Blow Out Bag Contents?

My wife got a nice pre packed kit from Sportsman's Guide some time ago for about $50, very compact and handy.

That Trauma Kit that you found, does the pricing vary depending on who is the buyer?

Is it ok for us Individuals to purchase this kind of kit? We think it will be a nice addition to our bug out bag or range bag.

You could probably put together your own kit for much less than that if don't mind taking the time to search out individual components.

Skin staplers are much faster and easier to use than suture sets for instance. I think I saw them online once at either Bass Pro of Cabela's. You can different types and sizes of dressings with quick clotting agents fairly easily online as well. An oldie but goodie seldom seen much any more is the triangular bandage which can be used for many purposes including arm slings, head dressings, last resort tourniquets, etc. A good set of trauma scissors, the kind that the commercials show cutting pennies in half, will handle your cutting needs from bandages to cutting off clothing, belts, boots, etc. to get access to wounds. Vaseline-impregnated gauze can be used for the sucking chest wounds you mentioned; Saran Wrap will do in a pinch.

From there, the usual tape, gauze dressings, gauze wrap and a good pocket first aid guide and a bag to contain it all should get you started.

I've got my Unit One bag, with surgical kit, from my time in the Navy. About the best portable trauma bag I can think of. The bag was a gift from my LPO.

My spouse asked me a question that I find disturbing to think about.

Suppose we have one of these kits in our go bags. For us.

Invader breaks into home and gets hit bad. It may take a few minutes for LEO's and Ambulance to arrive.

What are we to do spending money on the bad guy rendering aid after shooting same badguy? We dont enjoy much income as it is and would be difficult to think about expending one of these kits on the BG.

I surprised at my spouse for raising this difficult question. Part of me says let em bleed. Another part says, do something because the Courts may find that you had resources availible later.

What say ye?

If you are involved in a HD situation I don't think anyone is going to expect you to render aid unless you are properly trained i.e. Doctor/EMT. That said I bought my kit at REI and supplemented what I felt I needed from a medical supply store.

in response to the question raised of whether or not you need to treat somebody you have just shot in defense of your home. As a licensed EMT unfortunately I would have to do just that. In the state of Vermont you are required to give care to anybody that is injured (with their permission of course.) It is grounds to lose your certification if you do not treat them. I'm not sure how a negligence case would hold up against you in court if the burglar was the one who wanted you strung up.

yo

I just put together a couple things for security and off duty PD friends at my hospital.

1. Some kind of Military trauma dressing. They're vacuum packed and smallish, and have straps that tie in place so you can put them on a really blood wound, over clothes or in the rain (where tape don't stick.)
My pick was the NAR OLES 4" combo dressing.
http://www.rescue-essentials.com/servlet/Detail?no=101
It has a big cloth dressing with stretchy straps that can be applied one handed. (Remember you may need to do this left handed on yourself while losing blood...) Also, behind the pad is about a half a roll of Kerlix like gauze. You can pull that out to pack a second wound, a through and through or long gash. Behind That, is a sheet of plastic to cover a sucking chest wound...
I usually only carry one or two. If you carry a weapon or work security you should really get something like this. I like NAR but other combo's are similar.

And... Quick clot. Get a dressing, not the powder. The powder is tough to use and can be useless or dangerous in the wind or rain. Only use the civi approved non-burning type available at REI or walgreens. Place or pack onto the gaping wound, stump and then dress over it with a combo dressing.

2. A C.A.T. tourniquet. Again, I can apply this left handed with my eyes closed and holding my breath. (Odd but if it happens to me thats about the time i'll have, the vision and dexterity will be fading...) There are a couple versions of Mil-spec tourniquets but the key is easily and quickly deployable in one hand and combat proven effectiveness. Those old triangle bandages barely work and should only be used in a pinch... they're better as a sling.

