My Vehicle FAK- PIC warning

Afte reading the Accident Trauma Kit post, I finally got around to getting my vehicle FAK up. Mind you, I've been an EMT for 10 years, so please use common sense if you decide there's things "you just have to have!" Also, in advance, I have a few blankets and flares in my car, seperate from this kit.

The bag was bought at an EMS conference about 10 years ago. It's a small duffel, with 2 side pouches. The ends are "pouches" that are seperated from a central compartment. The kit also came with a nylon roll with elastic loops for holding gauze rolls, as well as a flat piece that velcro's to the top of the central compartment for holding airways. Made of a nice-quality Cordura-type orange nylon. From the top, working clockwise: CPR pouch, the bigger CPR end compartment, glove pouch, and the trauma end compartment. The middle compartment is overflow/extra stuff.

The CPR pouch has a pocket CPR mask, 1 locking Buck knife, 1 pair of trauma shears, and 1 10-cc syring. I used to have a turkey baster as a poor-man's suction device, but it got lost somewhere.

The bigger airway pouch has an Ambu-bag, 10 triage tags, 1 pair goggles, and a handful of Vioxx hand sanitizer wipes.

Glove pouch contains 1 ziplock of latex gloves, and 1 ziplock of trauma gloves (thicker, longer latex gloves). No pic.

The trauma pouch has 2 abd pads, 2 vaseline gauze pads, 1 triangle bandage, 1 pair of goggles, 1/2 roll of tape, 3 Kerlix (gauze rolls), 2 surplus/military trauma bandages and a ziploc of 4x4's

The center pouch is a "restock" and "extra supplies" function. From the top right, the orange roll:
Orange nylon roll with 6 guaze rolls
1 pediatric and 1 adult adjustable Cervical collar
2 burn towels
3 military trauma bandages
7 abd pads
1 set of oropharyngeal airways (the green curvy things)
3 angiocaths (the IV was used and never replaced)
2 triangle bandages
1 eye pad
2 ace wraps
Ziploc of 4x4's, some sterile gauze
Cheapie bandage compress and wire splint
2 rolls tape
1 sterile Kerlix
1 stethoscope (no BP cuff planned)

Oh, I like.

whne i grow up (im 13) IM gonna try n get my emt and w-emt!!!

Pretty nice kit. I have something similair. I will post pics of it when I find them.

- Have you thought about adding a suction-device, such as a rescue-vac?

- Maybe get a selectable c-collar?

- That BVM doesn't have much additional value without hooking it up to a o2-supply.

- Why no BP-cuff planned?

I hope this isn't a tread-hijack, but this is my trauma-backpack:





The front-pouch contents. Not pictured, but included is a roll of duct-tape, more gloves, spac-blankets and 2 complete 500ml IV-kits.



Some small stuff. There are 2 EMT-sheers in the bag.



- Yellow pouch: a lot of quick-dressings (no1,2,3,4) and burn-gauze
- Red pouch: trauma-pads, kerlix, gauze,more gauze...
- Blue pouch: ACE-bandages, triangulair bandages, instant-cold-packs



Tape, gauze pads, suture-strips, etc, etc



More and larger gauze-pads, burnshield, water-jel, more tape, cling-film.

You've got a great kit too Jim. Some things I'd like to have.
As for you questions:
Suction devices are pricey. I used a turkey baster in the past, and might get one again. The Rescue Vac retails for something like $100, and doesn't actually fit into a mouth too well. But it is a shortcoming.
The 2 C-collars are adjustable. Sectionable's aren't used too much in the field (in my experience) in the US. Mainly hospitals. Plus, they don't fold or store as well.
A BVM adds 5% more O2 than a face mask when in use (21% atmospheric oxygen, vs about 15% in an exhaled breath). Plus, it keeps your head away from the patient while in use. The last time I used one on the side of the road, the girl's head was smashed and blood was spraying everywhere with each breath. I'd rather my jeans be soaked than my face and hair. The nice thing too is I can hook it up to an O2 tank when one becomes available (cops sometimes carry them, and tend to be quicker than EMS at times)
No cuff simply because I'm not cared about documenting vitals. If they're talking and have a radial pulse, their BP is at least 70-80 mm Hg. This kit is to keep alive, not titrate IV fluid rates. Besides, without an IV, I can't do much to improve a dropping BP besides more hemorrhage control. Lastly, blood pressures aren't part of the triage algorithm, and if there's more than 1 patient, I can't waste time getting full vitals on each one.

