Let’s talk about one of the most important items that you need to have accessible when exploring outside, your First Aid Kit! We’ll provide you with the best tips for how to choose the important items for your kit and how to maintain your kit for multiple trips and throughout many uses.
This post is all about making sure you have the perfect First Aid Kit.
Determine Who Will Use the First Aid Kit
Start by asking yourself some essential questions:
- Who will the kit be used for? Is it only for you or does your family group include kids and pets? Take note and adjust your kit according to party size.
- What will the kit be used for? Home or outside adventures? Will there be water activities included?
- Where will the kit be stored? Medicine cabinet at home, in the car, or in a hiking backpack?
For Nature Consort adventures, we use our kit for one adult, one kid, and a dog.
We use our kit to cover home first aid, as well as outside adventures, so we include child and adult cpr masks, gloves, and masks.
Pack it or Leave it?
Our first aid kit is kept indoors in a cool, acessible closet space and we bring it along for long car rides, pool days, beach trips, camping , hiking, and outdoor adventures. Since we live in a hot environment, we don’t keep the kit in our vehicle for multiple days since the heat will erode and destroy plastic materials and bandages.
So generally, yes, your friends at Nature Consort will typically carry our main kit in a day pack for the majority of our trips. However, if we are just stopped to explore a small area and the vehicle is easily accessible, we’ll keep it in the car. If we need to treat any cuts, scraps, or stings, it will only be a short, quick hike back.
Alternatively, you can carry a smaller kit in your backpack for short trips with only the main core essentials.
How to Choose a First Aid Kit
There are endless options for first aid kits on the internet. Some can be quite useful, others are junk, and the rest seem a bit extreme. How do you decide which one will fit your needs? Should you buy a prepackaged kit or create one yourself?
We recommend to choose a kit with the major essentials and add to it to make it customize your family.
What are the Essentials?
This really doesn’t need to be complicated. For our small group, our essential most useful supplies have been:
regular bandages: all different sizes, and special fun ones for kids
stretchy gauze, medical tape, or larger bandages: stretchy white glaze is our most used and replenished item for our kit. It feels good wrapped around injures and helps the patient feel better. It stays well in place. Likewise, medical tape is extremely useful, but make sure you have 4-5 rolls if you want to prepare to wrap a sprained ankle. Medical tape goes fast! So make sure you have enough in your kit.
something to clean or sterilize: Alcohol prep pads, iodine, sting relief, etc. you can use water to wash an injury (it’s ideal to have distilled, but use your best judgement)
creams: anti-itch, antibiotic, bug bite and sting cream
ice packs: at least one ice pack in your kit will be a huge help if you ever need it
Items to Consider for Extra Precaution:
thermometer: we use our kit indoors at home as well as outside, so we keep a working thermometer in it. Having a thermometer on hand while outside, camping, or traveling can also be extremely useful.
larger bandages and gauzes: for larger injuries and more serious emergencies, its nice to have large sterile gauzes, combine pads, butterfly closure bandages, or triangle bandages on hand.
medication for pain and allergy: pain medication, especially Tylenol. Keep in mind, not everyone may be able to take ibuprofen, Advil, or other medications you have on hand. Allergy medications, nasal sprays, or extra inhalers may be added as needed.
Other important items are tweezers and plastic irrigation syringe.
Supplies for Bigger Emergencies:
Our kit includes an extra ice compress/ice pack, mylar rescue blanket, wire splint, tourniquet, medical shears, seat belt cutter, glucose, bite stick, pupil gauge, ammonia inhalants, and emergency burn care.
We like these items as an extra precautionary, but since they are not frequently used, they are kept separate and organized from the other items with a ziplock bag.
A good rule of thumb is to make sure you know how to use all the items in your kit. With so many medical supplies available, it is easy to get carried away or overwhelmed. No need to overpack, just make sure everything you add to your kit you know how to properly use.
Extras:
Since our first aid kit is used predominantly outdoors and during camping, we include raincoats, hair ties, and chapstick. Another optional item you can include is a small tube of sunscreen. Again, these items are non-medical extra items so if you choose to include things like this, aim to organize your kit so it is clutter free, and predominately serves it’s main function, first aid.
Customize your first aid kit to function for your specific needs. Keep in mind that new items come out each year and some supplies and medications will expire. You don’t need all of the newest items or bandages, but check in with your kit’s inventory and update once or twice a year as needed.
Keeping up with current events can help educate and prepare you for unforeseen emergencies. For example, concert goers have been including a Narcan nasal spray with their first aid kits as an extra precaution.
Tips on Maintaining Your First Aid Kit
Go through and organize your kit before each big trip. Consider your outdoor activites – camping, hiking, lake trips, etc. This will allow you to customize emergency items to include.
Inventory your kit annually or seasonally, during spring or summertime.By doing this, you ensure that you’re more prepared and know exactly what your kit contains and how it’s organized. You’re also able to take note of items that are missing or low in quantity.
Strengthen Your First Aid Skills
Take a first aid class. Always consider taking a first aid class to better prepare yourself for emergency situations. First aid classes and instructors are typically accessible throughout many cities and municipalities. Additionally, there are some first aid classes for pet care available.
Become certified in CPR. CPR is an essential life-saving skill everyone should have. As a result, you’re able to render life saving techniques until first responders arrive. If you’re around children, make sure to become certified to administer for children and infants. Techniques are vastly different and you should know the difference and dangers of applying incorrect methods. Re-certify your CPR card every two years, or whenever it expires.
Stay Safe!
Always keep in mind, safety begins with you! Be aware of your surroundings, estimate potential challenges beforehand, and never take unnecessary risks. Look out for yourself and others. Many incidences can be easily prevented.
Thank you for stopping by today! Stay safe and see you next time!