As mentioned earlier this week, I recently taught an Emergency First Aid Fundamentals (EFAF) mini course about building your own first aid kit. What a great class! We reviewed the first aid kit module from USCCA’s EFAF class, then discussed scaling of kits, which takes one from a personal comfort (or “booboo”) kit that will fit in a purse, briefcase, or the like, all the way up through a household kit, a car kit, and a shooting range/outdoor activity kit.
To keep the focus on the kits and discussion, rather than attendees needing to write down links, I sent out the resource list after class. I’m providing them for you here, as well, in the hopes of helping you find what you’re looking for. I’m going to leave links visible instead of embedded in the text, in case you want to print the list for future reference vs coming back to a blog post.
Now, let’s get started! Of note: NONE of the following links are affiliate links and I receive no compensation of any type for sharing them. They are simply organizations and/or manufacturers I have been pleased with in meeting my own training and supply needs. Caveat emptor.
First of all, training. This training is absolutely vital stuff, too – it’s truly lifesaving. So please, please (!) at least get yourself signed up for the free courses listed. You’ll be learning skills that help you, your household, and your community become more resilient and prepared.
FREE training programs:
Mountain Man Medical – Emergency Trauma Response training:
https://www.
(Mountain Man Medical also offers training supplies and first aid supplies for sale.)
Stop the Bleed community member training from First Care Provider:
https://www.firstcareprovider.
(First Care Provider also provides instructor certification. They are a fantastic group and where I trained to become a Stop the Bleed instructor, after receiving the community training through my county CERT program.)
Paid training programs:
USCCA Emergency First Aid Fundamentals (EFAF) online course:
https://store.
USCCA Emergency Preparedness Fundamentals online course:
https://store.
Now, how about the kits themselves? First aid kits, as mentioned, run across a spectrum. Redundancies don’t hurt, in the case of scaling up, since we’re looking at two categories of supplies: comfort items (such as a Band-Aid® for a small cut) and lifesaving items (such as a tourniquet). The beginnings of a comfort kit can be as simple as a couple of sticky bandages tucked in your wallet in case a child scrapes a knee. Just grow from there, based on space and the needs of the mission: is this a kit in the break room of an office, a classroom with 30 students, your personal vehicle vs a work truck, or your home kit?
Checklists for putting together such kits are easily found online – home kit lists in particular can be found through the Red Cross, FEMA, and more. Spend a few minutes searching and I’m sure you’ll find a wealth of ideas. One thing to remember: if you start with a pre-made kit, such as those available at your local drug store, outdoor supplier, or online, it’s very important that you open up the kit, inventory it, and personalize for YOUR needs. A perfect example is a kit that only includes a travel-size bottle of aspirin for pain relief; you’d want to add acetaminophen and possibly an NSAID due to allergies and efficacy for varying users. (This is real life: in my case, only naproxen works for my pain relief, and I have a dear friend with allergies to aspirin and ibuprofen, who can only take acetaminophen for pain relief.)
Gear and supplies for creating kits:
SurvivalKit.com pre-made kits (remember to open, peruse, and personalize!):
https://survivalkit.com/
https://www.
https://www.voodootactical.
A Girl & A Gun range first aid kit:
https://www.agirlandagun.org/
Again, there are many other options out there and I’m sure a simple online search will easily lead you to many ideas. These are simply links to items I personally use and shared during the discussion period of my recent EFAF class. Should you wish to learn more from me directly, that is definitely something we can look at doing. Contact me on LinkedIn and reference this post – we can discuss a virtual course or mini class for your family or organization.