You don’t have to be a prepper or survivalist to have a first aid kit and you don’t have to make one just because you fear the world may come to an end. A reliable first-aid kit stocked with items that one knows how to use should be part of every household.
There is no point in buying a first-aid kit that has a huge stockpile of medical supplies if you can’t put it to good use safely and effectively when the time calls for it. Rather than buying all these pre-made kits you can build your own for a fraction of the price. The following first aid kit is compiled to treat the majority of medical emergencies and you can find all the supplies at your local drug store, the dollar store, and many other locations.
The quantities listed below are subjective and they were designed for my family (two people). You should stock your first aid kit based on family size, likelihood of injury and types of expected injuries. You should use the kit you’ve assembled for your family’s daily medical needs as this will help you to familiarize better with the kit and keep your medical supplies fresh. As long as you replace the wound care supply you’ve consumed, your first aid kit will be ready for any significant first aid emergency that may arise if a disaster happens.
First aid kit components:
Large first-aid bag with various, individual compartments.
Use: It will contain your first-aid supplies and it will keep things organized and in reach.
Quantity: 1
Bottle of alcohol or alcohol wipes
Use: It should be used to disinfect needles, tweezers or around wounds. It can also be used to disinfect cooking utensils on the field if nothing else is available.
Quantity: 1 bottle, 2 packs of wipes (depending on the size)
Bottle of Betadine or hydrogen peroxide
Use: It can clean wounds when soap and water is unavailable. Betadine can also be used to make sugardine (a powerful antiseptic), while hydrogen peroxide has many uses outside the medical area.
Quantity: 1
Recommended article: How to make Sugardine – a cheap homemade antiseptic
Bottle of hand sanitizer or sanitizer wipes
Use: It can sanitize hands when water is not available and it can also be used for personal hygiene when a hot shower is not available
Quantity: 1 bottle, 2 packs of wipes (depending on the size)
Use: If you travel a lot and insects become a problem, you can use it to float them out of ear
Quantity: 1
Bottle of eye wash (saline solution will do just as fine)
Use: It can be used to flush contaminant from your eyes
Quantity: 1
Tube of antiseptic containing benzocaine
Use: Apply it for mouth pain and local anesthesia of oral and pharyngeal mucous membranes (sore throat, cold sores, mouth ulcers, toothache, sore gums, denture irritation)
Quantity: 1
Related article: The most powerful antispetics you can make at home
Use: Calamine is safe for use or effective in treating bug bites, stings, and rashes from poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac.
Quantity: 1
Tube of antibiotic cream or ointment
Use: It can be applied to wounds or broken blisters to prevent infection.
Quantity: 1
Pair of rubber or latex gloves
Use: It will protect the user against infection and from contaminating the wounds when providing medical aid.
Quantity: 4
Individual doses of burn gel (water gel, aloe vera, manuka honey)
Use: Very effective at treating burns and sunburns.
Quantity: 15
Suggested reading: How to treat burns when medical aid is not available
Use: Remove foreign objects from your body
Quantity: 1
Penlight (or use the flashlight from your BOB)
Use: It is very useful when you have to examine eyes, ears and throat.
Quantity: 1
Use: Cut gauze, tape and fabric
Quantity: 1
Use: It can be used to examine wounds, foreign objects in eye and skin.
Quantity: 1
Use: Secure bandages in place faster
Quantity: 20
Use: Measure temperature accurately, especially useful when traveling through the backcountry.
Quantity: 1
Measuring spoon
Use: Very helpful when you have to administer the correct dosage of liquid medicines or prepare healing beverages
Quantity: 1
Use: It can be used to treat for shock, but it can also be used to improvised a shelter and has many other survival uses
Quantity: 2
Related article: 12 survival uses for an emergency blanket
Use: Secure bandages and splints, but has many survival uses as well
Quantity: 2 (1 in. x 10yds.)
Use: Remove congestion from nose but it can also irrigate wounds
Quantity: 2 (3 oz.)
Use: Clean around wounds, remove foreign objects from eye, etc.
Quantity: 2 small packages
Instant, disposable cold packs
Use: It will help you reduce swelling and relieve pain
Quantity: 4
Use: If you need to immobilize limbs these are a must
Quantity: 2 finger, 2 large (36 in.)
Roll of duct tape
Use: It can close small wounds, immobilize limb and keep bandages in place. Duct tape is a versatile item that has many survival uses.
