First aid kits

One chilly October day I was rowing out to the new boat when I realised I'd forgotten my sleeping bag. Never mind, I thought, I'll use that emergency foil blanket that came with the boat.

That night I tried to unfold it and it was so old that it stuck together and then tore into fragments -- which I ceremoniously placed over various parts of myself. That was a long cold night.
 
DanTribe said:
My kit contained several bandages without dates, so presumably from before stuff was dated, About early 1970s?
I had to attend periodic first aid courses for work. It seemed that each course advised that you did less intervention than the previous one, just put the casualty into the recovery position, No sticky plasters, painkillers or sprays, or even inhalers unless the casualty could get it themselves. Reasoning was that less harm would be done but it always seemed to be to avoid any litigation.
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Yes I agree FA courses tend to try to make advice one size fits all. If not breathing resuscitate. Not much good if patient has massive injuries to head or body. The course constructors seem to assume we are all idiots. We do know a bit about drugs or many of us do. I would give a patient whatever I had that I thought would be useful if he agreed.
Regarding "use by dates" I think manufacturers of many products use a "use by date" as a means of providing a "batch number" That is really useful for them if they have a problem and need to recall a product. The problem then becomes that they add a use by date to many products that don't deteriorate. Of course replacement after a year or so does not hurt their sales. So yes use your own judgement.
I check my FA kit every year. Things like paracetamol I take out and use at home replacing with newer stuff. Bandages last for ever. Other stuff well not too old I hope.
If I had a sealed kit I would also have a likely to be used kit of a towel plasters and paracetamol. ol'will
 
I've been a qualified first-aider since I was about 12, but the only times I've ever used it was gluing the kids back together when they fell off their bikes.

ABC - If they're conscious, that's A & B taken care of. C? Pretty much the same, just a case of stopping any serious leaks, then cleaning up the minor ones. If it needs stitching, off to the minor accident unit. Any more than that and it's 999/mayday and try to keep them going until the cavalry arrives. Burns - deep or big, wrap them in cling film and put a wet towel over it to cool it down, then off to A&E. Small ones, if they need any treatment at all, much the same, only substitute a glass of something comforting for the trip to A&E.
 
oilybilge said:
One chilly October day I was rowing out to the new boat when I realised I'd forgotten my sleeping bag. Never mind, I thought, I'll use that emergency foil blanket that came with the boat.

That night I tried to unfold it and it was so old that it stuck together and then tore into fragments -- which I ceremoniously placed over various parts of myself. That was a long cold night.
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Even if it had been intact you would have found it very ineffective at keeping you cosy! They can help a little with keeping the wind off (particularly if wet) probably provide some psychological boost (to both patient and carer) but not much else.
William_H said:
Yes I agree FA courses tend to try to make advice one size fits all. If not breathing resuscitate. Not much good if patient has massive injuries to head or body. The course constructors seem to assume we are all idiots.
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You have to remember that first aid courses are designed to be accessible by everyone and half the population have below average intelligence. They want to teach stuff in a way that might be memorable in a high stress situation. They want people who encounter someone in need to feel capable of simple actions which likely improve outcomes (or at least make them no worse).

In fact as the entry requirements/qualifications to become a first aid instructor are not particularly onerous (on either medical or teaching skills) I suspect part of the dumbing down is about getting the content right so that an average trainer can teach an average class in the given time. Keep in mind that to become a first aid instructor you do not ever have to have seen an unconscious person in real life, can pass out at the sight of real blood, etc. Most first aid courses are based around first aid at work logic which assumes that for anything serious you dial 999 and help arrives fairly quickly (a premise which may be wrong even in that setting in the 2020s).

The criteria people often use for doing first aid courses:
- the minimum I need to satisfy some governing body
- the cheapest I can find
- the most convenient time/location
etc.

Rarely do people actually work out what they need and go look for the course that covers those skills.
 
William_H said:
Regarding "use by dates" I think manufacturers of many products use a "use by date" as a means of providing a "batch number" That is really useful for them if they have a problem and need to recall a product. The problem then becomes that they add a use by date to many products that don't deteriorate.
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No first aid products all fall into the world of medical devices - so they all have batch numbers and processes for recall. Things get expiry dates because the manufacturer has to show that stuff will function up to that date with practical evidence. That means the expiry date will often be shorter than real life because the average buyer doesn’t care and the manufacturer isn’t going to do expensive prolonged shelf life studies if a typical buyer is quite happy with a 1-2 yr shelf life. You might have a pair of sterile tweezers in your kit. It probably has an expiry on it of 2-3 yrs from manuf. the plastic will likely last 10+ or if metal virtually forever if kept sealed, but the packaging that keeps it sterile might only last 3 yrs before a small percentage of them start to come unstuck. If you are removing a thorn - sterile is probably not important. If you are using in an operating theatre it is.
 
Stemar said:
I've been a qualified first-aider since I was about 12, but the only times I've ever used it was gluing the kids back together when they fell off their bikes.

