Space blanket. Ibuprofen.
The first is very handy if you have a genuine emergency in the micturating wet. I did, and I didn't have one. I was blue by the time they loaded me into the ambulance.
The second is to stop the first getting lonely.
First aid kit?
-
Tangled Metal
- Posts: 9509
- Joined: 13 Feb 2015, 8:32pm
Re: First aid kit?
I knew a guy who was really blue when he ambulance came. That's what you get for stopping breathing after a spell underwater for longer than is good for you. He survived but it's not a good look being blue instead of flesh coloured.
In that situation there were too many people being flustered to do any good. As a group we didn't have the right safety kit and the knowledge of how to use it. First aid skills were really no good when people were panicking. Grown men too, I was just a kid but calmer than those leading the trip. The club got organised and people started to carry the safety kit from then on.
You need the kit you need when you need it and the ability to use it. That's knowledge and the experience to use it when needed. You also need the kit that will keep you safe and healthy until you can get home or to medical help. Whether that's a simple wound dressing or a tourniquet to keep someone alive and stop them bleeding out. That all depends on what you think you might encounter and the remoteness of where you're going. A week hiding out in Scottish Highlands you might need more than a ride around your home town for an hour or so. A trip crossing the Venezuelan rainforest unsupported during this time of political unrest you probably need more, including heavy duty medicine. It's like every other kit, you need what you need for what you're doing. Personal preference adjusts that according to each individual.
In that situation there were too many people being flustered to do any good. As a group we didn't have the right safety kit and the knowledge of how to use it. First aid skills were really no good when people were panicking. Grown men too, I was just a kid but calmer than those leading the trip. The club got organised and people started to carry the safety kit from then on.
You need the kit you need when you need it and the ability to use it. That's knowledge and the experience to use it when needed. You also need the kit that will keep you safe and healthy until you can get home or to medical help. Whether that's a simple wound dressing or a tourniquet to keep someone alive and stop them bleeding out. That all depends on what you think you might encounter and the remoteness of where you're going. A week hiding out in Scottish Highlands you might need more than a ride around your home town for an hour or so. A trip crossing the Venezuelan rainforest unsupported during this time of political unrest you probably need more, including heavy duty medicine. It's like every other kit, you need what you need for what you're doing. Personal preference adjusts that according to each individual.
Re: First aid kit?
On the first aid course at work, the instructor said he'd only ever used a tourniquet on a cycling injury.
The person hadn't bothered replacing his bar end plugs, and in a crash he managed to "apple core" his leg and cut the femoral artery. So prevention is certainly better than cure.
I carry a small one, as said, with some clotting agent as I'm on blood thinners. Plus you can add some Berrocca for after a night out.
The person hadn't bothered replacing his bar end plugs, and in a crash he managed to "apple core" his leg and cut the femoral artery. So prevention is certainly better than cure.
I carry a small one, as said, with some clotting agent as I'm on blood thinners. Plus you can add some Berrocca for after a night out.
A novice learning...
“the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible.”
“the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible.”