3. Gloves and a CPR mask and a pediatric Bulb Suction (from baby supplies)
2 pair of nitrile gloves and a collapsable CPR mask.
The bulb suction doesn't seem that effective, and only sucks 15-20cc's of fluid, but it will help clear an airway. Not much, but when your buddy gets knocked out by a blow to the chops that knocks out some teeth it's real handy.

4. S.A.M. splint. A 36" SAM splint is one of THE most versatile pieces of gear I carry. They fold flat and fit behind my packs water bladder, act as pack stiffeners, weigh next to nothing and can be used as splints for arms, hands, feet, ankles, legs and best of all... I can make a very effective neck/ c-spine collar. And not just a crappy make-shift splint, we use these in hospital and pre-hospital too.

Thats it. Basic ABCD and fits in a cargo pocket. The SAM is the biggest part which is why I have them as back stiffeners in all my packs.

Don't get distracted by alcohol wipes or 2x2 gauze or steri-strips and poison Ivy cream. For a small kit. I've seen hundreds of people dragged in from the field. For major trauma you want to keep them breathing, stabilize the neck, stop major bleeding and get them to the ER. All the stuff a band aid will treat usually doesn't need treatment. Stay simple, think Big.


(Read the following only if you want the looooong list...)


This is only for those with some training and is the base list for my truck kit/ range bag. It's based on our hospital ER disaster kit and various tactical med and backcountry med bags. I've carried various sizes of this list and found that even in the back hills of Utah I had the basic tools I needed.

A. Oral Pharyngeal Airways, Nasal Pharyngeal Airways and Combitubes (you can place them crawling under a car on a trapped victim...)
B. A better CPR mask with a small collapsable ambu-bag.
A 14 or 16 gg IV needle with an Asherman type valve for needle decompression.
An Asherman type adhesive chest seal
C. IV supplies with 250ml bags of NS. (You might use several in a trauma, but a small bag has many uses, eye wash, irrigation, chem decon, heat injury etc and with several small bags you can treat multiple injuries or infuse into multiple sites.
. Kerlix for packing, quick clot for hemostasis, (or combat gauze if you can afford it.) A bag of multiple size, type and design band aid's and little packs of Bacatracin, a small disposable skin stapler (great for quick scalp lac's until evac.) Add a couple 4x4's and you're set.
D. A couple more S.A.M splints, triangle bandage.
E. Several small mylar blankets. For heat injury, a small bag of saline dripping on some gauze on the forehead...
F. Stethascope, BP cuff, thermometer, scissors, flashlight... various small tools.
misc. Umbilical clamp, hemostats, nasal tampons, tooth putty...4 color electrical tape or markers in Red, Yellow, Green, Black for triage. 2 Signal Mirrors (ever try to bandage the back of your own head?) 3 Road flares. Good flashlight and inexpensive headlamp (think dark, rainy, searching for the second victim or dropped keys...) Put a red flashy bike light on the back (so you don't get hit by traffic.)

Medications. Without medical control it's tough to add meds.
I added a couple things to my "personal use" first aid kit... a couple Epi-Pens (the duo pen is best, has two doses,) extra strength tylenol, aspirin, ibuprophen, nitroglycerin, pepto tabs, Benadryl Redi-Strips (great for allergies, they dissolve in seconds) and Zofran ODT (anti-vommit pills.) and i forget what else...
But I can treat an allergic reaction, a heart attack, a sprain/ pain, most GI complaints, a fever and stop heavy puke'n so that's a start.

Another odd one, a tiny boat sized fire extinguisher clipped on the side.
Won't do much but maybe put out one person if they're on fire. (Good reason though right?)

Oh, and don't forget duct tape.

+1 to quikclot!!! I saw the video on that stuf, it's amazing! I'm an EMT, I would say just have your basic kit, with enough kit for two large wounds, a CPR mask, 4 pair gloves, +???... Remember, k.i.s.s.!!!

Be careful with a tournequet, If you put one on a limb you shouldent take it off, It should be removed by a Dr. at the ER in a Trauma room ready to stop the bleed!!!

