Medical Kit

[JusDreaming]

Some one posted about a company that supplied pharmacy supplies for fed. documented vessels, but now I can't find the post with info

[speciald@ocens.]

They were at the boat show last year; check the list of participants this year. It will be more expensive than you think as products expire quickly.

[GordMay]

There appear to be numerous outfits that supply pharmaceuticals & etc, tailored to yachts.
➥ pharmacy supplies yacht - Google Search

[capngeo]

The “kits” are expensive, and require a prescription in many cases. Unless you have the training to go with it, they are likely a waste of money. Get with a cruising physician and decide what “kit” is best for you with your medical HX and training.

I’m a Paramedic, and my S/O is a RN.... we had a cruising MD write ‘scripts for the stuff we wanted aboard, then made up our own kit. As both of us are in good health, our kit is mostly geared towards trauma, but we can also manage most of the acute illnesses seen at sea. The thinking being we are never more than 2 or 3 days from “real” medical care, our kit does not go beyond that.

[hellosailor]

Here's one:

Seaside Prescription Pharmacy
599 W 7th St
San Pedro, CA 90731
310-833-3551


I believe the term is "dispencing pharmacy" or something similar, as opposed to an ordinary pharmaceutical supplier. Your local pharmacy CAN find out from their wholesale suppliers who is available in your area. A local retail pharmacy can't fill rxes for vessels, but someone at the higher level CAN fill rxes for documented vessels that will be leaving US waters.

Of course the local MegaMart with $4 fills may be way cheaper for the ordinary meds, including the cost of a sit-down with your doctor to stock them.

And I'd have to agree with the chorus, "kits" tend to be damned expensive. You can put together a good trauma kit ("first aid" is going to be bandaids and aspirins) in a Pelican case or other good container for maybe 1/2 the price of the commercial ones.

[maxingout]

We had a rather extensive medical kit and used very little of it during our circumnavigation. 98% if it expired unused.

Now we carry simple meds for colds, pain, and a few antibiotics for skin infections.

The commercial kits are overpriced. When you reach your first foreign country, you may be able to get anything you want without a prescripition for a fraction of the price.

I would carry whatever chronic medications you use for things like hypertension and other chronic maladies, and get the rest of what you think you might want to have on board along the way.

I think that one frequently overlooked medication that could be needed at sea is burn cream as burns from the stove are a real possiblity. I would get some silvadene cream at my first overseas port to cover this eventuality.

[hellosailor]

Dave, actually silvadene can be mail-ordered in the US without an Rx, oddly enough. Of course the pharmacy still requires an Rx if you want it "today". What a racket.

(And you're right, it shouldn't be overlooked.)

[sarafina]

yep, burn ointment(silver sulphadiazine) is WAY high on my list. Also vials of subcutaneous lidacaine. Get an owie/gash that REALLY hurts? need to remove a really BIG splinter? Pretty easy to numb it all up with a bit of lidocaine and take some of the trama out of it. Lot easier to butterfly/stitch up or remove if it isn't making the patient climb outta the cockpit every time you touch it... or god ferbid yer doing it to yourself...


I keep a very extensive kit, bith in the house and on the boat. Prolly never need most of it, but it makes me feel better to know it's there.

As far as expense; Can I just say "Vet Supply"

I get virtually all of my bandages/sponges/tape/wrap/forceps/scalpels/needles and gut/betadine/antibiotic ointment/etc from the vet supply. LOADS cheaper for the same products. And I play pretty fast and loos with expiration dates, especially of dry goods. AN expired gauze sponge will work just fine.

It's all packed in a hard case, bright yellow, waterproof. About 14"x18"x10".

And if the lid is clamped on it floats. Of course that just means the risk of loosing it overboard will ALWAYS be when it's open...

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by maxingout

We had a rather extensive medical kit and used very little of it during our circumnavigation. 98% if it expired unused.

Now we carry simple meds for colds, pain, and a few antibiotics for skin infections.
....

Dave,
What's your recommendation for pain meds onboard for long offshore passages?

[SailBerkeley]

aspirin, tylenol, advil

narcotic analgesics... oxycodone with acetaminophen (percocet), hydromorphone (dilaudid) suppository

[maxingout]

Originally Posted by Paul L

Dave,
What's your recommendation for pain meds onboard for long offshore passages?

We never carried any narcotics on board. If I was going to take a controlled substance, I would probably just get some oxycodone.

The strongest thing we had on board was tylenol which is an excellent analgesic and is safe to use as long as you don't take too much of it. People who drink a lot of alcohol should avoid large doses of tylenol (acetaminophen) because it is toxic to the liver in large doses. If you take a whole bottle of it, it will destroy your liver, and you will die. The scientist accused of sending anthrax in the mail from a government lab committed suicide with a massive dose of acetaminophen.

Exit Only had a fairly stoic crew with a high pain threshold, and we never required narcotics while sailing. That being said, narcotics would come in handy if there were bad fractures or radicular pain from nerve compression like siatica.

When I rolled a car in New Zealand and broke two legs, five ribs, and my should blade, I discovered the power of Morphine. It works wonders when medical personal are going to manipulate fractures or roll you over in bed.
2mg of IV morphine drip makes awesome pain relief without any euphoria.

If I ever break a leg or fracture ribs offshore, I may seriously wish to have some morphine on board.

People who have a low pain threshold may need to have more narcotics on board. Some people are very sensitive to pain, and they require more medication than others with the same problem. They simply have different physiology at work.

[maxingout]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

Dave, actually silvadene can be mail-ordered in the US without an Rx, oddly enough. Of course the pharmacy still requires an Rx if you want it "today". What a racket.

(And you're right, it shouldn't be overlooked.)

That's good to know. Silvadene is great for putting on burns when you are remote.

The entire drug industry is a racket. It is legal organized extortion of the public. When I worked in Saudi Arabia, we purchased medications at half the price (or less) than the cost in the USA. The government and the drug industry work in collusion to keep prices up through government rules and regulation. The drug industry is predatory, dishonest, and oppressive. I could give lots of examples of their shameful behavior, but that would hijack the thread and accomplish nothing.

I'll buy my medications and medical kit in the third world when Exit Only is outside the USA.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by maxingout

We never carried any narcotics on board. If I was going to take a controlled substance, I would probably just get some oxycodone.

....
If I ever break a leg or fracture ribs offshore, I may seriously wish to have some morphine on board.
....

Dave,
If you went offshore again, would you bring some serious pain meds? We don't have a low pain threshold, but a 1,000 miles offshore with a broken femur could put just about anyone in a bad mood. Can oxycodone be delivered IM? You think it is a better choice than morphine for an offshore boat?

[bene505]

I saw a post with a pre-made list of medical supplies on Amazon.com. Now I can't firn the post. Anyone know where it is?

Regards,
Brad

[Hirophant]

It's the $900 Marine First Aid Kit for ~$500 thread, first post, click the link which says "here's the list".