Camping Season & First Aid

The Canadian May long weekend has passed which means camping season has officially begun. Minor injuries and illnesses can ruin a camping trip if you don’t have a first aid kit stocked with the right supplies. A well-equipped first aid kit is an essential item to pack for any camping road trip.

Here is a list of items to consider including in your first aid kit:

Bandages and Dressings

Elastic bandages (Band-Aids; for everyday cuts and scratches)
Adhesive and butterfly bandages (effective for use in the closure of a deep cut or wound)
Roll bandages (when moderate compression is needed
Triangular bandages (for head or appendage, as a handy arm sling, or even as a tourniquet)
Sterile gauze pads/non-adhesive dressings (ideal for cleansing and covering larger cuts, scrapes and minor burns because they are highly absorbent)
Large wound dressings
Blister dressing (particularly useful if you plan to do a lot of walking)
Adhesive tape cloth-based (can be used to hold bandages and dressings in places)
An ice pack (to cool and reduce swelling)
Splinting materials (to provide support to an injured area to stop it moving)

Miscellaneous Essentials

Safety pins (to secure bandages)
Scissors (to trim bandages and other uses)
Tweezers and needles (to remove splinters or ticks)
Antiseptic wipes (used to clean wounds, cuts and scrapes and help prevent infection)
Cotton swabs/cotton wool (used to apply ointments)
Thermometer (for taking your temperature, useful if you have a fever or are not felling well)
Non-latex gloves (help prevent the spread of infection into an open wound from the hand of someone cleaning / treating it)
Large plastic bag (for soiled bandages and other used medical items)

Medications

Topical antibiotic cream
Oral antihistamine (such as Benadryl)
Medications for pain or fever (such as Acetaminophen or Ibuprofen)
Hydrocortisone cream (1%) (for insect bites)
Diarrhea /vomiting medication (such as Imodium or Compro)
Anti-acids (such as Tums or Rolaids)
Eye drops (sooth irritated eyes)
Travel / motion sickness medication (in the U.S. need a prescription for most medication)
Personal medications (if you or anyone in your group suffers from any illnesses)
Anti-inflammatory medication (such as Aleve)

Other medications to consider, depending on the time of year and where you’re going:

Bee sting kit
Snake bit kit
Poison ivy cream/cleansers (such as Zanfel, TechNu or Band-Aid)
Aloe vera gel or other moisturizer (for sun burn)
Sinus medications (if it’s allergy season and you know you suffer badly, such as Claritin)

Some final tips:

Replenish your first aid kit if any items are used and check medications for use by dates
Pack your first aid kit in a well-labeled waterproof container. Make sure everyone in your party knows where it is kept
Keep your kit as compact as possible, consider removing tubes of cream or ointments and strips of pills from their cardboard box and simply cut out the instructions. Keep them together with an elastic band
Know how to use the items in your first aid kit, familiarize yourself with everything that’s in it, especially if it’s a pre-packaged one
Tailor your first aid kit to the kind of trip you’re taking, the time of year and your own or families’ personal medical needs
Bring a first aid manual if you are unfamiliar with basic first aid
Consider taking a first aid class if you do not have any basic first aid knowledge, particularly if you have children.

Visit our online shop to view any of our ready made first aid kits https://sostech.ca/product-category/shop-online/