I would advise against airway tubes/ j-tubes / combi-tubes, unless you know how to use them, if you can't tube em after the 2nd or 3rd try... same goes for any kind of needles, IV kits, If you kill or hurt someone, you Can/Will get sued! Your wasteing time.... Time is your worst enemy!!!

I would recomend a cpr/1st aid class!!!

If your going to go on a huge expedition, post #13 might be a good Idea (with some training)

If your just looking for a bag at the range/ hunting where help is >20 min away... All you need is a Very basic Trauma kit w/ cpr mask and maby some quickclot.

Or how about

http://www.brigadeqm.com/

item qc10 A quikclot individual first aid kit

item tmp01 tac pack
Contents:
• One pair of nitrile latex-free exam gloves
• N95 respirator mask • Occlusive dressing
• CPR micro shield
• Abdominal pad
• Four 4" x 3" cover sponges
• 4" x 75" roll bandage
• Pre-cut tape
• Triangular bandage


or
item tmp02 tac pack with quikclot.

Contents:
• One 25-gm. QuikClot® 1st Response™ Advanced Clotting Sponge
• One pair of nitrile latex-free exam gloves
• N95 respirator mask
• Occlusive dressing
• CPR micro shield
• Sterile combine ABD pads
• Four 4" x 3" cover sponges
• 4" x 75" roll bandage
• Pre-cut tape
• Triangular bandage

both of these are a vacuum packed kit that fits in most shirt or pants pockets.

I have several of the Tac-Pack QC with my gear here in Iraq...just in case

The worst case scenario would be for something to happen in the woods. Where I generally hunt, we are about 1 hour and 15 minutes from the nearest ER, and if something were to happen, it would probably involve meeting the trauma unit somewhere on the main highway, as I don't think the EMTs would be able to find us otherwise. Or if time were too critical to wait on the EMTs, taking the person to the hospital in a personal vehicle, as I believe the nearest fire station is probably 45 min away.

Click to expand...

Not all firestations have EMT's, Most wont have EMT-P (paramedics)

It is best to be prepared!!!

Worst Case Scenario...
Add this to your list:
GPS
Cellphone (if in range)
(if not) 2 way radio
or Sat-Phone

In my area we can call in a chopper in >45-60 min... and remember most choppers have a RN on board If it is bad enough, they will fly them to the nearest Trauma center, not just the nearest ER

at least around here....

I am a paramedic. IV's are nice IF you know how to use them. Trauma used to equal fluid replacement,still does in most SOP's BUT!!! they are finding that too much .9 NS reduces the oxygen carrying capacity of blood. Waters it down go figure salt water waters down the blood. A good trauma where there is a lot of bleeding. Well that is shock or about to be. Shock due to volume loss. Volume loss = crappy veins and hard to start IV's unless you have a lot of practice. Yeah little bags are good with a nasal cannula for eye irrigation but so is a big bottle of sterile saline for soft contacts and easier to get. Oral and nasal airways are great If you know how to use them. CPR mask. The new CPR classes are not pushing rescue breathing for the lay person. Compressions are much more important. Gotta get the ATP circulating. ATP is the real fuel of the body. Everything you take in for fuel eventually takes this form. Adenosine triphosphate. So right now at least someone is thinking "well OK smart azz what do u carry." Usually NADA. When hunting I have, in a gallon size ziplock bag the following.
5 maxi pads steal from your wife or girlfriend, great for stopping the bleeding.
5 tampons. plugs holes if necessary
big piece of alum. foil with a equal size piece of plastic wrap. Sucking chest wound. Leave the bottom corner untaped = flapper valve and no tension pneumothorax Tension pneumo = bad thing real bad.
1 roll of three inch tape can be ripped into 1 " or even 1/4" strips or used as is
1 bottle of saline solution for soft contacts eye was or wound wash.
little tube of antibiotic ointment.
1 trauma shears. Also good for cutting the wings and feet off of game birds.

