How important is your First Aid box?  All boats have one!  But… is it really necessary?   It’s a piece of forgotten equipment until it is needed, then if it is not maintained properly can be totally useless! Been there, done that! So what should it contain? 

A First Aid box is as individual as your choice of yacht. It should be as big as you can handle and should contain items that are significant to you and yours.

You can purchase a ready packed variety and maybe that’s the sort you have. Have you ever opened it and looked inside to see how useful it really is? No…? Well I will save you the bother. Top priority is NOT to have a box and expect it to fit all that is needed. Let’s find out what you need first and then fit it into an appropriate box. This is not in any particular order.

A box of normal Elastoplast dressings in a variety of sizes for minor cuts. They can be purchased anywhere and even have fancy motives for children! For more serious injuries you need sterile packed dressings, the sort that are found in the pre-packed first aid boxes. These are usually fluffy and will stick to blood and gore so make sure you have some of the none adhesive dressings as well.

A cooling pack for burns should be here too. One small and one large and some cling film, that should be all you need!

Bandages are important. Pre-packed dressings do have an incorporated bandage to make for easier application. Again a variety of sizes are needed, for example the one you would put on a wrist is useless for a knee injury. Also there are different types of bandages, there are cotton bandages for securing dressings, elastic bandages for sprains and support and special ones complete with applicator for fingers and toes. If you don’t know how to bandage properly you can cause further problems. To overcome this you can purchase a netelast/elastic, all-in-one bandage that comes on a roll, like some fender cover material. As long as you have the correct size this can be as good as bandaging. Lots of the sport supports are of this type so even a selection of them on board will help.

Otherwise see me and learn how to bandage correctly! The only other type of bandage that you may need is the small pre-packed net bandage. These may look as if they are of no significant use but can be left rolled up and placed on arterial bleeds to apply pressure. They come packed in polythene so are clean and sterile and help to prevent infection.

Trying to keep this logical (as only a women can) I ought to mention antiseptic wipes and disinfectants for cleaning wounds.

It is more important to stop profuse bleeding  than fuss around cleaning it, even if the injury did occur in the bilges.

Keep your priorities right. Gloves should also be mentioned as a means of preventing infection and catching diseases from others, but hey, I am talking about loved ones here so you shouldn’t catch anything you have not already got!

The only other bandage is the triangular bandage to support and immobilize the arm. There are numerous ways to do this without this type, but it is useful to have. Also include sticky tape and scissors and a pair of good tweezers for removing splinters and stings.

Other items to have are creams and potions for bites and stings and minor injuries. Seasickness pills, tablets to bung up a jiffy tum and then others to make it ‘go’ again. Fluid replacement sachets are not necessary; make up a solution of one litre of water with one teaspoon of salt and 5 teaspoons of sugar. Just as good, cheaper and does not have a ‘use by’ date. The most important item of all…Paracetamol! A good painkiller if taken regularly i.e. 2 tablets every 4-6 hours. It can also reduce temperature and generally make the casualty feel more comfortable.

If you think someone may be having a heart attack or stroke then Aspirin is the drug of choice. Give it sub-lingually (under the tongue) where it will be dissolved quickly.

Personal items are important. Make sure you have a spare supply of your regular medication. Also remember to put a supply in your ‘grab bag’. If you are going offshore and if you are getting your Life-Raft serviced prior to an Atlantic crossing get a spare supply put in that too!

 

Now that is the First Aid Box. As permanent yotties I think we need to go further than that. Easy for me as a nurse trained in General Medicine, Intensive Care, Midwifery and Anaesthetics, but what about everyone else? Do you have someone on board that may need an injection? Then it is important to know how to do this safely. Also if you have a serious injury that may benefit from stitches and you are days away from help then you must know how to do it. Sometimes “Steristrips” may be just as good as stitches but even so it is a good idea to learn how to do this properly. Drugs such as Morphine (a strong pain killer) can be kept on board for emergency use and yes I think this is a good idea, BUT it is also a very bad idea if you don’t know what you are doing. If you have Morphine call me on the VHF.

If you can answer my question correctly then I shall be happy that you do know what you are doing. The question...call me to find out! The boat name is ‘Calidore’.

 

FIRST AID

Maggie of ‘Calidore’

 

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