What to Include in a Home First Aid Kit

We as human beings are always prone to all sorts of major and minor emergencies and you can’t really do anything to stop them from occurring. However, you can minimize the damage they cause or the intensity of pain caused by that certain emergency.

You may or may not consider a broken bone, a cut or even an allergic reaction to be a major problem, but they can be enough to make you desperately look for some relief. Usually, in circumstances like these, an instant reaction would be to fend for yourself with something that provides immediate relief. This can only be done when you have the essentials well-stocked in the form of a first aid kit.

There is no rocket science involved in putting together a medical kit for addressing the issue, on time.

Why do I need a first aid kit?

Medical emergencies, big or small, can happen at any point in your life. There’s no way you can be 100% safe from anything happening to you. When unwanted and unexpected health problems occur, you will most definitely need something at home to stop things from getting out of control. Therefore, having an emergency or first aid kit with you at all times is just as necessary as having food to eat. However, putting together a basic or an all-purpose first aid kit depends entirely on you and your experience with handling emergencies.

You can put in almost everything in your emergency kit, but not proper knowledge and experience about how to use these things properly. However, the core purpose of a first aid kit is to provide aid to a person in pain until you can get professional help; so you really don’t need to be half a doctor to use that.

Things That Matter:

You can’t just mindlessly put every medicine and band aid you find in your first aid kit. Take your time to prepare a rather comprehensive kit that serves the purpose. You can buy a basic first aid kit, available at any medical or chain store. However, if you have some specific medical needs or have some prescribed medicines then it is suggested that you put together your own first aid kit.

If you take prescription medications, be sure to include those in your home first aid kit.

Apart from medical emergencies, your first aid kit should always be there if there is any other emergency of sorts like a hurricane or a power cut. What if your allergies are triggered during a blizzard and there is no way you can go to a hospital or get any professional help? With something as important as a first aid kit well-stocked with your prescribed medicines, you can save lives. In case of emergency, it is vital that every first aid kit has copies of your medical records.

Here’s what you need:

Essentials:

1. Dressings and bandages
2. Adhesive bandages in all sizes to cover all types of wounds.
3. Alcohol wipes or cotton swabs
4. Gauze pads of different sizes
5. Dressing Tape
6. Gloves
7. Scissors
8. Safety pins
9. Alcohol free cleaning wipes
10. Crepe bandages
11. Sterile water
12. Eye pad
13. Digital thermometer
14. Tweezers
15. Inhaler
16. Mouthpiece for CPR
17. Sanitizer
18. Disposable syringes
19. Cotton buds

Medicines:

1. Basic cough and cold medicine (prescribed)
2. Antiseptic solution
3. Asprin
4. Povidone-iodine
5. Antiseptic ointments
6. Eye wash Saline solution
7. Calamine lotion
8. Laxative and anti-diarrhea meds
9. Sting relief spray or cream
10. Anti-nausea meds
11. Prescribed medicines for a medical condition

It is important to keep your emergency numbers in your first aid kit and make sure that it is kept where it is accessible for everyone.  Let us know if there’s anything else that one should keep in his/her first aid kit?

Want to learn more about first aid? Check out our series on building a “Target” First Aid Kit:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

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