What's in your medkit?

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Mar 15, 2010
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Montana
I recently moved, and while packing up my garage, took some time to consolidate all of my various first aid kits/boxes of bandaids/etc into one plastic container. It got me thinking, what all should I have in my medkit?

Now, let me say that what I typically pack for a day hunt when I'm with other people and what I pack when I'm going to be on my own for a few days are different things, so I think that the contents are going to change depending on the type of hunt you are on, but I'm curious to hear what others regard as necessary items in their medkits.

I will inventory and post what is in my kit later when I have some time, but for now, what do the rest of you regard as essential items for a prepared hunter to head into the field with?
 
After seeing quick clot fail miserably multiple times in Iraq, I wouldn't trust my life to it...

Agreed, But it is better that nothing. Hopefully we don't have to use anything in our kits.

My backpack kit has some gorilla tape, blister pads, triangle bandage, steri strips, a few 4x4's, bandaids, neosporin, ibuprofen and aspirin.

I have a full first aid kit at the truck that has about anything you could ever need and a bunch of stuff that you will probably never need.
 
Agreed, But it is better that nothing. Hopefully we don't have to use anything in our kits.

My backpack kit has some gorilla tape, blister pads, triangle bandage, steri strips, a few 4x4's, bandaids, neosporin, ibuprofen and aspirin.

I have a full first aid kit at the truck that has about anything you could ever need and a bunch of stuff that you will probably never need.

Actually, what I had all of my medics get and use, as well as the combat lifesavers I taught pre-deployment....and I was told by many of them that this worked....and there will be snide comments and rude jokes...

But, I recommend tampons and ace bandages. Especially for a puncture type wound. The tampon goes in and swells as it absorbs the blood and wrapping it in place with some gauze over it with the ace wrap makes an instant pressure dressing that isn't going to come apart as you move or hobble around. Basic life support is what saves lives, the crap you learned in boy scouts....pressure on a wound...that's exactly what a tampon and ace wrap does and it leaves your hands free to attend to other things.

I did this very thing myself in Iraq with gunshot wounds with a 100% success rate at stopping blood loss in the wound. The men I did this to were able to return to the fight without the wound reopening and rebleeding uncontrollably.

If you have an avulsion type wound where you have a flap of skin...gauze and an ace wrap, and duct tape over that. Ace wraps are your best friend in an aid kit.
 
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First aid kits are more about comfort than providing anything that will save your life.
 
Gorrila tape, ace bandage, super glue, advil, pepto bismol pills. The only other thing needed to help with sprains, pains, cuts, and butts would be some para cord in case a splint or something was needed but I always include para cord in the general survival kit not the first aid portion. Also I always have paper towels so I can use gorilla tape for a bandage. Neosporin could be added but I never do.
 
Buzz...It doesn't really do anything more than what a tampon would do, in my opinion, other than having the coating on the sponges. And a SF medic should know to use a tampon in the first place. There's a lot of misleading in the article that the layman wouldn't know about....a lot of 'winning of hearts and minds'.
 
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I have a disposable suture kit, a disposable scalpel, a hypodermic needle, lidocaine, neosporin, tweezers, eye wash and various band aids and bandages in a small soft sided zipper bag. Never know when one of my hunting buddies will need major surgery.
 
Gorilla tape, a few needles and thread(that are already threaded) , tweezers, super glue, windproof lighter, alcohol wipes, small bottle of eye wash, and then your basics of ace bandage, band aids, pain killers, some cordage, something I have thought a lot about but never bought since it is pretty high priced is a smaller AED. I know it sounds extreme but to atleast have one at camp with you would be comforting when you are miles away from help.
 
And a SF medic should know to use a tampon in the first place. QUOTE]

Cush,

But how is he supposed to make his millions after the Army?

It is interesting, it sounds to me like a slightly better tampon. I wonder how it would perform in the pelvic area, that area is a real bad spot to get hit. I had a buddy die in AFG from a hit there, there was nothing anyone on the ground could do to stop it. Tough to get inside that cavity and control bleeding without cutting a guy wide open.

I am pretty sure that Chitin stuff is in Celox; which is what we got when they got rid of quikclot.

