What Trauma Kits / IFAKS / Regular First Aid Kits do you have where & why?

[teddy12b]

So the other night, my sister in law and her husband stop by the house to say hi. Somewhere in the greeting it comes up that she just gave herself a really long bad scratch/cut high on her leg where they just came from. When she showed us her little injury I excused myself and said I'd be right back. She only saw the nasty scratch on her leg and didn't see how the part of her shorts was soaking up a lot of blood. I went and got my kit and brought it out for show and tell. I grabbed a big bandage, an alcohol wipe, and a triple antibiotic packet and handed them to her. Now don't get me wrong, this really wasn't that big of a deal, but it was the first time I've needed any of my prepped medical supplies for something half way serious in a long time. The best part of this is that the in-laws are new to prepping and at the stage where they've shot a couple guns but otherwise they only talk about prepping for different circumstances and this has motivated them to get pushing forward with their preps.

I consider that little experience to be a sign to take a refresher on my medical kits and what's in them. Generally speaking, most of my medical supplies are for boo-boo's and are light duty first aid oriented. I have been noticing and paying more attention to the IFAK (improved first aid kit) types of kits out there and it's really got me thinking about what all I keep in my kits and how many kits to have. It never seems to end in my mind. You should have a kit in every car, another around the house, then if you have any hiking backpacks where you're getting away from things and then if you plan on being rambo and putting a med kit on your vest post shtf and if you're out on a boat you should probably have something there too. There's probably no end to how many different types of medical kits a person could have for all the different reasons.

So how many medical kits do you have?

What kind of kits have you made up for all of your different situations?

Myself, I have the big house kit/stockpile. In each vehicle I have a first aid kit for boo-boo's and semi serious injuries. Today I just bought three basic trauma kits. I plan on adding one to each car kit and using the third one to get familiar with all the components. Every new component of the kits is easy enough to type into youtube and see a couple different videos on how to apply these tools. It's a great aid to learning how to use this stuff but it's far from thorough training.

 

[eldirector]

I am by no means a "medic", but I have way too many "first aid" kits!

- A big one in the truck. Everything from band-aids to aspirin, and gauze to splints. Way too big, but it has everything.
- small one in my laptop bag (with me 5 days a week)
- small one in my "daddy bag" (diaper bag that *I* carry when I'm on daddy-duty)
- slightly larger one in my go-bag (in whatever vehicle I'm driving)
- slightly larger one in my off-road Jeep's toolbox
- a tiny one in my office desk drawer (bandaids, alcohol wipes, and antiseptic)
- another tiny one in my tackle box, and in my range bag.

They are actually all better stocked than the medicine cabinet my wife is in charge of. Whenever someone gets a boo-boo, I just grab one of my bags. My sister had a splinter on Easter. I grabbed the diaper bag, and pulled out my tweezers, alcohol wipes, antiseptic, and a bandaid. She asked if I was always this prepared (dug, yes!). Even had some ibuprofen for my wife, after dealing with my family all afternoon!

Yeah, yeah, not a trauma kit. Still takes care of 99% of anything I've ever needed. The "big" kit and my go-bag are stocked for more serious emergencies (lots of gauze, saline, alcohol, sutures, etc...). I've had a little bit of training, too.

 

[rhino]

I have multiple kits consisting of a 6 inch IBD, a nasopharyngeal airway, a needle catheter and the strips of tape in various locations including on my person. I only have one tourniquet that I can apply to myself, so I carry it on my person as well. I have a "first aid kit" with bandaids, wipes, etc. in my truck and at home. Carry a few bandaids and similar items on person as well.

 

[shibumiseeker]

I've been an EMT and SAR responder all of my life. I have a jump kit for each vehicle and multiple smaller trauma kits in various locations and a small hospital's worth of trauma supplies in the SHTF cache. If you count all the small cheapies I've been given over the years, probably 30-40 all told.

 

[Dragon]

Trauma kit in car (GHB), at home (BOB), also simple medical supplies at home and also a stripped down one in my BOB. One thing I add to every kit is 3M steri strips. I've used these on a pretty big wound I had before and ended up getting a few stitches and it healed up very well.

 

[teddy12b]

Part of the conflicts I have when deciding on what supplies to put in what piece of gear is that it seems like anything could happen anywhere. There's always going to be a greater percentage of minor cuts and scratches so the bandades, wipes & triple antibiotic ointments are always good to have. Then there's the next phase of burns, eye washes, and before you know it I've got another medical kit the size of an alice pack every place where I had just intended to get something small & handy setup.

 

[mohrpork]

I have supplies for alot of different occasions. I have everything for intubation and airway supplies, suturing, minor and temporary tooth repair, IV fluids and supplies, different trauma supplies to basic first aid. It is in different bags and most is always with me in the truck.

