy duty zips to the lid of my recovery / tool box. I can just remove the lid and use the fire extinguisher with the lid still attached to it as needed.

 

Check out North American Rescue. Really nice stuff, I need to get an IFAK.

 

Get a small backpack or molle pouch and build your own.

Tourniquet or two, combat gauze (quick clot) and an israeli bandage should really set you up pretty good. A space blanket and duct tape wouldn't be a bad idea either.

 

That looks like a pretty sweet set up, but much more trauma oriented than I have in mind. I was originally planning on making my own, but once I started adding up all of the things that I would like it to have, I don't think I can do it cheaper than a pre-made kit. It is difficult to find a lot of items in the small quantities that I would like, so I would end up buying way more than I need. While I want to have certain things for serious trauma, a large part of my reason to have it is minor first aid in the backcountry. I spend a lot of time in very remote places, and little aches and pains can make a trip a lot less enjoyable. Anti-intch, sunburn cream, alcohol for disinfectant, mole skin, antihistamine etc, are all things that I would like to have. Plus having bandages, splint, clotting compound. The truth is, if and injury get much beyond a broken bone, I am not trained or equipped to handle it. I am looking into a Wilderness First Responder course, but I want to have little things covered as well. That is why one of the adventure Medical "expedition/guide" kits looks appealing.

 

Well trauma is pretty much the only thing you build a first aid kit for, and "little stuff", while aggravating, isn't a life hazard. Life hazard is the reason to have a kit. Things like a tourniquet, quick clot / Israeli bandage wound dressing, or chest seals can save a life.

Related: you have a splint in your tire changing kit... put the rods that lower the spare tire together and tape them to the extremity. One rod will work for an arm; 2 for a leg.

But yes, for someone who doesn't have easy access to "free" (ahem) med supplies I suppose it might be advantageous to buy a kit.

 

JAX Outdoors has a good EMT kit that comes pre-loaded.

For my kit though, I run a field trauma kit that I used to use in ground team SAR.
Contents:
1. Foldable/Moldable splint
2. Gloves
3. Trauma shears
4. Clamps
5. Medical tape
6. Various sizes of gauze
7. Regular Bandaids of various sizes
8. Quick Clot
9. Narcan
10. Glucagon Kit
11. Pressure cuff and stethoscope
12. Tourniquet
13. Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen
14. Smelling Salts
15. Blood glucose meter
16. Aloe Vera
17. D5W Lactose bag and tubing
18. Protein bars
19. Iodine Solution and Tablets
20. Snake Bite/Sting Removal kit
21. Epi-Pen
22. Scalpel
23. Stitch thread and curved needles
24. Fishing line, weights, and hooks

It's pretty basic and just used to help get people either back to consciousness to get them off the mountain, or stabilize them until ground teams respond to my PLB.

Basically, load it up with what you are trained with/on to help people- not knowing how to properly use what you pack can actually injure your patient more than they first were.

I hope to not have to use these, and have actually used them on city roads and highways more than off-road. Of course, being an Eagle Scout, I gotta say it.... BE PREPARED!!!!

Safe travels all,

 

Is D5W even used anymore in a pre-hospital setting? It hasn't been on our trucks in...mmm...15, 20 years, maybe? It was on when I started but I never actually saw anyone use it, and I never used it. All we carry for fluids now is .9 NS. I presume when you say "tubing" you also are lumping IV catheters into that, I don't see them on your list otherwise!

 

Yep. You can still get it. And yes, IV catheters are in that, hoping people who would see it actually have the common sense to know the setup so I dont have people out there running from supply store to supply store trying to source cannulas. Lol you can even get Ringers solution if you look for it. And the time I've been in ambulances on the way to the hospital lol (even in 2017 the day before Christmas eve going into DKA) I had to make sure and clarify not to use any IV with dextrose but to use sodium lactate- they gave me D5W anyways and drove my sugars up well above 600 when I got into the bus at 515 steady. Haven't had to pleasure of working with bright EMT's yet.

I prefer D5W over sodium because the worst thing you can do to yourself whilst dehydrated as a diabetic is to add the nausea of a low blood sugar and not be able to hold down any carbohydrate/simple sugar drink. Then you're fucked.

 

So I ended up going with this kit.

http://www.adventuremedicalkits.com/mountain-series-comprehensive.html

I got it for $120 and it seems reasonably well stocked for my needs. I will end up supplementing it with a few things, especially as I get more training, but I think it will work well for now.

 

Well it looks like I was a little late to the conversation, but if you decide you don't like the kit you have check out this site, https://mymedic.us/

They put together some pretty comprehensive bags. They also sell supplies and empty bags if you want to put together your own kit, or if you just need a more durable bag to carry what you already have.

The most important thing is to get the training though. All the supplies won't matter if nobody there knows how to use them.

 

Those look like really nice kits, a bit out of my price range though. The kit I picked up should suit my needs for now. I am going to try to take a wilderness first responder course this fall. Once I do that I will likely be supplementing what I have. I know there are a lot of Military/LE/First responders on here, but that is not me. I got my kit to cover the issues I have the knowledge to treat. I am not trying to work gunshot wounds, sucking chest wounds, loss of limb etc. maybe in a few more years, when I can get appropriate training. Until then, hopefully the SOS will get someone there in time, otherwise SOL if it is only me around.