The Survivalist First-Aid Kit
Preparing a survivalist first-aid kit can be the difference between being able to survive and having your injuries slow you or someone in your group down. The more you know about medicine and first-aid procedures the better. In addition to knowing what to do when an unforeseeable injury occurs you also need to have the appropriate items in your kit to help prevent any problems from becoming worse. We will outline some of the items your first-aid kit should contain as well as some of the medical skills you should consider educating yourself on to be an accomplished survivalist.
First-Aid Kit Supplies
You should keep a well-stocked first-aid kit in your car as well as in your home. You can purchase premade kits as drugstores or assemble your own. They should contain the following basic supplies:
- Bandages of assorted sizes
- Elastic wrap in assorted sizes
- Cotton balls
- Disposable latex or synthetic gloves
- Duct tape
- First-aid manual
- Adhesive tape
- Antibiotic ointment
- Scissors
- Safety pins
- Gauze pads
- Tweezers and a needle
- Soap or an instant hand sanitizer
- Sterile eyewash
- Thermometer
- Instant cold packs
- Tooth preservation kit
First-Aid Medications
- Aloe vera
- Syringe
- Aspirin and non-aspirin pain relievers
- Antihistamine medications
- Calamine lotion
- Hydrocortisone cream
- Anti-diarrhea medication
First-Aid Emergency Items
Your emergency kit should contain items that keep you prepared for unexpected situations. These include a cell phone and fully charged battery, waterproof flashlights with extra batteries and emergency contact information. Candles, matches, and a Mylar emergency blanket can also prove useful backups when lights go out or cold weather ensues.
Survivalist Medical Knowledge
When it comes to surviving a solid background in emergency medical training can never be overlooked. A survivalist who wants to achieve the goal as being a knowledgeable medical aid should enroll in first-aid and CPR courses to understand how to help prepare dressings and how to perform resuscitation when needed. In addition to these courses, the survivalist should understand the basics of how to:
- clean a wound or care for a burn
- provide basic counseling skills
- debride and suture a wound
- administer topical medications
- practice hygienic medical skills
- recognize common infections such as the flu, pneumonia, UTI, wound infection, frost bite, etc.
- recognize common medical problems such as respiratory distress, abdominal pain, allergic reactions
- manage an unconscious patient
- look after a bed bound patient
- use basic dental skills
Emergencies can happen in the most unpredictable times and these basic supplies can greatly increase the chances of helping your family or friends in the event professional medical help is far away. Knowing how to treat minor injuries can make the difference in an emergency and having the skills to help stop bleeding, prevent infection, and avoid contamination can prove to be some of the most valuable skills in a survivalist’s tool belt given the circumstances.
Having a first aid kit isn’t good enough if you don’t know how to administer basic first aid. Sure anybody can clean a scrape and apply a bandage but in a true survival situation especially one that has a long lasting duration a person needs to be able to properly care for and treat more serious wounds and prevent infections.
I totally agree a major part of survival knowledge should be proper medical training. Nothing substitutes a good basic medical course. You can get some basic training free through the red cross. the importance of this should not be overlooked by anyone serious about learning survival skills.
Laurie Garrett said that 1918 flue epidemic klleid 100 million people and it had only 2% mortality rate, meaning 98% of those who contracted the disease actually survived. That would mean roughly 5 billion people actually contracted the disease. Were there even that many people on the planet back then? Something here doesn’t add up.