That is it. You can replace it every year for about 8 bucks. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing. I have worked more GSW's than I can remember. What I do remember is very little blood on the outside of the body. Most damage is on the inside. One guy got hit just below the shoulder, right where the line between the biceps and triceps is. .45 cal hole, yes that is what he was hit with. He got hit while he was driving. Hit in the Right shoulder. Long story short, NO BLOOD. He was very anxious and then his face started puffing up like a chipmunk. He pulled out the IV's I started 2 14ga for the medics here, would not lay back or keep his oxygen mask on. Now his supra clavicular space, the area above your collar bone, was blowing up like a balloon as was his neck. He also had sub Q emphysema or air trapped under the skin. Now there was no exit wound I checked more than twice. No other wound either. So what happened besides the fact that he died. The bullet hit the humerous,upper arm, and traveled up his arm to the shoulder where it left the bullet jacket, it then deflected across the chest taking out the top of both lungs and the trachea. OOPS! Nothing I could do except run like hell in the bus. He died 15 min after getting to the ER. Keep it simple and remember it NEVER looks like the textbook. Someone with a hole in them, especially if it is someone you care about will get rid of any Johnny Gage and Roy Desoto ideas. They were in the show Emergency in the 70's


Len

Wow

Lots of good ideas
As with anything, especially in medicine, only do what your trained to do and know how to. I add a lot of more advanced stuff, but I use it daily.

Think outside the GSW box too. Injuries i've seen in field.. ashes/ powder/ dirt. gas in the eye, small burns, 3-4" head laceration from a tree branch that bled for an hour, accidental (drinking) self inflicted knife wounds, small impaled objects (nail in foot), 2" deep inner thigh gash from climbing a fence, mtn bike with a neck and head injury, sprained ankle on a hiking trail etc.

Go for versatile products with multiple uses that can handle big stuff.
A bloodstopper or bulky dressing can dress a long deep laceration, a leg full of gravel rash, cover an injured scalp or eye, stabilize an impaled object, make a sling and can be self applied in case you did this to yourself (which, c'mon is likely right?) A SAM splint can splint the neck, arm or leg, hand finger, ankle. Flat duct tape can protect from blisters, pull glass or splinters out, works like Steri-strips, tape an ankle. Quick Clot or Cellox (my fav) are good for stuff you can't get to stop leaking when you don't have time.

For my blow out I want it quick, easy and able to handle anything big in the first 2 minutes. I'll make it pretty later.

I like the little "Individual Trauma Kits" that you can buy online though I'd add a splint and duct tape to it.

Buy or build what your comfortable with. That way you know how to use what's there.

All about versatility and keeping yourself or buddy alive long enough to get other help.

That said, people are pretty tough. Anything major just protect the neck and airway, stop major outside bleeding, CPR if needed, splint obvious fractures, keep them warm and awake and pray.

Hey Len S, You said you use NS Is that your SOP for trauma? no Lactated Ringers??? Lets see if I Remember you can use both NS & LR for trauma, LR for burns, NS for dehydration.
I guess I just thought LR was better with trauma...

We only carry NS. Back in the day there was LR and D5W but now in Il we only carry .9NS. There was a study with some stuff called plasma heme or something that kinda fizzled.


Len

NS vs LR vs Dextran vs 3% NS

I like NS for an easy reason. I can do more stuff with it.
Principle of packing for the field. Use 1 thing than can do many things.
NS is flexible as IV fluid, can irrigate a deep wound, an ear, an eye, make a moist or wet/ wet to dry dressing...
Besides. None of the Crystalloids carry oxygen anyway, and though "LR for trauma" and similar rules abound, guess what is used first and most in ambulance and ER alike? NS.
Just to bad i can't drink it! (Maybe I can salt a fish with it though.....hmmm)

ps, I also carry a 5 liter supply of whole blood mixed with alcohol. My buddy Gary!