Med Kit Advice Sought

[Jager]

I cannot believe no one has mentioned snake bite bandages, or simply a couple of wide compression bandages.

 

[Colo4x4XJ]

Take a Wilderness First Aid class if not a First Responder class. Tourniquets and chest seals are great when you know how to use them. My kit is pretty general and works for guiding, hunting and rescues but I pieced it together based on the knowledge gained when I took a WFR.

Gauze (4x4 and 3x3s)
Band aids of all sizes
Duct tape
Coban
Athletic tape
Ace wrap
1 small tube Hydrocortisone cream
1 small tube Aquaphor ointment
Irrigation Syringe
SAM Splint (old style, no padding)
Benzoine Tincture
Steri Strips
Lauders CPR Mask
Benadryl
Sudafed
Tylenol
Ibuprofen
Baby Aspirin
Antiseptic wipes
Safety pin
Sharp needle
Tweezers
Rubber gloves
Moleskin
Large ABD Pad
Wound cleaning sponge
Bee sting kit-Filter needles, ampules of Epi, small syringes (this only gets thrown in on longer trips or known bee allergy)

I think thats it. Without the beesting kit weights 11 oz

 

[Where's Bruce?]

I am so very thankful for all this help. My primary concerns are falling, venom and being cut. I have had allergic reactions to plants and bug bites while elk hunting and my hands swelled like Mickey Mouse and didn't change after 3 days on Benadryl. The "kit" I am assembling will be taken on every trip, from a simple day hunt to a two week NW moose hunt. My biggest fear is snakes, I was hit by a diamondback as a kid and the scar on my leg is nothing compared to the one on my psyche...this is primarily why I carry a PLB. I know, I know...just watch where you're stepping. Well the rattler that got me was invisible in the pine needles and never made a sound. I'm totally phobic...doesn't stop me from going out but it's one reason I sleep in a hammock. <g>

I am kinda surprised that there is not a single person recommending a canned kit. Seems to me the general concensus agrees largely on the basics, you'd think somebody woulda picked up on this and commercially packaged an ultralight backcountry med kit for specifically hunters and backpackers. Just curious about one thing...how many of you have put together their kit and NEVER used it?

 

[Colo4x4XJ]

Atwater Carey and Adventure Medical make OK first aid kits but they're inadequate and expensive. However if you have one already they provide a great foundation.- I pieced mine together from two or three pre-packaged kits that I had laying around.
Good luck on your moose hunt that sounds awesome!
Heres a funny side story for you that happened to me last year- I came into contact with some poisonous mushrooms while archery hunting. After only a couple minutes I was full on hallucinating, wandering around in the woods a few miles from camp. I somehow made it back to camp only to start violently vomiting. I was taken to the hospital for a ton of Fentanyl for a splitting headache and IV fluids. It was pretty wild and a hard lesson learned.

 

[ffparamedic]

I'm not advocating that anyone carry a TQ or Chest seal or needle for decompression. I do yes, I have my reasons and they're actually pretty well founded.

If you don't know how to use one by all means please don't carry one and yes I agree the the likelihood of using it in the backcountry is slim but fortune favors the prepared.
I will say when you spend 85% of your life taking care of people and teaching people to take care of other ppl it affects the decisions you make and the gear you carry...But as always the mission drives the gear and KISS.

I'm pretty sure Becca has a reason she carries a suture kit and it's a good idea, I have done some sutures but don't think I am proficient enough to warrant taking that.

 

[gobbler1662]

I am a retired firefighter paramedic with lots of years experience in the backcountry. Fortunately the other members of the group I hunt are also practicing ff/paramedics, so being the old guy odds are its gonna be me that needs attention. Ha Ha, I used to carry a pretty extensive kit,but over the years I have downsized to just the following. Mole skin, duct tape, small and large band aids, super glue, ibuprofen, 4-80 milligram tablets of baby ASA. Benadryl. That's all I carry, as far as addressing a snake bite. That's a huge concern for us when we hunt in hells canyon. We usually kill two or three rattle snakes a year in there. However in a snake bite situation it's gonna be a medical helicopter to get to a hospital
That can administer the anti-venom.