ABC - If they're conscious, that's A & B taken care of. C? Pretty much the same, just a case of stopping any serious leaks, then cleaning up the minor ones. If it needs stitching, off to the minor accident unit. Any more than that and it's 999/mayday and try to keep them going until the cavalry arrives. Burns - deep or big, wrap them in cling film and put a wet towel over it to cool it down, then off to A&E. Small ones, if they need any treatment at all, much the same, only substitute a glass of something comforting for the trip to A&E.
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All good stuff Stemar. The only wording that I would change is not to "wrap" a limb with clingfilm as it "could" restrict blood flow in the case of any swelling. Rather just cover the burn with the clingfilm.
 
Stemar said:
I've been a qualified first-aider since I was about 12, but the only times I've ever used it was gluing the kids back together when they fell off their bikes.

ABC - If they're conscious, that's A & B taken care of. C? Pretty much the same, just a case of stopping any serious leaks, then cleaning up the minor ones. If it needs stitching, off to the minor accident unit. Any more than that and it's 999/mayday and try to keep them going until the cavalry arrives. Burns - deep or big, wrap them in cling film and put a wet towel over it to cool it down, then off to A&E. Small ones, if they need any treatment at all, much the same, only substitute a glass of something comforting for the trip to A&E.
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That's much my experience. My first course was for a Duke of Edinburgh scheme trip, age about 15, a looong time ago. A formidable lady taught us how to deal with compound fractures and penetrating wounds, [the things you can do with triangular bandages!]. The last course really said , check if they'e breathing and send for help.
Whenever I quoted what I learnt on a previous course, it was "Oh no, we don't teach that any more".
 
Sticking plasters are best kept in the galley for easy access, also paracetamol because they get used regularly.

Triangular bandages can be folded and used as an ordinary bandage.
 
DanTribe said:
That's much my experience. My first course was for a Duke of Edinburgh scheme trip, age about 15, a looong time ago. A formidable lady taught us how to deal with compound fractures and penetrating wounds, [the things you can do with triangular bandages!]. The last course really said , check if they'e breathing and send for help.
Whenever I quoted what I learnt on a previous course, it was "Oh no, we don't teach that any more".
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On the other hand, my first first aid course was 4 days long, didn't cover defibrilation (I don't think even ambulances had them - they certainly weren't just press go) and help required you to go to a landline phone where the person answering would send a van with a couple of people and a stretcher in it. When defibs did make it to "first aid" the course was another two days on top of the basic course, and required regular (12 week?) 1 hr refreshers. Now the most basic first aid course teaches defib use and the person on the end of my pocket communicator has a script and training to follow to guide through various options. When the cavalry arrive they have more tools and can call on extra help. If you want (or think you might need) more sophisticated stuff - like splits and tourniquets, or casualty care whilst prolonged wait for help etc then there are courses around.
 
I often found the official First Aid kits of very low quality: when I brought my liferaft for service I asked the station if they had any spare material, most professional safety stuff must be serviced yearly so they are obliged to replace a lot of things if only one component if past its due date so over the years I accumulated a lot of things: most plasters would not stick, triangular bandages were made of a very slippery fabric a knot would come undone with the slightest tension, adhesive roll bandages needed endless nail scratching or even tweezers before being able to unroll them, oh anything more ridicolous than scissors?
Otoh survival rations seem to have the same taste whatever year they were made :D
 
DanTribe said:
We have some visitors coming so thought I would check the first aid box
Newest items were 2019 and some items looked like they belonged in a museum or a period drama.
Also perhaps a refresher course is a good idea.
How often do you check?
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I tend to check ours once or twice a year. Dressings and wipes can look fine but still be long expired, especially if you haven’t opened the kit in years.
This explains what goes out of date and when Do First Aid Kits Expire? Maintenance & Restocking Guide
 
The one thing we now ensure we keep at hand beyond what others have mentioned above is "Silver spray".

Magic stuff! We were introduced to it in Greece a few years back when one of the crew went A over T on the crazy paving one night. Multiple nasty grazes, weeping/bleeding etc.

Went to local pharmacy (still open at a civilized 2045 in the evening!) and asked for gauze / tape and TCP equivalent, he suggested a silver spray too. Next morning - no redness, nice scab forming, and later: no scars either.

A GP travelling with us was amazed.

Apparently its not for human use in the UK, but horse-bothereres and vets know it well. We brough back a can each for home and boat.


Earlier this year I took the tips off two fingers with a mandolin. A&E used silver nitrate sticks to cauterise it. They also used TXA, but that seems harder to get over the counter. I'd have both onboard if/where possible: Were I to take the tips off in the same way / type of cut onboard, I'd say its urgent, but not evacuate urgent * - both the above would make things a more comfortable for the trip back to civilisation, IMHO.

* YMMV - the tips were bleeding, for along time, but as ever, a little blood goes a *long* way, so SWMBO drove me to A&E, no ambo needed etc. If onboard, wrapping in gauge would have worked, but the sticks and TXA would have made the gauge last a lot longer before they needed swapping out than without. Certainly long enough to get ashore in a controlled way.

M
 
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