Sailing specific first aid kit contents?

[s/v Jedi]

So here’s our updated first aid kit. This is a Pelican 1550EMS case that we’ve had for many years. We emptied and cleaned it, then put the contents of a MyMedic kit in as well as additions as discussed before.

For these times we even have Covid rapid antigen tests and medications in there.

[jordanbigel]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

For these times we even have Covid rapid antigen tests and medications in there.

Covid Medications?

[donradcliffe]

Having an ER/ICU nurse as an admiral, I had the best field hospital on the water. Three duffle bags full of IV's, splints, tracheostomy tubes, scalpels, suture kits, opiods, antibiodics, antimalarials, manitol, nitro, beta blockers, ACE inhibitors, atropine, ephinephrin,4 kinds of antibiotics, inhalers, lidocaines and everything else she could think of.

So what did we use most? Hot soaks and antibiotic ointments for wounds below the knee, lomitol for the touristas, Tums for overindugence, hot water bottles for gallstones, Meclazine for seasickness and Phenergan for extreme seasickness (now replaced by Ondonsetran, thank god), clove oil for toothaches, and bandaids. The injectible morphine was really welcome when I had kidney stones, and the Malarone fixed my malaria in a few hours. A local in Vanuatu she diagnosed with pneumonia responded well to an inhaler and antibiotics. She treated everything from facial shingles to genital rashes, and loved every minute.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by jordanbigel

Covid Medications?

Early treatment protocol on page 2: https://covid19criticalcare.com/wp-c...ol-ENGLISH.pdf

[jordanbigel]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Early treatment protocol on page 2: https://covid19criticalcare.com/wp-c...ol-ENGLISH.pdf

Oh boy. Once again, for the people in the cheap seats, Ivermectin is NOT an anit-viral it is an anti-parasitic drug. Since Covid is not a parasite but a virus, ivermectin does not work.

Here are some facts about Ivermectin for those of you who still don't comprehend what it is and is not.

https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consum...event-covid-19

[Marathon1150]

We built our first aid kits using guidance from the following sources:

1. Beth Leonard. The Voyager's Handbook
2. Medicine for Mountaineers. The Mountaineers
3. Where there are no doctors.
4. A couple of marine-specific and wilderness first aid courses.

DAN also provides helpful advice regarding useful first aid kit contents for marine environments.

For all of the above, a cooperative physician is required to prescribe a significant number of prescription-only meds, particularly the opioids required for pain relief.

And then there is the issue of "best before date" monitoring. We keep a spreadsheet of all items that have one of those but are also guided by a large study at the University of Washington that examined the efficacy of 40 year old pharmaceuticals and found that with only a few exceptions, most of the items were still efficacious.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by jordanbigel

Oh boy. Once again, for the people in the cheap seats, Ivermectin is NOT an anit-viral it is an anti-parasitic drug. Since Covid is not a parasite but a virus, ivermectin does not work.

Here are some facts about Ivermectin for those of you who still don't comprehend what it is and is not.

https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consum...event-covid-19

Ah, it’s unfortunate you’re making this political because I don’t discuss politics. That said, published and retracted scientific papers, as well as clinical results around the world, show that the early treatment protocol I posted isn’t only very successful, it’s also about the only thing that can be done out on a boat out there when no elite antibody therapies are available.

The use of Ivermectin against Covid19 is still in clinical trials. By the time these are finished, the virus will have mutated to a variation of the common cold

[jordanbigel]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Ah, it’s unfortunate you’re making this political because I don’t discuss politics. That said, published and retracted scientific papers, as well as clinical results around the world, show that the early treatment protocol I posted isn’t only very successful, it’s also about the only thing that can be done out on a boat out there when no elite antibody therapies are available.

The use of Ivermectin against Covid19 is still in clinical trials. By the time these are finished, the virus will have mutated to a variation of the common cold

I said absolutely NOTHING political.

