REAL EMT Trauma kits

[Diesel]

There's alot of so called emt and trauma kits on ebay etc but i'm wanting to know if they are reallyu and truly what a 1st responder emt medic would carry?

Also if anyone has access to this stuff let me know, it's something i'd really like to add to my preperations.

[das]

I don't know what state you are living in Diesel or the EMT-1 (First Responder) licensing there so let me give you a Texas answer. Your REAL LIVE EMT kit is designed to do one thing...stabilize to transport. The best way to realize this is to spend the $700 for the weeklong class and get your certificate...be prepared for a BUNCH of time on your hands and knees btw. I've done it and it scared the hell out of me.

What you will need for an accident, SHTF or EOTWAWKI scenario are far different. A good solid first aid kit will handle bumps, sprains, minor burns and upset stomach/head/bowels. A real field medic kit will handle cuts/lacerations not requiring surgery, setting minor broken bones and restoring/intubating breathing. In a world without lawyers I would add minor surgery but nothing beyond that unless you are prepared to kill someone. Yeah that's right, kill someone as in no more living. Think about it before you rush out to buy scapels/suturing kits/syringes/antibiotics/IV's.

The next stage is a field doctor who is going to treat catasprophic wounds involving piercing/breaking/internal bleeding/organ shutdown. Again emphassis on DOCTOR because people are going to die from these wounds....infection, organ failure and bleed-out being the biggest killers. Handling ANY of these wounds in the field runs the very real risk of killing the patient even if you SAVE them from the initial wound/injury.

So the answer to your question is a question. Are you prepared to kill someone by supplying them with medication or treating them without the proper training and steril equipment/environment? The arguement that they would die anyway is a strawman point. The paramedic who trained the firefighers I was with did a great job of saying exactly what I have said.

It made me realize that I am not ready to handle emergency medical situations beyond the pressure/airway/pulse level. The job of the first responder is to get the person to the Ambulance with a pulse so that the Doctors at the hospital can save them. Children are twice as easy to kill for the above reasons. My point here is get to a Red Cross center, pay the $50 to learn the revised CPR methods. Buy a family size First Aid kit for your home and a solid camping first aid kit for each member of your family (I like Adventure Medical but they are over priced.) Then consider investing the money in training for minor injury care such as the First Responder license/certification.

The drug interactions from common over the counter medications are enough to scare me silly even before you add in the heart/blood pressure/cholesterol/birth control/STD medication that many people take daily. That doctors memorizing THOUSANDS of them along with the human body, surgical procedures, diseases and diagnostic techniques blows my mind. I can't recall what I had for lunch a week ago!

[TheUnboundOne]

Real EMT Trauma kits

Das has an excellent point. Unless one is willing to learn to be a full-fledged EMT, RN, or even a Doctor, having the tools and concoctions of these trades would be useless and could even be dangerous if misused. A layman's first-aid course and kit are good for most purposes until you can get casualties into the care of trained hands and minds.

That said, it would be good for people interested in Survivalism and disaster preparedness to have contacts and friendly relationships with Survivalist-minded EMTs, RNs, and Doctors. That way, in a SHTF or TEOTWAWKI scenario, there would be a greater fighting chance of survival. Here are some possible contacts, as well as worthy organizations to support in their own right:

Doctors for Disaster Preparedness

http://www.ddponline.org/

Physicians for Civil Defense

http://www.physiciansforcivildefense.org/

The American Civil Defense Association

http://www.tacda.org/

[das]

TUO,
Wow, I had never heard of Physicians for Civil Defense. Great program and great information. I am going to look into this. Our family friend and physician listens to most of my preparedness with a certain detachment but he listens. Maybe this is something that could bring him more closely into the realization that things are not as we WANT them to be and a certain degree of preparedness isn't necessarily bad.

[das]

Here is just an example of how even knowing First Aid instruction from a decade ago can be more harmful than helpful.

Top 10 First Aid Mistakes

From cut fingers to electrical burns—what you should and shouldn't do in a home health emergency.
Temma Ehrenfeld
Newsweek Web Exclusive
Updated: 1:22 PM ET Apr 14, 2008

Thank heavens for emergency rooms. But sometimes the first aid measures taken on the scene before a patient arrives at the hospital can make all the difference, especially if the ER is crowded. (On average you'll wait 45 minutes before seeing a doctor, according to the Centers for Disease Control, and longer in urban centers.)

