Stocking up the Firstaid Kit - Mexico or Panama?

[rfe3]

Hi all,

Had a question about stocking up the Firstaid Kit, anyone have any experience or recommendations on where to stock up on Antibiotics, Pain Meds etc...? I've seen the prices for Perscription Meds in the US are very expensive and am looking for an alternative place to outfit the Kit on the way to Panama.


many thanks,
Rick

[Sailor g]

I equipped our Med Kit in the US with OTC brands that we know we like. I don’t know about Panama but Mexico is an ok place to stock up. You just have to know what you want-and the Mexican equivalent. Most pharmacias have a book that shows the ones they carry.

[sail sfbay]

I have a first aid kit from FirstAidMart mounted on my sailboat and easy to refill if you have a mailing location.

https://firstaidmart.com/first-aid.html

[Tetepare]

Fishmeds.com sells antibiotics for "fish" that look amazingly exactly like the ones one pays a fortune for in the pharmacy.

Pain meds are tough in USA; not just price but to get get a prescription. I usually got mine from friends who had a prescription and didn't use them all. This is probably illegal. In any event, though I always carried painkillers worldwide, I never used any, but they were peace of mind. Anti-biotics, yeck yeah, I use(d) a lot of them.

Also expensive are bandages. I use a lot of those too. Many of those sold overseas are cheap and/or old, neither of which are any good. Good old BandAid brand are great and worth the extra cost.

[Sailor647]

Our experience is re-stocking our med kit in Mexico.

You can buy most medication "over the counter" at the Mexican pharmacies (farmacia/far-mah-see-a) like YZA, Chedrauri grocery, and even Wallmart.

Two exceptions:
1. Most, if not all, antibiotics (Ciprofloxacina, Azithromycina, Augmentina, doxycylina need a prescription from a doctor now, but are easy to get.
2. High power pain meds like Oxy-anything are strictly controlled. You will need a doctor's prescription, a local address (a marina will work), and valid ID (passport will work). And only approved/selected farmacias carry them. There is only one pharmacy in La Paz, BCS that fills Oxy prescriptions.

I have purchased other pain meds like Suprodol without a prescription. No problem getting topical antibiotics like the Argentafil (ar-hen-ta-feel) silver sulfadiazine (burns, marine pathogen skin infections - think coral reef, and infected dog/cat flea bites) and Mupirocina for normal skin wounds. Scabisan (mild scabies skin infection, prevalent in parts of Mexico) and Ivermectina (parasites and Covid) are relatively cheap and easy to find.

Also, tetanus shots are only administered by one hospital in the locality. I'm guessing they have problems keeping it stored properly / under refrigeration? Requires a shot and a booster a month later but was provided free of charge. No prescription. Just walk in with a gaping wound. lol

Finding a doc to write any prescription we needed was never a problem. Some charge a reasonable fee for writing the Rx, some charge a ridiculously expensive fee, so shop around.


Salud!

[Hoodsail]

Are you in the USA, do you have health insurance & a physician you've seen in the last 6-12 months? If yes to all 3, write out/email a list of the prescription medications you need (refer to any backpacking or sailing off shore reference for details) to your physician requesting these be written for and sent to pharmacy of your choice...Any drugs you need are now generic (eg antibiotics (ciprofloxacin, augmentin (amoxicillin/clavulanate), azithromycin), analgesics (ask for tylenol #3 (acetaminophen/codeine)), antiemetics (ondansetron or scopalamine or both)) and co-pays should be $5-10/prescription...cant speak to mexico or panama as sources. thnks

[Sailshabby]

Originally Posted by Sailor647

Our experience is re-stocking our med kit in Mexico.

You can buy most medication "over the counter" at the Mexican pharmacies (farmacia/far-mah-see-a) like YZA, Chedrauri grocery, and even Wallmart.

Two exceptions:
1. Most, if not all, antibiotics (Ciprofloxacina, Azithromycina, Augmentina, doxycylina need a prescription from a doctor now, but are easy to get.
2. High power pain meds like Oxy-anything are strictly controlled. You will need a doctor's prescription, a local address (a marina will work), and valid ID (passport will work). And only approved/selected farmacias carry them. There is only one pharmacy in La Paz, BCS that fills Oxy prescriptions.

I have purchased other pain meds like Suprodol without a prescription. No problem getting topical antibiotics like the Argentafil (ar-hen-ta-feel) silver sulfadiazine (burns, marine pathogen skin infections - think coral reef, and infected dog/cat flea bites) and Mupirocina for normal skin wounds. Scabisan (mild scabies skin infection, prevalent in parts of Mexico) and Ivermectina (parasites and Covid) are relatively cheap and easy to find.

Also, tetanus shots are only administered by one hospital in the locality. I'm guessing they have problems keeping it stored properly / under refrigeration? Requires a shot and a booster a month later but was provided free of charge. No prescription. Just walk in with a gaping wound. lol

Finding a doc to write any prescription we needed was never a problem. Some charge a reasonable fee for writing the Rx, some charge a ridiculously expensive fee, so shop around.


Salud!

< Ivermectina (…and Covid)> You’re joking, right?

[Sailor647]

Originally Posted by Sailshabby

< Ivermectina (…and Covid)> You’re joking, right?

No. Mexico used this early on country-wide. Plenty of information online. Please don't make this political. This is a medical thread.

[Shrew]

Originally Posted by Sailshabby

< Ivermectina (…and Covid)> You’re joking, right?

