The St. John Ambulance Australia and Australian Red Cross offer first aid kits that are meticulously put together. In contrast, making your own may be easy and inexpensive.
So what do you really need for a family first aid kit? Well, that’s what this article is all about.
Family First Aid Kit Essentials
Adhesive Strip Dressings
These are useful for treating scrapes and mild burns. Young children may prefer variants that are brightly colored or have fun patterns. For burns and scrapes, non-adherent wound dressings should be used.
Wound Dressings
These are useful for stopping bleeding and protecting wounds. It’s highly recommended to have a variety of sizes in your kit.
Bandages (non-elastic and elastic)
Crepe bandages are applied to bleeding wounds to assist wound dressings to stay in place, provide pressure, and give support. Bandages that are not elastic may be used as slings to assist in maintaining the position of splints and to assist in limiting mobility.
Disposable Gloves And Swabs
You may clean your hands, wounds on patients, and the skin in the surrounding area using swabs. Purchase some nitrile gloves that will suit the hands of every adult in the household to reduce the risk of infection.
Blunt-nosed Shears And Scissors
The shears may be used to remove garments and the scissors to cut off excess dressings and bandages.
Forceps
Get a set of forceps with long, pointed tips for the specific purpose of removing splinters.
Saline
A saline solution is used to treat wounds and flush out the eyes to remove small irritants such as dust, sand, and insects. A saline solution is made up of sodium chloride and water.
Burn Gel
If there is no access to cold running water, then a burn gel will come in handy. Also, they may be used to treat small burns and offer some comfort while on the way to obtaining medical attention.
Adhesive Tape
One of the most important things that should be included in a first aid kit is a roll of breathable adhesive tape, which can be purchased at most local pharmacies. It assists in keeping dressings in place.
A Thermal Blanket
Thermal blankets designed for emergencies work by reflecting your body heat back to you. When used as protection from the sun, they have the additional ability to reflect heat.
Pencil And Notepad
Essential for keeping track of when and how an accident or sickness occurred.
Medications
It is a smart move to have painkillers on hand, such as ibuprofen or paracetamol, for both adults and children in case of an emergency. Plastic syringes are essential for accurate dosage, and a digital thermometer is useful for keeping tabs on a small child’s temperature.
Other Important Items You May Want To Include
Having the items mentioned above are the most essential for your first aid kit. However, you also can add more things that may not be truly necessary but may be very helpful in certain situations. Below are a few other options you might want to add.
- Antiseptic cream
- Aeroburn burn gel
- Aeroswab gauze swabs
- A list of emergency phone numbers
- Safety pins
- Disposable instant cold packs
- Alcohol wipes
- A flashlight and extra batteries
- An eye shield
- Eye wash solution
Maintaining The First Aid Kit
According to the Australian Red Cross, it is crucial to ensure that the first aid box in your house is well supplied and easy for adults to access. A high kitchen cabinet is a wise location to keep the kit safe from curious little hands. Also, periodically check the contents, such as medications and creams, to ensure that items are not passed their expiration date.
If you want to keep the first aid kit in a vehicle, you should ensure that it is properly fastened down so that it does not get displaced while the vehicle is in motion. While having a well-stocked first aid kit at home is helpful, having at least one trained family member in first aid makes it even better.
In the event of a critical situation, you should always dial 000.
Wrapping It All Up
So that’s it for now. After reading this article, you should know what items you need to create your own effective family first aid kit.
Learn essential first aid steps for emergency situations such as CPR, treating wounds, and managing injuries
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