Trauma Kit?

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PolarFBear

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I have lots of "trauma" creators but for trauma care I only have band-aids and aspirin. What/where are sources for a bare minimum trauma kit? We have burglar alarms, smoke detectors, fire extinguishers but how many have given real thought to a medical emergency?
 
Been there with Scouts doing 100+ mile trekking.
We had a Dr. in the troop who made us a kit that was focused on likely wilderness trauma needs, with a few items you generally can’t find in online or in stores, including sutures, lidocaine patches etc.
I liked that approach as it was focused on our needs, one of which was very light weight.
 
I went to Walmart.

Heavy wound dressing.
Tape
Bleed stop powder....sorry, wrong name


Add a tourniquet and you should be good for immediate heavy wound/gunshot treatment.

A real IFAK is great, but spendy. I got my idea by studying that. BTW, I am not an expert at all....just want to learn.

Probably need to learn more about chest wounds as sometimes they need a tube inserted....not sure why.
 
Add some QuikClot to any first aid kit, if not included. Since being retired, I have used it twice; not on any gunshot wounds, but chainsaw accidents and a car accident.
It works....
 
Probably need to learn more about chest wounds as sometimes they need a tube inserted....not sure why.
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TAKE A CLASS!!! None of the IFAK gear is worth much without the training to go with it. Wound packing, pressure dressings, even the proper application of a tourniquet MATTER.

As for needle decompression for tension pneumothorax (“they need a tube inserted”) is a pretty advanced skill. Not hard to learn, but it is dangerous if not done correctly. Poking around in someones chest should not be done lightly.

Lots of firearms training schools now offer TCCC type training. Im firmly in the camp that EVERY adult should know these skills. Not just for gunfights.... car crashes, powertool accidents, whatever.

I carry both an IFAK and a more complete trama bag in my Jeep, as well as carrying a RATS tourniquet on my person as part of my EDC. Poopoo happens and i like to have tools available to deal with said excrement
 
Excellent post Sharkbite!

+ 1 sir.
My secondary AFSC in the USAF was medic. I was a dental clinic troop. I am very thankful for all the first aid training I got in the USAF to support that secondary AFSC.

No I'm not going to root around in someones chest, however the training I did get has had a couple people over the years feel very indebted to me, I may or may not have saved their life.

If given the alternative of no materials or no training? I'll take the no materials side of that bet.
That said, both is my preference.

Basic CPR and first aid should be something that at least one person in your party has when you are in the boonies and a long way from professional help.

A good class will focus on what I think is #1 in a true emergency. Keeping your wits about you. Keeping a cool head when the worst happens is critical to how and when the emergency ends.

An emergency kit is number two behind the skills to use it.
 
To answer your question about sources for the gear; if you have already looked online for the it, I'm led to believe you're looking for some of the equipment that is only available via prescription/physician's ID number. While these tools set the trauma kit apart from a first-aid, boo-boo-and-snivels kit, they may simply not be available. These are usually the things that go into a patient's body; OPA/NPA, IV catheters, IV fluids, etc.

As many others have already mentioned, training is really important. There are many life-saving methods and techniques that can be accomplished without the fancy gear. The nice gear is intended to lessen the burden on a medic treating multi-system injury.

Patient positioning, for example, is overlooked as a potentially life-saving technique. Having someone suffer from aspiration pneumonia after inhaling their own vomit is easily avoided, yet can harm someone well after the traumatic injuries are resolved.

You can learn to use a tourniquet in very short order. Non-compressible bleeds that can't be treated with tourniquets take some hands-on training on technique, and can't be learned from a video. These injuries are common, i.e. thoracic compromise, high femoral injury, etc. However, if a video is all you have access to due to time/money constraints, it sure as hell beats nothing.

Train to be an expert at the basics, because not knowing them is a shameful way to let someone die. (A bit grim, isn't it?)

So again, the training should come first.
 
For what it's worth, and just honestly trying to understand, let me say that I have great difficulty with the widespread use of unfamiliar acronyms. So, a lot of this went over my head.... AFAK; TCCC; RATS; etc. Greek, anyone?
 
AFAK= advanced first aid kit. More then a Booboo kit. Chest seals, nasal pharyngeal airways, hemostatic agent, etc
TCCC= tactical combat casualty care. The Military standard of care on the battlefield. Includes training in Needle decompression, cricothyrotomy and other life saving procedures.
RATS= Rapid application tourniquet. A small bungee type of tourniquet, that is easy to carry and use.

You think gun guys use a lot of acronyms...talk to medics. Lol
 
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I work in construction and have seen a few nasty wounds first hand, including a powder actuated nail gun injury to the chest. The majority of the injuries we see are cuts. We had the luxury of being able to call in professional medical care quickly. The only injury we couldn't stop the bleeding on was the chest wound. Direct pressure and pressure points stopped bleeding on a nearly severed hand. Training was the best tool in all cases. We keep a first aid kit with dressings and bandages that took care of everything. But if we hadn't been trained in what to do with what we had the outcome may have been very different. I say this only to stress that I agree with previous statements that you need training for what you carry. Otherwise you will be reading a manual when you should be taking action to help a loved one.

Also, I don't want 1 person in my party trained. What if that is the person that needs help?
 
I have first aid kits in my house, both cars, work, and range bag. These all have two tourniquets, chest seals, quick clot (or another brand), and other things to control major bleeding.

I grew up in a medical family and was a boy scout, so the basics have been hammered in pretty hard. I try to do a few things every year. A trauma class, and a few firearms training classes. I am much more likely to find people in need to medical attention than needing my firearm to defend myself.

If you have a computer and you don't know how to do anything but turn it on but think you know technology, you are a moron. If you have a gun to defend yourself and you haven't practiced drawing to fire and clearing your house but think you are safe, you are a moron. If you have medical supplies and no idea to how to use them but think you can help injured people, you are a moron. Maybe you are hoping that your stuff can get used by another bystander? That concept has never flown with me... I aim to be a sheepdog, not a sheep.
 
Take a class is great advice. I have taken a bunch, and I am certified to teach "Stop the Bleed" (if anyone needs it in CO, drop me a note).

In every car, TQ, Quick Clot gauze, gloves at a minimum. Same when hunting. At the range I take a full kit. The previous, plus first aid, snake bite. Home range has three full kits for matches that include AEDs.

North American Rescue sells kits up and down the spectrum. After a lot of training, I have come to the conclusion that I won't ever use or recommend anything but the North American Rescue CAT7 (or whatever is current) TQs except maybe a SWAT-T if there are little ones. Too many failures in actual and testing for the rest.

This is a good basic kit that exceeds the Stop the Bleed specs: https://www.narescue.com/m-fak-mini-first-aid-kits-realtree-camo-rtc
 
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