We asked two experts, Dr. Tom Scaletta, the outgoing president of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine, and Denise King, president of the Emergency Nurses Association, to identify the 10 most common first aid mistakes—and what you should do instead.

1. Cut finger. It's surprisingly easy for a person to amputate part of a finger—for instance, while chopping vegetables or using an electric saw.
Don't try to preserve the loose part by placing it directly on ice.
Do wrap the severed part in damp gauze (saline would be ideal for wetting the cloth), place it in a watertight bag and place the bag on ice. Then be sure to bring the bag and ice to the emergency room. The patient will be going into surgery, so he's best off with an empty stomach. As for the wound on the hand or body, apply ice to reduce swelling and cover it with a clean, dry cloth.

2. Knocked-out tooth.
Don't scrub the tooth hard even if it's dirty (a gentle rinse is OK)
Do put the tooth in milk and go straight to the ER; there's a chance the tooth could be reimplanted.

3. Burns.
Don't apply ice or butter or any other type of grease to burns. Also, don't cover a burn with a towel or blanket, because loose fibers might stick to the skin. When dealing with a serious burn, be careful not to break any blisters or pull off clothing stuck to the skin.
Do wash and apply antibiotic ointment to mild burns. Head to the hospital for any burns to the eyes, mouth, or genital areas, even if mild; any burn that covers an area larger than your hand; and any burn that causes blisters or is followed by a fever.

4. Electrical burns.
Don't fail to get medical attention for a jolt of electricity (for instance, from lightning, a power line, or home electrical cords), even if no damage is evident. An electrical burn can cause invisible (and serious) injury deeper inside the body. More than 500 Americans die every year from electrical burns.
Do go to the ER immediately.

5. Sprained ankle.
Don't use a heating pad.
Do treat a sprain with ice. Go to the ER if it is very painful to bear weight. You might have a fracture.

6. Nosebleed.
Don't lean back. And after the bleeding has stopped, don't blow your nose or bend over.
Do sit upright and lean forward and pinch your nose steadily (just below the nasal bone) for five to 10 minutes. If the bleeding persists for 15 minutes (or if you think you are swallowing a lot of blood) go to the ER.

7. Bleeding.
Don't use tourniquets! You could cause permanent tissue damage.
Do apply steady pressure to the wound with a clean towel or gauze pack and wrap the wound securely. Go to the ER if the bleeding doesn't stop, or if the wound is gaping or caused by an animal bite. To help prevent shock, keep the victim warm.

8. Ingestion of poison.
Don't induce vomiting or use Ipecac syrup (unless instructed to do so by emergency personnel).
Do call poison control, and bring the ingested substance with its container to the ER.

9. Being impaled.
Don't remove the object; you could cause further damage or increase the risk of bleeding.
Do stabilize the object, if possible, and go to the ER.

10. Seizures.
Don't put anything in the victim's mouth.
Do lay the victim on the ground if possible in an open space and roll the victim onto his or her side. Call 911.

And when else should you call 911? Whenever you see or experience chest pain, fainting, confusion, uncontrollable bleeding or shortness of breath. The medics can get to work on arrival.

[Big_Saw]

There's alot of so called emt and trauma kits on ebay etc but i'm wanting to know if they are reallyu and truly what a 1st responder emt medic would carry?

Also if anyone has access to this stuff let me know, it's something i'd really like to add to my preperations.

D,

If you're still looking for the best gear...I get all of my medical and tactical gear here:

Galls.com

Yes, some items are restricted, and require proper credentials or a Dept. head authorization, but you'll find that most items are available for the general public.

Absolutely nothing that Galls sells is cheap or inferior.

[cprdummy]

D,

If you're still looking for the best gear...I get all of my medical and tactical gear here:

Galls.com

Yes, some items are restricted, and require proper credentials or a Dept. head authorization, but you'll find that most items are available for the general public.

Absolutely nothing that Galls sells is cheap or inferior.

I buy a good deal of equipment and supplies from Galls. Their products are top quality and first rate.

[free2bme]

I'm going to babble a while

I've been blessed at times with full med packages on missions sometimes and others I've been left with nothing but what i packed myself not even a way to get anyone out. Here is how I carry my aid bag.

