A Good Commercial First Aid Kit for Boats?

[Tally Ho]

Expiration of “safety” equipment (often never used) or of certifiable condition is a fact of life, and emergency meds likewise. Liferaft certification, flares, fire extinguishers, CPR certs, defibers, inflatable PFDs, compressed gas cylinders (air/oxygen), and so forth. It costs what it costs to maintain readiness aboard your boat. Yes. Your meds could technically expire before you might need them. “Expiration” is itself an approach to safety. But suit up or assume the risk, which could be low, or stay home. Those are the choices, it seems.

Obviously, if you’re suffocating because your throat has swollen closed due to an allergic response to something you consumed or inhaled, you’re not going be faulting yourself about those $100s to maybe $1000s you spent for emergency epinephrine pens not needed until then. But will we find those in one of these kits, I wonder?

I get it…but you can also throw a lot of $$$ away trying to cover all the bases…

Yes, I carry an Epi-pen on board, but only after prices came down due to government intervention. And I keep them well last their expiration (I asked about negative affects, and was told it just wouldn’t be as effective…but it wouldn’t kill me) I know that a minor issue like a bee sting, especially in the head/neck area could be fatal. But I am not going to give myself a tracheotomy…so I can probably skip that part of the medical kit

I got tired of throwing flares away…so I bought an “electronic flare”. I still have some out-of-date flares and aerials, but I am not buying them every 3 years.

I guess I think of it this way…I am way more likely to be in a car accident, or come across one, than I am getting hurt on my boat or coming across a boater in medical distress…and I don’t keel a medical kit in my car. Yes, I hope the ambulance comes faster in the case of a car accident, but no guarantees. I guess to me, the risk/reward equation doesn’t quite compute…

I have some basic medical stuff on my boat, but I also primarily day sail and return the marina at the end of the day…so what practically do I need? Aspirin, bandages, some peroxide for cleaning wounds, and my Epi-pen.

So, your mileage may vary…everyone has different needs and different priorities.

If I have a heart attack, or cut a major artery, I guess I can hope to be on @jviss’s boat

Cheers,

Greg

 

[dLj]

I get it…but you can also throw a lot of $$$ away trying to cover all the bases…

Yes, I carry an Epi-pen on board, but only after prices came down due to government intervention. And I keep them well last their expiration (I asked about negative affects, and was told it just wouldn’t be as effective…but it wouldn’t kill me) I know that a minor issue like a bee sting, especially in the head/neck area could be fatal. But I am not going to give myself a tracheotomy…so I can probably skip that part of the medical kit

I got tired of throwing flares away…so I bought an “electronic flare”. I still have some out-of-date flares and aerials, but I am not buying them every 3 years.

I guess I think of it this way…I am way more likely to be in a car accident, or come across one, than I am getting hurt on my boat or coming across a boater in medical distress…and I don’t keel a medical kit in my car. Yes, I hope the ambulance comes faster in the case of a car accident, but no guarantees. I guess to me, the risk/reward equation doesn’t quite compute…

I have some basic medical stuff on my boat, but I also primarily day sail and return the marina at the end of the day…so what practically do I need? Aspirin, bandages, some peroxide for cleaning wounds, and my Epi-pen.

So, your mileage may vary…everyone has different needs and different priorities.

If I have a heart attack, or cut a major artery, I guess I can hope to be on @jviss’s boat

Cheers,

Greg

Well said - everyone has different needs and different priorities.

I'm crossing oceans. I have crew. I need to keep my crew happy/safe/healthy - no matter what. I'm responsible for the well being of my crew. I take that responsibility very seriously. Once past 200 miles of the coastline - there is no help available in under 48 hours, or longer. There's a lot of ocean between the 200 mile lines of any body of land...

dj

 

[Tally Ho]

Well said - everyone has different needs and different priorities.

I'm crossing oceans. I have crew. I need to keep my crew happy/safe/healthy - no matter what. I'm responsible for the well being of my crew. I take that responsibility very seriously. Once past 200 miles of the coastline - there is no help available in under 48 hours, or longer. There's a lot of ocean between the 200 mile lines of any body of land...

dj

Makes sense to me. You are the kind of captain I would want to cross an ocean with.

Thanks for that perspective


Greg

 

[Joe]

Thank you. That link doesn't bring you to the kit pictured, though.

Scroll down the page, that link is just the search result page. That particular kit was called the LighteningX first responders kit.

 

[jviss]

Scroll down the page, that link is just the search result page. That particular kit was called the LighteningX first responders kit.

Just tried, no, man, not there! What are you trying to direct my attention to?

 

[Joe]

Just tried, no, man, not there! What are you trying to direct my attention to?

Amazon.com: Lightning X First Responder EMT/EMS Backpack Stocked First Aid Supplies Kit B (Navy Blue) : Sports & Outdoors

 

[Tally Ho]

See my posts 8 &9…

Greg

 

[jviss]

Amazon.com: Lightning X First Responder EMT/EMS Backpack Stocked First Aid Supplies Kit B (Navy Blue) : Sports & Outdoors

OK, thanks.

 

[Kings Gambit]

What is an amateur going to do with a stethoscope? Geeze. It’s an interpretive instrument, isn’t it? A solo sailor is going to be taking emergency blood pressure measurements on himself?

