First aid kit?

[caveflower]

I am getting a cave first aid kit together and wanted to know what everyone puts in theirs. So far I have-
duck tape for make shift bandaids applying splints and taping up minor sprains and general equipment repair
presure band aid
advil and amodium ad
gause pads
a small pair of scissors
alcohol wipes
pair of surcical gloves

I find band aids are a wasted space they don't work well in caves.

I'm looking for a small kit that will take care of minor injuries that might become a call out if not taken care of.
Tell me whats in yours.

Thanks Caveflower

[Doug Bohannon]

Sounds good so far. You might want to include some type of antiseptic (in addition to the alcohol pads) to treat cuts or abrasions prior to bandaging, just to reduce the chance of infection. I hear that neosporin now has a spray version, so that might be a nice addition.

[SpeleoRover]

A small bottle of saline solution or eye drops can be a god-send.

Good call on the band-aids. They have another name: trash.

[Ralph E. Powers]

I am getting a cave first aid kit together and wanted to know what everyone puts in theirs. So far I have-
duck tape for make shift bandaids applying splints and taping up minor sprains and general equipment repair
presure band aid
advil and amodium ad
gause pads
a small pair of scissors
alcohol wipes
pair of surcical gloves

I find band aids are a wasted space they don't work well in caves.

I'm looking for a small kit that will take care of minor injuries that might become a call out if not taken care of.
Tell me whats in yours.

Thanks Caveflower

might want to think about putting in a couple of ice-cream/popsicle sticks for a more sturdier splint.
A needle and thread for just in case.
a small tube of neosporin
quart zip-loc baggie (all the air can be squeezed out and it'd be an additonal waterproofing on your stuff).

[caveflower]

Great ideals! Antiseptic see I forgot that. Eye drops very good ideal. Popsicle sticks for finger splint very small great! Needle and tread can be useful in so many ways.
Thanks guys.
Great keep em coming.

[cavedoc]

Great ideals! Antiseptic see I forgot that. Eye drops very good ideal. Popsicle sticks for finger splint very small great! Needle and tread can be useful in so many ways.
Thanks guys.
Great keep em coming.

Thinking small and multi-use...
small sample packs of neosporin, about 2 grams worth. enough for what you need but smaller than a tube (or a spray bottle )
Butterflies/steri-strips. Work well and pack flat.
Scalpel blade in its sterile pack instead of scissors.
The plastic bag mentioned is good for a lot of things--package bloody trash, CPR shield, container to hold water to irrigate wounds once you poke a small hole in it, protect dressings from getting wet. Just depends on how you poke holes in the thing.

Work on making this fit into something small. There is a small Peli case that works nicely. If it's small you might actually take it. If it has everything you might need, it will be too big to take caving so it won't do anyone any good.

[NZcaver]

I carry a small first aid/survival kit with me on virtually every cave trip.

We've discussed this on the forum before, but for some reason when I search for "first aid" no results show up. Weird.
Anyway, after a tedious manual search I found these:

First Aid
Just for fun, what's in your pack?
How much first aid training do you have?

The latter topic also brings up a good point - having the right training can be just as important as the equipment you carry.

My kit still has about the same stuff in it as when I posted in the last first aid topic:

My current kit fits in a small, flat Pelican case - about 7x5x2 inches (18x12x5cm). I used to carry a slightly bigger kit in a 1 liter Nalgene bottle, but that was a bit too bulky and tougher to get things in and out of.

Contents include:

First Responder basic info "cheat sheet"
A few waterproof SOAP note pages
Mechanical pencil
Sharpie marker
Pair of Nitrile surgical gloves in a bag
Pocket micro CPR mask

Pair of 4x4 gauze sponges
Pack of Steri Strips
A few Band-aids
Surgical tape (wrapped around a pill bottle)
Small elastic bandage with safety pin
Small pack of Provodone Iodine swabsticks
Small packet (sachet) of topical Antibiotic ointment
Several disposable thermometers (these tiny flat plastic strips replace the old digital thermometer I used to carry)

OTC oral medications (inside pill bottle in tiny Ziplock bags with drug name, purpose and dose sealed inside)
- Aspirin (for pain, heart problems)
- Ibuprofen (for pain, fever, inflammation)
- Benadryl (for allergies and colds)
- Pepto Bismol (for heartburn, nausea, diarrhea)
- Imodium AD (for diarrhea)

Small pocket knife with scissors and tweezers
LED keyring light
Whistle
Small compass
Small tube of cake decorating gel (instant sugar)
Short length of flagging tape
Mini (micro-sized) Cyalume stick
Tea-light candle
Small lighter
Charcoal heatpack

I carry this same kit with me while outdoors, hiking etc. I do have a more comprehensive First Responder kit in a belt pack, which usually resides in my vehicle.

For caving, I also carry:

- A water bottle with lengths of duct tape and electrical tape wrapped around it
- A closed-cell foam pad which sits in my pack against my back, and can double as an insulated seat when needed
- A ~20 foot length of webbing and/or cord and a carabiner or two, even on non-vertical trips
- Trash bag(s), which can be used as a "jacket" or heat tent, a toilet, a dirty caving gear holder at the end of the trip, or for picking up trash of course - also a Ziplock bag or two

[wyandottecaver]

I carry a .45 derringer and shot-bottle of whisky, My "first-Aid" tends to motivate injured cavers to move rather than whine

seriously, I almost never carry a first aid kit since most of my trips are less than 5 hours and most injuries are either minor enough to ignore or major enough to require more stuff than I'm willing to carry routinely. One very handy tip though, is a small bottle of super glue. It is great for dealing with minor cuts, is fast, waterproof, and durable. I saw a guy glue a fairly nasty cut to the forehead on a hunting trip and was amazed at how effective it was.

[caveflower]

Thanks NZ very good info. I'M a PT so I have to go to first aid and cpr training every year. I'm trained well for above ground but not so much for under. So I was trying to get a good ideal of what to put in the kit mostly to avoid a call out for something minor like a bad cut or severe sprain. Or support while waiting for the call out team if needed. I did look before I posted but found no other post. I knew all you guys would get me in the right direction.
It seems like because of my medical back ground I've been nominated by our cavin group of friends the cave doctor so when anyone gets a cut or headache they come to me.
Therefore the post.
but the .45 and and whiskey might be a good ideal lol

[mae]

Someone told me recently that we weren't supposed to use alcohol on wounds anymore since alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, and iodine kill healing tissue.

[wyandottecaver]

guess I'll have to go back to carrying a film canister of maggots...

[cavedoc]

guess I'll have to go back to carrying a film canister of maggots...

The alcohol is for the patient so they let you put on the maggots...

[caveflower]

eeeeeew! i'll take the alcohol any day. to drink and for the cut!

[Jim Thompson]

Duct tape is better in my opinion then a needle and thread for first aid in a cave. I have never seen a cave that I would want to sewn up in. A good bandage and duct tape will get people out of a cave and to the emergency room before all of their blood pours out. I've heard about the super glue being used by EMTs however I have no personal knowlege of it actually being used.

[wyandottecaver]

I've seen it used once, and it worked great. The same guy said he learned it by seeing another guy do it. I wouldn't recommend it for open heart surgery but the guys forehead cut was pretty serious (id estimate 2-3 stitches) he didn't want to interrupt the days hunting so he slapped it together with glue and recovered with no ill effects.