 

[CrzyTrekker]

I carry a very simple kit in a small Kifaru pullout including:

(1) foot care (blister) items,
(2) a few bandages,
(3) glue,
(4) ibuprofen,
(5) benadryl,
(6) prescription meds (pain killer, anti-nausea, antibiotics),
(7) tweezers, baby clippers, small medical scissors.

A lot of other things can be improvised quickly with a knife or scissors.

If it's really bad and self-rescue is not possible then I will be on the sat phone.

 

[gil_wy]

..how many of you have put together their kit and NEVER used it?

Super glued some cuts and duct taped some hot spots but in 25 years that's it...

 

[Becca]

I'm pretty sure Becca has a reason she carries a suture kit and it's a good idea, I have done some sutures but don't think I am proficient enough to warrant taking that.

I actually don't carry a suture kit. We do have a dermabond pen (that's surgical glue you could use to close a cut), but I would have to think long and hard before using It. It is really difficult to clean a wound properly in the field (the irrigation syringe would help, but it wouldn't be sterile) and closing a dirty wound with sutures or glue drastically increases the risk of infection.

 

[Colo4x4XJ]

I actually don't carry a suture kit. We do have a dermabond pen (that's surgical glue you could use to close a cut), but I would have to think long and hard before using It. It is really difficult to clean a wound properly in the field (the irrigation syringe would help, but it wouldn't be sterile) and closing a dirty wound with sutures or glue drastically increases the risk of infection.

I am glad Im not the only one! Too many variables in the rocks and sticks for full wound closure. I will leave that to the ones with the lydocaine and sterile everything

 

[Where's Bruce?]

I am glad Im not the only one! Too many variables in the rocks and sticks for full wound closure. I will leave that to the ones with the lydocaine and sterile everything

That's a relief, I doubt I have the stones to stitch myself up.

 

[husky390]

EMT, I bought the Adventure Medical Kits Field Trauma kit. I ditched the first aid book, added Q-tips, crap stopper, benadryl, ibuprofen/advil, aspirin, and powdered aspirin to it. It does come with Quickclot and I plan to add a Tourniquet. Interesting how TQ's were the norm when I took first aid classes in Boy Scouts back in the 80's. Fast forward to 2001 EMT school and they were taboo. Now they are all the rage again.

 

[justinspicher]

I am continually changing mine after each outing. I am really trying to make everything count and have everything pull double duty. I am fairly close, but I know I have some more work to get my kit tightened up. I think aspirin/tylonel and anti-diarrhea pills will be the only exceptions I can think of to have one reason to brought along.

 

[dotman]

Ya duct tape will close a cut, band aides are just a little cleaner. But in all honusty everyone should make there own first aid kit with what they feel comfortable with, and what they feel they can actually use.

Plus a 16g for that decompression. .

How do you get band aids to stick more then an hour, I took them 1 season and then just went to DT because they kept coming loose. Anything small superglue can handle.

I read somewhere about using a long zip tie for a tourniquet so I keep 1 of those now with hardly any additional weight or size penalty. I just keep it simple. My entire kit fits in a prescription bottle that is wrapped in duct tape. Imodium, Benadryl, mole skin, super glue, alcohol wipes, 12in of athletic tape, zip tie and 1 Vicodin.

Ibuprofen, Zyrtec, Chapstick, paracord, etc are not in my first aid kit but readily available either in a pocket or other kit. My kit probably isn't the best but I do not have the knowledge to take care of life threatening problems so I don't pack for them. Injuries can be serious but that doesn't always mean they are immediately life threatening.

I agree we all have to take what makes us comfortable.

 

[MissHighcountry_Hellrazor]

I've been in the backcountry before with a group and besides all the comfort meds (your aspirins etc) it was a blessing we had a suture kit (and a syringe to clean the wound w). We needed it.

Also my dad was in the backcountry scouting per say and fell. He didn't have a suture kit so he had to use a regular needle and thread (not fun). he wouldn't have been able to stop the bleeding had he not sewn himself up.

You can watch videos online on how to suture yourself up but I've had to use it before (on my dog), my dad has and I've seen it used on others. I also have left over hard pain meds that I bring 2 just in case someone breaks a leg etc.

I think for the most part, you bring what you wish you'd have brought/ needed on a previous trip. Me, w my medical training, I say screw it and take a 1.5 lb medical kit lol.