Quantity: 2
Epinephrine auto-injector
Use: For people with severe allergies, a shot of this hormone as soon as an allergic reaction begins can mean the difference between life and death
Quantity: 1
Use: Safely deliver rescue breaths during a cardiac arrest or respiratory arrest
Quantity: 1
Acetaminophen or ibuprofen
Use: Relieves pain in adults or children
Quantity: 1 bottle of acetaminophen or 1 bottle of ibuprofen liquid for children or a pack of tablets for adults
Suggested reading: Top 10 medicinal herbs for your garden
Use: Aspiring has many uses during a survival situation
Quantity: 1
Bottle of diphenhydramine antihistamine pills
Use: If you suffer from various allergic reactions having some antihistamine pills in your first aid kit becomes mandatory
Quantity: 1
Use: Effective at treating diarrhea, upset stomach and indigestion
Quantity: 1 pack of tablets, 2 if you have a delicate stomach
Adhesive bandages
Use: Cover minor cuts, punctures, sings, scrapes, etc.
Quantity: 50 of various sizes
Use: Cover wounds or clean around wounds
Quantity: 25 assorted sizes
Use: Cover burns of various types (including chemical), blisters or wounds.
Quantity: 25
Use: it can secure bandages or compress joints.
Quantity: 5 (4 in. wide)
Use: Protect injured eyes
Quantity: 2
Use: Use it to stop bleeding of deep wounds
Quantity: 10 (5 in. x 9 in. and 8 in. x 10 in. size)
Use: Effective when you need to protect and pad major wounds.
Quantity: 2 (10 in. x 30 in. size)
Related reading: 13 Ways to use a Tampon in an Emergency Survival Situation
Fingertip and knuckle bandages
Use: Protect wounds on fingers and toes
Quantity: 20
Use: Effective at covering large wounds or securing limbs
Quantity: 1 (40 in.)
Butterfly wound closure strips
Use: Hold wound edges together
Quantity: 30 of various sizes
First aid manual
Use: Very useful at guiding your actions when you lack the proper knowledge. I recommend the Survival MD manual as I’ve added it to my library a while ago and it came in handy more than once.
Quantity: 1 paper or multiple digital manuals
Notepad and pen
Use: You will use it to write down information about the treatment (schedule for administrating medicine, changing the bandages, etc.), vital signs and any other information about the lessons learned.
Quantity: 1
Having a customized first aid kit at home, in the workplace or while raveling the backcountry can save you a lot of trouble in case of accidents or illnesses. As you’ve seen in the example provided by this article, you should customize your kit with enough supplies to meet your family’s needs and you shouldn’t cheap out when it comes to your health.
In a disaster scenario, it may take a while for medical aid to become available and you need to make sure you have everything that you may need before help comes. Medical emergencies are to be expected when times are especially challenging and you need to prepare for them if you want to keep a good health. Having a first aid kit can literally save your life.
Stay safe and God Bless!
Preparedness and Survival solutions recommended for you:
Survival MD (Knowledge to survive any medical crisis situation)
US Water Revolution (A DIY Project to Generate Clean Water Anywhere)
The LOST WAYS (The vital self-sufficiency lessons our great grand-fathers left us)
Blackout USA (Video about EMP survival and preparedness guide)
U also might want to put a first aid kit together for your dog did that a few months ago glad i did because it has come in handy i have had to use it for my dog and i am glad that I had it so don’t just think about you or your family and not your 4 leged ones when i think about first aid stuff i think can i use that for lucy and most of the time it is yes
Good info.. I see quite a few issues with it though… First nix the Hydrogen Peroxide..it damages the wound area(this coming from multiple ER nurses)2nd the makuna honey might cause the wound area to feel like it’s on fire(this happened to my wife when she used it!!) 3rd…as to the aspirin/Motrin type stuff….make sure you don’t actually give this out…let your “patient” pick it up off the counter top.. that way your not dispensing meds!!! As to EPI pens….same deal there…EMT’s are only allowed to assist in this..so john q public should only be doing the same!…other than that.. good info!!!
I’ve had to sterile dress several wound areas, the best emergency materials I’ve kept around are ladies sanitary napkins and vet wrap. The napkins absorb blood well and the vet wrap will hold the napkins in place when tape is either not available or does not hold well ( especially when the limb is in motion).