 

[Glock]

One of my dogs sustained a foot injury that caused a fair amount of bleeding. I had to use one hand to hold her down and the other to access my med bag. It was interesting to see how easy/difficult it was to get into and open some of the supplies I used. I moved a few things to make one handed operation easier.

 

[Dragon]

One of my dogs sustained a foot injury that caused a fair amount of bleeding. I had to use one hand to hold her down and the other to access my med bag. It was interesting to see how easy/difficult it was to get into and open some of the supplies I used. I moved a few things to make one handed operation easier.

This is a perfect example of situations happening that change or dictate the way we train. When I had to treat myself, I was at Red River Gorge and couldn't exactly hop into the car and go.

 

[Ted]

Having an available FA Kit is certainly commendable, but I have always found that as a bit of training, imagination, technical savvy, and a can-do attitude can take the most ordinary item, and be used in a method not normally utilized.

 

[rhino]

One of my dogs sustained a foot injury that caused a fair amount of bleeding. I had to use one hand to hold her down and the other to access my med bag. It was interesting to see how easy/difficult it was to get into and open some of the supplies I used. I moved a few things to make one handed operation easier.

A good case to remind us make sure our personal gear is accessible to both hands.

 

[longbow]

Last year my daughter and I were second on the scene to a one truck rollover........Two were ejected and on the ground, and one was walking around all bloody. The only thing I used in my kit was my gloves and strap cutter. Everything else was internal injuries. They were not family, and other than keeping them calm, that was all I could do before the pro's arrived. The one guy in the ditch I thought was dead when I first saw him as I got out of the car.

They had scrapes, numerous fractures and one had a serious head trauma. No serious bleeding and to be honest they were lucky to be alive........

I am always updating my main first aid kit from reviewing past events and new products.......

My youngest daughter got to see first hand what drinking and driving can cause and it made a huge impression to this day!

 

[JesseJ]

i have the basic first aid kit, plus i have been stocking up on idoine wipes,bandages,triple anti-boitic creams,advil,anti-vomiting pills,and preciption meds my family needs

 

[churchmouse]

Several small "Boo-Boo" kits in the cars and the shop. One kit in my house that is very well stocked. A kit like mine next door at the daughters house. One kit that is in the BOB That has everything we are trained to use. I just added a suture kit to it last weekend.

 

[redneckmedic]

Ripped up dirty shirt, swiss army spork, eye patch with a hole in it, and a Diet Mt. Dew, the later for when things are real bad to help keep me calm!

IBD is about the best thing out there, for God's sake stay the hell away from all forms of quick clot.

 

[! twitty]

Where do you guys get your supplies? Is there anywhere to get a good basic kit?

 

[rhino]

IBD is about the best thing out there, for God's sake stay the hell away from all forms of quick clot.

Agreed on both points!

I have, however, started carrying a tourniquet in addition to an IBD in case I need to stop some bleeding on ME, but I don't have time or the opportunity to apply an IBD immediately.

 

[longbow]

Where do you guys get your supplies? Is there anywhere to get a good basic kit?

Chinook Medical

 

[longbow]

Agreed on both points!

I have, however, started carrying a tourniquet in addition to an IBD in case I need to stop some bleeding on ME, but I don't have time or the opportunity to apply an IBD immediately.

...I stock quik clot it as a last chance item

 

[dswilson]

I'M EMT and cardiac tech so I have access to more than some. My truck tech kit contains:

gloves
stethoscope
BP Cuff
n95 masks
gowns
Trauma dressings
kerlex
coban wrap
cavi wipes
ace bandages
SAMs splints, soft splints
triangular bandages(sling)
sterile saline-bottles, syringes
Ratcheting tourniquet
OB kit
O2 cylinder
Bag valve mask
O2 delivery ( NRB,simple mask, nasal cannula)
Combi tubes
Oral airways, Nasal airways
2 Bags of normal Saline
IV sets
AED

At home in my SHTF supplies I have all of the above in greater quantities plus:
Suture kits
AED/12 lead EKG moniter, with pad supply
Dermabond(medical super glue)
OTC meds, epi pens, other meds…..
needles, syringes etc
of course the items that expire will eventually be useless if I can’t rotate them out but better than nothing.

As far as getting going with a kit you can go a few ways. There are numerous places on line (galls, firestore.com etc) where you can buy prestocked bags at various levels and prices. You can restock most of your supplies after use at CVS, Walgreens or Wal-Mart. Or if you want look at the list of supplies included in these, then buy the supplies at above stores and buy a duffel bag or backpack. Also if you have to use supplies on a scene ask the responding EMS personnel if they would mind replacing the supplies you used. Some may not but I am always happy to oblige a citizen who took the effort to help another in need.