What's in your first aid kit?
A well-stocked, easy to access first aid kit can make all the difference in an emergency or make your life easier in a simple boo boo situation. There are some key items that you should always have in any first aid kit whether it's for home, travel, or the cottage. These items are:
- Gauze pads: You should have both 4x4 and 2x2 gauze pads on hand to cover any size of wound. These pads should be sterile and having a large quantity is recommended in case of a deadly bleed that requires multiple pads.
- Band-Aids: Having a variety of types, sizes, shapes, etc. for band-aids is key to always being prepared for the owies that are a part of every day life. If you have kids or kids visit your home it's a good idea to get the fun band-aids with different Disney characters on them as this helps children want to wear them if necessary.
- Roller-Gauze: Different sizes and lots of roller gauze is ideal to being ready should someone get a large cut that requires padding and direct pressure. Roller gauze is used to hold gauze pads on until help can arrive or you can get to the hospital.
- Vetwrap: An easy-to-use, strong wrap that goes around roller gauze to help keep wounds clean and provide more pressure to deadly bleeds. This is super handy because it sticks to itself and doesn't require tape to stay on and keep pressure.
- Burn Dressing: A proper burn dressing for burns can make all the difference in the pain people feel. As well it can help to speed healing and offers antiseptic protection.
- Tape: In case you need to hold gauze on especially in hard to wrap areas tape is very handy to have in your first aid kit.
- Tweezers: In as many different sizes and shapes as you can find to make digging dirt, gravel, splinters, etc. out is handy and will make your life easier in those situations.
- Epi-Pens: You can purchase Epi-pens at the pharmacy to have on-hand without a prescription. This is handy if someone in your household has allergies or if you frequently have people over that have allergies. We only want to administer an Epi-pen to someone who has a prescription and may have forgotten theirs at home.
- Dex 4: Or another form of glucose is important to have in case someone experiences a diabetic emergency.
Some extras that you might want to have in your first aid kit especially if you have a property with machinery or a cottage with lots of toys:
- Eye Drops: Handy to have in case someone gets something in their eye.
- AfterBite: Nice to have especially in the summer around areas with lots of mosquitoes and black flies.
- Cold Pack: Having this in your first aid kit can be especially helpful when travelling or visiting the cottage when you may not have ice in the freezer or ice packs ready to go.
- Thermometer: Important to have to check children's fevers or anyone that may not be feeling the greatest. Especially during a pandemic!
- Hemostatic Dressing: Again if you have a property with lots of machinery or toys that could result in large wounds or arterial bleeds a hemostatic dressing can make a life or death difference.
- CAT Tourniquet: Can stop a deadly bleed that is responding to direct pressure and rest while awaiting help.
- Polysporin & Hydrogen Peroxide: Good items to have in a first aid kit to help speed along healing of wounds and prevent infection.
For more information check out our video below or if you need a first aid kit visit https://ruralrescuetraining.com/collections/first-aid-kits
To check out our First Aid Kit Restock program click here.