Ivermectin (/ˌaɪvərˈmɛktɪn/, EYE-vər-MEK-tin) is an antiparasitic drug.[6] In veterinary medicine, it is used to prevent and treat heartworm and acariasis, among other indications.[7] In humans, it used to treat infestations including head lice, scabies, river blindness (onchocerciasis), strongyloidiasis, trichuriasis, ascariasis and lymphatic filariasis.[8][9][7][10] It works through many mechanisms to kill the targeted parasites,[8] and can be taken orally, or applied to the skin for external infestations.[8][11] It belongs to the avermectin family of medications.[8]

Ivermectin was discovered in 1975 and first marketed as a veterinary medicine in 1981.[12] Human applications followed in the late 1980s


Just because you heard if after the Covid pandemic as a possible use for Covid, doesn't mean that was it's initial use.

[Capt.Don]

Originally Posted by Hoodsail

Are you in the USA, do you have health insurance & a physician you've seen in the last 6-12 months? If yes to all 3, write out/email a list of the prescription medications you need (refer to any backpacking or sailing off shore reference for details) to your physician requesting these be written for and sent to pharmacy of your choice...Any drugs you need are now generic (eg antibiotics (ciprofloxacin, augmentin (amoxicillin/clavulanate), azithromycin), analgesics (ask for tylenol #3 (acetaminophen/codeine)), antiemetics (ondansetron or scopalamine or both)) and co-pays should be $5-10/prescription...cant speak to mexico or panama as sources. thnks

We have an extensive first-aid kit onboard. Most of the meds were refill scripts from our US doctors; however, the pharmacy and insurance company now check for contra-indications or over prescribing. If two meds are similar, they most likely will deny one or the other, or both!

We can't even get our US insurance to cover 90 day vacation override.....

It seems the readily available prescription drugs in Mexico has changed in the last few years. Several years ago, you could walk into the pharmacy and they were more then happy to fill the proper prescription. If needed, they even had their in-house doctor to write the script. Now, it seems Mexico has become more like the US, need doctor prescriptions, etc. However, a lot of what we consider prescription drugs can be had over-the-counter.

A good first-aid kit is a must in Mexico (aside from anti-itch cream, we've haven't need to use).

[Sailshabby]

Originally Posted by Sailor647

No. Mexico used this early on country-wide. Plenty of information online. Please don't make this political. This is a medical thread.

I’m not sure how you could read my response had anything to do with politics, but you be you. Best of luck.

[rfe3]

Originally Posted by Hoodsail

Are you in the USA, do you have health insurance & a physician you've seen in the last 6-12 months? If yes to all 3, write out/email a list of the prescription medications you need (refer to any backpacking or sailing off shore reference for details) to your physician requesting these be written for and sent to pharmacy of your choice...Any drugs you need are now generic (eg antibiotics (ciprofloxacin, augmentin (amoxicillin/clavulanate), azithromycin), analgesics (ask for tylenol #3 (acetaminophen/codeine)), antiemetics (ondansetron or scopalamine or both)) and co-pays should be $5-10/prescription...cant speak to mexico or panama as sources. thnks

No, I'm in Germany and will be coming to the US in about a month so I don't have American Health Insurance. I'll be in the US for about 6-7 months preparing the boat before setting off. My Insurance here in Germany also won't pay for "unnecessary" meds and the prices to buy them are much like the US if the insurance won't pay. Our Meds are capped at about €9 each for everything in a normal situation.
When I leave the US I was thinking about crusing down the east Coast of Mexico on the way to the Canal and picking up Meds along the way. Things like antibiotics are pretty easy to get anywhere but a few more serious pain meds and Lidocaine, Tamsulosin (in case of Kidney Stones), Blood thinners like Eloquis or Worfrin( Heart attack, Strokes) will all need perscriptions.

Another question, I saw on a YT Sailing channel where they had a syringe thingy with some dark red liquid that they used to clense a puncture wound(ie. Fish Hook) I can't find the Vid anymore. Does anyone know what that was?



Many thanks,
Rick

[rslifkin]

Originally Posted by rfe3

Another question, I saw on a YT Sailing channel where they had a syringe thingy with some dark red liquid that they used to clense a puncture wound(ie. Fish Hook) I can't find the Vid anymore. Does anyone know what that was?

It was likely Iodine or something that contained Iodine.

[flee27]

I have no experience with this yet. I have heard that you can get the prescriptions written for the boat and not a individual person. Is the true?

Foster

[Sailor g]

Originally Posted by rfe3

No, I'm in Germany and will be coming to the US in about a month so I don't have American Health Insurance. I'll be in the US for about 6-7 months preparing the boat before setting off. My Insurance here in Germany also won't pay for "unnecessary" meds and the prices to buy them are much like the US if the insurance won't pay. Our Meds are capped at about €9 each for everything in a normal situation.
When I leave the US I was thinking about crusing down the east Coast of Mexico on the way to the Canal and picking up Meds along the way. Things like antibiotics are pretty easy to get anywhere but a few more serious pain meds and Lidocaine, Tamsulosin (in case of Kidney Stones), Blood thinners like Eloquis or Worfrin( Heart attack, Strokes) will all need perscriptions.

Another question, I saw on a YT Sailing channel where they had a syringe thingy with some dark red liquid that they used to clense a puncture wound(ie. Fish Hook) I can't find the Vid anymore. Does anyone know what that was?



Many thanks,
Rick

You can get a syringe with a short piece of plastic tubing that could flush a wound. Though, flushing with water may be the first choice. We had a doctor tell us that water is fine (saline better) but Iodine and hydrogen peroxide may damage tissues and affect healing. I’d talk to a doctor before you leave.