How to make a home first aid kit
Considering how much time we spend at our homes and how many opportunities
our homes provide for us to injure ourselves, having a well stocked first
aid kit around the house simply makes good sense.
Dr. Immaculata Igbo, assistant professor with Prairie View A&M University’s
College of Nursing, said many emergency room cases involve injuries that
occurred at the patients’ homes, with falls, burns and poisoning
being some of the most common types. A well stocked first aid kit can help
with just about any home medical emergency.
“No home should be without a first aid kit,” said Dr. Igbo. “Few
injuries do not require immediate medical attention. Knowing how to treat
minor injuries or keeping a serious injury stable until help arrives can
make a difference in an emergency.”
Ready-made kits are available and can be bought from a pharmacy or over
the Internet. Dr. Igbo recommends checking the contents carefully to make
sure that it includes the items you need. A self-made kit may be more expensive,
but it is more likely to have the items you need.
While there is no official standard for first aid kits, Dr. Igbo said
there are certain items that every kit should include. Quantity of each
item will depend on the number of people in your home and the activities
that you do at home.
Some things to keep in mind regarding your first aid kit:
- Items should be kept in a waterproof container large enough for the
contents to be arranged so that items can be found quickly when needed.
A plastic container or solid rectangular tin container with a closely
fitting lid would be suitable.
- Containers should be marked with either a cross or appropriately labeled
for easy recognition by everybody.
- Emergency telephone numbers should be posted on the lid of the kit.
The list should include numbers for the police, fire department, EMS,
poison control, family doctors and hospital.
- Every adult and teenager in the home should know where the kit is kept.
- Keep a portable first aid manual with the kit.
- Replace any used items immediately and check expiration dates from
time to time, so that you can discard and replace out-of-date items.
- Store prescription medicines and medical supplies separately from the
home first aid kit.
Items to include in your home first aid kit:
- First aid manual.
- Adhesive bandages of various sizes. These will likely be used regularly,
so you should keep at least five in stock.
- Several non-adherent, sterile gauze pads.
- One-inch-wide gauze bandage. Does not need to be sterile, but should
be more than ten feet long.
- One-inch-wide adhesive tape. Should be made of porous cloth, not waterproof.
- Thermometer.
- Latex or vinyl gloves (at least six pairs).
- Moleskin or molefoam, for preventing blisters on the feet.
- Triangular bandage, which has many uses, including making the classic
arm sling.
- Soap.
- Antiseptic wipes and solutions. Wipes allow you to clean your hands
before and after treating someone’s wound, while solutions help
you clean wounds. Few solutions are considered gentle enough to use directly
on or in a wound. Betadine cleanser is one of them.
- Antibiotic ointment (such as Neosporin).
- Disposable instant cold packs for bumps on the head, sprains and heat
exhaustion.
- Cotton swabs.
- Needle, which is good for draining blisters.
- Tweezers that are sharp and not unmanageably small.
- Sharp scissors or knife.
- Safety pins, which are useful for fastening arm slings and bandages.
- Razor blade, which can substitute for scissors. It can also be used
to shave skin before applying tape or the suction cup of a snake bite
kit.
- Nonprescription medications (anti-diarrhea medications, potassium iodide,
pain relief medication, antacids, laxatives, antihistamine tablets).
- Antihistamine cream for insect bites (do not use on broken or infected
skin).
Finally, Dr. Igbo strongly recommends adults and adolescents receive first
aid training, which is provided by such organizations as the American
Red Cross and YMCA.
This information is provided as a service by Prairie View A&M University’s
College of Nursing. If you have questions or would like more information,
talk to your physician.
H.E.A.D.s Up is a monthly column that features articles on a wide array
of Health, Exercise And Diet issues. Information for these articles is
provided by health and wellness professionals from throughout the A&M
System. If you have questions or story ideas for this column, email Ruth McMullan.
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