To the OP: IMO reliable communications is probably what is really going to make, or break, you in a life and death situation. Getting to an ER in the "golden hour" is super critical. You can have the best first aid kit in the world, but if you can't get somewhere, they are just going to find you dead with a bunch of tampons sticking out of you.;)
 
And a SF medic should know to use a tampon in the first place. QUOTE]

Cush,

But how is he supposed to make his millions after the Army?

It is interesting, it sounds to me like a slightly better tampon. I wonder how it would perform in the pelvic area, that area is a real bad spot to get hit. I had a buddy die in AFG from a hit there, there was nothing anyone on the ground could do to stop it. Tough to get inside that cavity and control bleeding without cutting a guy wide open.

I am pretty sure that Chitin stuff is in Celox; which is what we got when they got rid of quikclot.

To the OP: IMO reliable communications is probably what is really going to make, or break, you in a life and death situation. Getting to an ER in the "golden hour" is super critical. You can have the best first aid kit in the world, but if you can't get somewhere, they are just going to find you dead with a bunch of tampons sticking out of you.;)

That made my morning!!! :D But, I agree. Communication is a key factor and getting proper medical care quickly is crucial. Either a SPOT or an inReach, something with an SOS function that can have air medics to you in a reasonable amount of time will do more than anything in your first aid kit.
 
And a SF medic should know to use a tampon in the first place. QUOTE]

Cush,

But how is he supposed to make his millions after the Army?

It is interesting, it sounds to me like a slightly better tampon. I wonder how it would perform in the pelvic area, that area is a real bad spot to get hit. I had a buddy die in AFG from a hit there, there was nothing anyone on the ground could do to stop it. Tough to get inside that cavity and control bleeding without cutting a guy wide open.

I am pretty sure that Chitin stuff is in Celox; which is what we got when they got rid of quikclot.

To the OP: IMO reliable communications is probably what is really going to make, or break, you in a life and death situation. Getting to an ER in the "golden hour" is super critical. You can have the best first aid kit in the world, but if you can't get somewhere, they are just going to find you dead with a bunch of tampons sticking out of you.;)

The use of tampons would have certainly changed "the revenant". I also have an inreach and love it. On my last trip it was great that I could communicate back home while hunting. The time difference makes it hard to get in touch with people. My wife was relieved that I had the capability to get help.
 
The nice thing about the inreach is having 2 way communication with the rescue team, so you can tell them your injuries or what your issue is so they know what to prepare for.
 
Moleskin/molefoam and other stuff to take care of blisters. Also someone always carries sutures or a stapler when we are hunting with horses. And we have used them before. Big, dumb animals.
 
I have found that as I get a little older (hopefully wiser) I whittle down my med kit a bit each season or three. I think I have what I need to handle most minor injuries and a few more serious issues.
I went through the Wilderness EMT course a number of years ago, and it was very helpful. Knowledge about what to do if things go sideways weighs nothing, and can be better than the biggest med kit. Also, having hunting partners who know the basics is a big bonus.

One way I have approached what I take with me is I think of the hunts I will be on and consider the most likely injury my hunting partner or I could encounter. And "injury" might be better described as "inconvenience" in reality -- small blisters, minor scrapes, minor burns (think grabbing the lid on the cook stove by accident, etc.) that only require a band-aid or some blister treatment.
The serious injuries I would categorize as large cuts/puncture wounds and sprains/breaks. Both can be hunt-ending in nature, and a break or major sprain (ankle, knee, etc.) could make for a dangerous and tough trip out on foot, possibly requiring an evac.

Each hunter will take what they feel keeps them safe/covered for possible injuries, but the basics in my opinion are items to stop/slow the bleeding from a cut/scrape/puncture and items to stabilize and immobilize a sprain/break. Additional "nice to have" items include Ibuprofen, Immodium, pre-blister prep (a few 10" strips of K-Tape are great) as well as hand sanitizer.
"Cross over" items that most of us carry are duct tape (wrapped around my trekking pole below the grip), latex gloves (part of my field dressing kit) and of course a sleeping bag/pad, in case someone had to wait out the night, etc.

All of the med kit items weigh about 6-8 oz. and can be carried anytime. Along with that, a basic Wilderness first aid course is a good idea -- a little know-how goes a long way.
 

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