 

[Mike7]

Whether you have extensive medical experience or not, you want to have a kit that is small and light enough that you will actually take it, and have a kit that will take care of the potential expected injuries/ailments for the group size/mission (this is of course more difficult to anticipate I suppose if one has limited experience). Some things will require evacuation, no matter how you cut it. For 1-2 man hunts I carry first and foremost a way to contact the outside world, and then supplies which will stabilize a treatable injury/illness while awaiting evacuation or while hiking out myself, and finally things which prevent or treat minor illnesses so that one can stay and hunt. As such, despite that I have extensive wilderness medical experience, I generally carry very little unless supporting a larger group where evacuation will be logistically difficult and expensive. Also know your group and yourself. If you or your partner have asthma, then bring an albuterol inhaler for god's sake, anaphylaxis with bee stings history then a bee sting kit and certainly Benadryl, over 40-50 yrs old then baby aspirin, etc.

I do not generally bring a CPR mask, supplies for needle thoracotomy, SAM splints, Quickclot, etc. despite having used all of these previously, but to each his own and some of these supplies are fairly light.


I don't bring suture supplies, but do bring Benzoin and steri-strips or Dermabond. You do NOT have to suture a wound to get it to quit bleeding. Simple firm pressure or approximating the wound edges in any fashion will do the trick, unless you have a bleeding disorder. If you do plan on suturing, I would recommend you bring sterile nylon monofilament suture in the 3-0 to 4-0 variety to help prevent infection, and learning how to do a vertical mattress stitch could be helpful. After having repaired litterally thousands of wounds in the field and office/hospital, in general I have no problem closing a fresh wound that has been scrubbed with a wet 4x4 dressing and irrigated copiously with plain old filtered canteen water (no syringe needed), though I would not permanently close a wound over exposed bone (especially the tibia) or exposed tendons (especially the hand). For wounds on the face/scalp, you could probably crush a few elk pellets into the wound and it would still heal without an infection...not 100% sure about this though. Here is a good resource for those interested and who are still a little suspicious of me http://www.aafp.org/afp/2008/1015/p945.html .

 

[fillthefreezer]

Also my dad was in the backcountry scouting per say and fell. He didn't have a suture kit so he had to use a regular needle and thread (not fun). he wouldn't have been able to stop the bleeding had he not sewn himself up.

granted i dont know the situation, but this is very hard for me to believe. this is coming from a guy whos gotten stitches in camp, glued his own wounds many times, taped his face back together in a compass mirror, etc

 

[TD1]

Don't remember seeing them mentioned earlier but I've always carried butterfly bandages (wimp stitches) as well. Only used them a couple times but they worked pretty well on a couple of bad cuts that probably should have had stitches, they held things pretty much together. Scars make you look more manly anyhow....

Also a few simple band-aids, a roll of athletic tape, (but looking into the vet wrap, may suit my uses better) duct tape (mostly for hot spots or blister and gear patching) several gauze pads in various sizes, neosporin (the gauze and neosporin make pretty decent fire starter as well) aspirin, aleve, benadryl, and some percocets for the unbearable. Eye drops (great relief if dusty and windy) Lip balm, that's all I can think of in it right now. All goes in a small sea to summit dry bag. Splints, crutches, many other things can be fabricated with a knife and saw (in the pack) I have paracord or mule tape, game bags, nylon poncho or small shelter and clothing in the pack as well.

The injuries I try to prepare for is bad sprain/broken bone and bad cuts, gouges, punctures, etc. With a side order of easing the distress of headache, insect bites, stings, etc. Much else.... there isn't a lot of things you are going to be carrying on your back IMO. The emergency beacon, etc. may be worthwhile though. Never owned one, but again... worth looking into. Something life threatening the only best treatment is get to a hospital FAST.

 

[Mad Mountain Mike]

granted i dont know the situation, but this is very hard for me to believe. this is coming from a guy whos gotten stitches in camp, glued his own wounds many times, taped his face back together in a compass mirror, etc

Have you never watched First Blood?

 

[Lawnboi]

I wouldn't risk stitching myself up because of infection. I don't want to come off a 10 day trip straight to the emergency room for surgery. If you can't control the bleeding with direct pressure and some packing of the wound you may want to consider cutting the trip short.