[slipaway]

In these discussions there is always lots of talk about treatments, medications, procedures, some of which may go far beyond "basic first aid." It is important to consider that (in the US at least) when you render medical aid to someone on your (presumably) recreational vessel, that assistance needs to be reasonable for the circumstances and for your training and experience. States and US Federal law provide some protections in the form of Good Samaritan laws for rendering medical aid. The The Federal version can be found at: 46 USC 2303(c) and states that the Master or individual involved in rendering assistance "is not liable for damages as a result of rendering assistance or for an act or omission in providing or arranging salvage, towage, medical treatment or other assistance when the individual acts as an ordinary, reasonable and prudent individual would have acted under the circumstances."

So I guess my point is that it is nice to have lots of medical gear and tools but one would also be smart to know how to use them and when not to because if things go bad it could come back to haunt you. Get training from recognized sources, rely on generally accepted medical references and even wilderness/at sea specific sources. It may be you choose to exceed your training to save a life, that's a decision we each would need to make, but for other than immediate life-threats caution is advised.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by slipaway

In these discussions there is always lots of talk about treatments, medications, procedures, some of which may go far beyond "basic first aid." It is important to consider that (in the US at least) when you render medical aid to someone on your (presumably) recreational vessel, that assistance needs to be reasonable for the circumstances and for your training and experience. States and US Federal law provide some protections in the form of Good Samaritan laws for rendering medical aid. The The Federal version can be found at: 46 USC 2303(c) and states that the Master or individual involved in rendering assistance "is not liable for damages as a result of rendering assistance or for an act or omission in providing or arranging salvage, towage, medical treatment or other assistance when the individual acts as an ordinary, reasonable and prudent individual would have acted under the circumstances."

So I guess my point is that it is nice to have lots of medical gear and tools but one would also be smart to know how to use them and when not to because if things go bad it could come back to haunt you. Get training from recognized sources, rely on generally accepted medical references and even wilderness/at sea specific sources. It may be you choose to exceed your training to save a life, that's a decision we each would need to make, but for other than immediate life-threats caution is advised.

Of course, I fully agree that training is essential! That said, even with that training, I would limit whatever aid is needed to bridging the gap until the medics arrive in the US. The first aid kits described here are not for use in the US nor any EU country where professional help is available in minutes. It is for offshore and places where the next hospital may be a days travel away. Far away from legislation that you describe

[George_SD]

As someone who has broken bones before - strongly recommend getting something like 3M Scotchcast Plus. It is a water activated cast wrap that hardens to a solid plastic. If you have never used it - please make sure to wrap some soft material around the affected area first as you don't want hard plastic rubbing on your skin 24/7.

The great thing about it is that it takes on any shape in order to make a perfect custom splint or cast. The bad thing is that you will need to cut it off carefully.


I would also bring surgical staples or a stitching kit. You hope to never use them, but if you really need to - it's good to have it.

[s/v Jedi]

Here’s the dental kits I added. I used the kits from Adventure Medical before but think these are a better choice price-performance wise.

[NikkiC]

Originally Posted by Stellar1970Cat

I am in Queensland in Australia so stinger remedies would be needed in it?
Are there locally available first aid kits suitable for sailing.
Chandleries probably have some but I have not been to one recently.
Currently nurning b8g blisters on my foot as I was pouring boiling water on jammed zippers on my day backpack. I managed to free the zippers but got a huge blister on my foot by accidentally spilling nhot water over it. So my current first aid kit is running out of big wound dressings.
By the way, I use manuka honey on blisters due to it"s healing properties.

Tea tree oil is good for burns. I use the marine listing to figure out what I need in my kit.

https://www.amsa.gov.au/sites/defaul...quirements.pdf

But I don't like the idea of carrying morphine though as it is a class A narcotic in Indo.

I stick with Panadol and Ibuprofen. [Heck, I had a natural childbirth, aint nothing tougher than that.]