 

[Timm R Oday25]

Interesting thread . Personal experiance has lead me to believe ,eventually I will get more stitches . I dropped an outboard off the the stern of our sailboat a few summers ago . I reacted so fast that I didn't think about what I was doing . Somewhere on the outboard was /is a razor sharp piece of metal that came very close to cutting off my thumb . My only thought was ,"I'm not dropping this outboard into Lake Michigan " .
The cut was very deep ,slicing tendons ,nerves and muscle. It took quite a lot of washclothes and duct tape to stop the bleeding enough ,that I felt I could row to show .
What I didn't know about were "ZipStiches " . We have them several first aid bags that travel with them

 

[tfox2069]

What I didn't know about were "ZipStiches " . We have them several first aid bags that travel with them

Never saw these before your post - adding to my kit this weekend. Wal-mart even sells them. No more practicing on raw chicken with suture kits!

 

[dLj]

@Timm R Oday25 so my first question to you is how is your hand now? That sounds very bad. The second question is, did you save the motor?

dj

 

[jviss]

What I didn't know about were "ZipStiches " . We have them several first aid bags that travel with them

Wow, thanks! Can you apply them one-handed?

 

[Timm R Oday25]

How is my hand ? There is either tingling or numbness in my thumb . Somewhat limited range of motion . I'm feeling pretty grateful as this was the third time something like this has happened to the same thumb . Note to self "Always make sure the blade guard is on when using a cutoff wheel in a 4 1/2" grinder.!!!
The outboard ? Yeah ,I saved it ... the stupid thing refused to start ... I should of dropped it !

 

[Dalliance]

I have a pretty basic first aid kit on the boat. To date, have never opened it for any more than a bandaid and hope to maintain that record.

I took a CPR certification class at my yacht club last month and the club maintains an AED that‘s accessible 24/7. All of the club staff was required to get certified too. It‘s priceless knowledge to have on the boat, at the dock and anywhere else, in addition to basic first aid.

I was surprised that the first portion of the class covered how to use Narcan for fentanyl overdoses. It can apparently happen even to people who are not intentional users. They said it can be anywhere and if get it on your hands, riding public transportation for example as we do here in the city, and then touch your face or mouth, you can accidentally be exposed to enough of it to be at risk. It’s a national crisis affecting small towns and rural areas even more than big cities. Fentanyl OD now accounts for a large portion of 911 calls. They strongly recommended that everyone routinely carry a spray bottle of Narcan with them. Something new to think about having available on the boat as part of a well equipped first aid kit.

 

[jviss]

Well, it turns out there's a lot of info out there on the web about yachting first aid, and putting together one's own kit. Studying that now. This jumped out at me from an article in Practical Sailor:

"For advice on a DIY first-aid kit, we turned to Fred Bagley, a retired general surgeon who doublehands a 38-foot sloop with his wife on Lake Huron and Lake Superior. In addition to occasionally dispensing medical advice to other sailors in remote anchorages, he has stapled his wife’s scalp after she got whacked by a bouncing boom (without local anesthesia, we might add) and sutured his own finger as his wife tied the knots."

Creating a Custom Med Kit - Cut expenses by building your own ships first-aid kit.

 

[Davidasailor26]

I’ve never been seasick, but I am squeamish enough that reading this thread gives me some appreciation for how the seasick must feel.

 

[capta]

I can't answer this directly, but a warning from a surgeon.
Just before departing Frisco on my circumnavigation, I asked my dad, a surgeon, to put together a medical kit. He did so and when he gave it to me, there were no sutures in it. I asked him why and he said that trying to suture on a boat, especially one moving about, it would not be possible to clean the wound effectively, let alone sew someone up. He suggested only butterfly bandages, which would allow any infection in the would to seep out, instead of being trapped inside the body.
Do as you please, as I never had to test his statement. Over the last 50 odd years, no one has ever had any injury more severe than a broken toe or a few cracked ribs, on any vessel I've been captain of. I'm pretty strict about what someone can and can't do on a vessel I'm operating. Getting injured is the easiest way to find one's self ashore, PDQ. Getting killed is forbidden.

 

[jviss]

I can't answer this directly, but a warning from a surgeon.
Just before departing Frisco on my circumnavigation, I asked my dad, a surgeon, to put together a medical kit. He did so and when he gave it to me, there were no sutures in it. I asked him why and he said that trying to suture on a boat, especially one moving about, it would not be possible to clean the wound effectively, let alone sew someone up. He suggested only butterfly bandages, which would allow any infection in the would to seep out, instead of being trapped inside the body.
Do as you please, as I never had to test his statement. Over the last 50 odd years, no one has ever had any injury more severe than a broken toe or a few cracked ribs, on any vessel I've been captain of. I'm pretty strict about what someone can and can't do on a vessel I'm operating. Getting injured is the easiest way to find one's self ashore, PDQ. Getting killed is forbidden.

Good point. I have asked a physician relative to put together some stuff for me like antibiotics and such. I might just ask my primary care doc the same. Infection is a bitch!

 

[Skipper J]

Speaking of infection, I've read that vibrio cases are on the rise. You can get it from raw shellfish, or from saltwater or brackish water infecting a cut. The CDC website has some info:Vibrio Species Causing Vibriosis | Vibrio Illness (Vibriosis) | CDC

I've read that one of the leading causes of death in kayaking is taking risks to meet others' expectations. For example, you said you'd be back Sunday at 6 but weather/water conditions change and it's more prudent to stay put. You don't have a cell signal. Should you take the risk to get back by 6 or stay out until it's safe, and risk someone calling emergency services?

Figure out who your shore contact is, if any, and discuss such contingencies. I had to cross a shore contact off the list after they got mad that rising water put me late for a scheduled dinner after kayaking. In all fairness, I was supposed to be the cook! Not everyone is a boat person. Pick someone who is. Stay safe.