Everything is broken down by airway, breathing and circulation. I try to imagine the types of airway problems I may find so I have everything from ET tubes (the tubes that go in your throat) to NPA which is a great way to protect an airway if you know very little about medicine. Plus you can move your buddy without having through any terrain and it will not come out.

Breathing is easy find a hole in the chest and cover it up. I go much more advanced when i evacuate trapped air in the chest but even that is not that difficult if you have someone to teach you correctly.

For circulation I carry kerlex and clotting bandages like quickclot or hemcon dressings. They are a must have if you know how to use them together and correctly. I also lump bones into circulation so i have sam splints, wooden splints and i like to have the kendrick traction splints aswell. To top it off i have torniquets readily available attached to the outside. An arterial bleeder is the only thing that stops me from treating the airway first.

That is the down and dirty if you guys like I can go into more detail about what i have exactly, how to use each item, and how I approach each patient.

[Axle]

Thanks for the galls recomendation, ive been looking for a first aid kit like the ones they have for a long time

[Big_Saw]

Thanks for the galls recomendation, ive been looking for a first aid kit like the ones they have for a long time

Cough up the extra dough -if you're able- and get a basic trauma bag/kit.....really worth it when compared to a standard FA kit.....

[methusaleh]

Not to derail this thread or turn to politics, but most people I know (including myself) refuse to do business with Galls due to the company's past, which in my opinion is shady and unethical. Like WalMart.

Also "caveat emptor" when dealing with a one-man outfit called EMS Innovations, I believe he is out of NJ. When I was on a city PD, we ordered some hard-to-get, military-issue medical items from him, and had many problems with the order.

Anyhow...a company called Wilderness something-or-other makes what I have heard to be the best all-around medical kits on the market. I do not own one however I hear them recommended frequently as general purpose kits to carry that are more advanced than just a "first aid" kit. I will have to research the company and product line when I have a bit more time.

Personally all I have attached to my EDC bag is a USMC IFAK with some extra adhesive small Band-Aids, a few Ace bandage wraps, and ointment packets. I have a gigantic, hand-assembled EMT-type kit in my main vehicle, but it's too bulky to carry everywhere.

[Big_Saw]

Not to derail this thread or turn to politics, but most people I know (including myself) refuse to do business with Galls due to the company's past, which in my opinion is shady and unethical. Like WalMart.

Also "caveat emptor" when dealing with a one-man outfit called EMS Innovations, I believe he is out of NJ. When I was on a city PD, we ordered some hard-to-get, military-issue medical items from him, and had many problems with the order.

Anyhow...a company called Wilderness something-or-other makes what I have heard to be the best all-around medical kits on the market. I do not own one however I hear them recommended frequently as general purpose kits to carry that are more advanced than just a "first aid" kit. I will have to research the company and product line when I have a bit more time.

Personally all I have attached to my EDC bag is a USMC IFAK with some extra adhesive small Band-Aids, a few Ace bandage wraps, and ointment packets. I have a gigantic, hand-assembled EMT-type kit in my main vehicle, but it's too bulky to carry everywhere.

I know Gall's get's a well-deserved rap on some things, but I stll haven't found a better supplier for the everyday badge.....

[methusaleh]

Ha ha, long gone are the days when I can get a spare or replacement badge without jumping through hoops and cutting through red tape for weeks!

I figured out what that company was, and here is their site:

http://www.wildernessmedical.com/wilderness-medical-kits_new1.htm

[cbprice797]

Well I refuse to pay 500+ bucks for a kit that I can put together for less than half that and I have on that I put together in my pack right now. I also got someone I know looking to get me an "off the base" (ft Bragg) Full Medic Kit. He has gotten me several things before and I can't wait until he comes through on this and a couple of other things I have on a list.

Wilderness survival site had these nice kits that were for someone in a "remote" chance of getting to the hospital. Yet there was not even a single suture in the kit. Not a staple gun. Not even super glue. What wereyou supposed to do??

[Big_Saw]

Ha ha, long gone are the days when I can get a spare or replacement badge without jumping through hoops and cutting through red tape for weeks!

I figured out what that company was, and here is their site:

http://www.wildernessmedical.com/wil...-kits_new1.htm

No, Man...I mean badge-wearing stiffs......... :rolleyes: ..........LIT