Good Lord Man!! I wish you and JIM posted this stuff before I did because you both have some fancy kits going on there. I know Army Medics that don’t carry as much gear when on operations as you both have (lol !!) for me, the need is not as big to have such a large kit. I just want to help someone out as much as possible while I wait for someone like you guys to get on the scene. There is a whole whack of stuff that you both carry that I am not even slightly trained to use, but after looking at your stuff I can see that there are a few more things I may have to squeeze into my trauma kit somehow. For all the help on my thread, thanks again. I have really been set straight about the whole moving the person thing. I am kind of determined to upgrade my first aid training to a more civilian nature after reading some of the comments on my thread. As it stands now, 99% of what our Military teaches is geared specifically for places like Afghanistan where road side bombs strikes etc usually involve burning vehicles full of high explosives and VERY seriously injured troops. In these cases the first step is getting people out. Although it obviously does not apply while back home, it is a hard mindset to let go of!! Especially when you know you are going back.

That's the most important thing: You see the kits of other people and get ideas of what you could/should add or what you could leave out.

And your trauma-bag is really nice. It does what you want it to do and you're comfortable with it. Nothing more and nothing less!

Once again, good job!

Thanks, but don't forget that medics have to carry all their gear, in addition to their kits. So it makes sense they'd have fewer things.

I second Jim, just be open to discussing and changing things based on your needs, comfort level, and experiences with it.

I should than Taurus for the motivation to get my pics up here. And for making me unpack the bag and realize I've got to add a few things that have gotten used over the years!

Nice kit !!

I'll take some pics of the everyday 1st aid kit I have and post them up here soon.

Great kits!

Hi!
Here's my trauma backpack:


backpack closed


backpack opened



immobilization stuff


dressings



airway stuff



diagnostics& iv's



small stuff

Welcome to the forum. Pull up a stump & stay a while.

Can I just follow you guys around until I get hurt?

MDinina

Take a look at the Suction Easy they are small and pack well.

Thanks, I live in Poland, and Suction Easy is unavailable here. (only suction bulbs,S.E. costs 10 times more) My rubber bulbs are enough (smiliar suction power) I think. Actually, I am thinking about adding O2 kit to my backpack, and I'm going to have EMT-B course next month.
What should I add?

well more importently with first aid, don't do things your not certified and trained in on other persons. I have seen your first aid kits on this and other forums JIM and i have seen lots of things your probably not trained and certified to use. A importent roul of first is knowing what to do and what NOT to do.

For suction, I just use a 60cc syringe attached to about 8 inches of suction tubing. It is cheap, compact, easy to use, and at least as effective as a couple of the expensive manual devices I've tried.

Jeff

Here is the BLS kit that I keep in the car.





Pacific Emergency Trauma Module
1 Full Set of OPAs
2 Triangle Bandages
1 Izzy Bandage
4 Sets of Gloves
1 Roll of Tape
2 Ace Bandages
1 Roll of Kling
1 AMK Blanket
1 Set of NPAs
1 Pocket BVM
2 5x9 Trauma Pads
2 Telfa Pads
1 Petrolatum Gauze
4 Sterile 4x4s
Hand Full of Non Sterile 4x4
Stethoscope
1 Lg Trauma Dressing
Trauma Shears
2 Hemostat
Suction Easy
4 Saline Bullets
1 Asherman Chest Seal
2 Bio Bags
1 Sam Splint Soft Shell
1 WMA SOAP Pad
Pen
Inova LED Light

The 60cc syringe works great. Some of the advantages of the Suction Easy is that I can use it one handed and it keeps most of the mess self contained.

I haven't tried that one. It looks nice, simple and compact, much better than the competition I've seen. I may have to get one. Thanks for showing it.

Jeff

Jeez, that's bone-head simple. I should have thought of that! Now I'm going to steal that idea.

Ditto the above on having stuff outside your scope. I've been debating adding a few bags of saline, but I don't know if A) they hold up to winters in Michigan (not to mention the catastrophic effects of infusing a nearly freezing IV fluid), and B) "technically" it's outside my scope.... til May.

You upgrading to Specialist or Paramedic?

Well, recently I made a suction tubing for 20cc syringe that I carry in my everyday FAK (made from iv infusion set tube) . I'll post photos of my IFAK soon.

Physician

Well that tops all. Good luck.

Maybe I should hold a "training" session on advanced techniques, and get lots of "by physician order" items too You know, CPR, ACLS, BTLS, and First Responder all rolled into one.

Sorry, no opiates will be sold!

My everyday FAK:
compartment 1:
1x Trauma pad
1x ACE bandage
1x elastic bandage
2x gauze bandages
1x torniquet
1x survival blanket
1x long suction drain

compartment 2
2x 2.4 inch x 4 inch wound dressing
2x triangle bandage
2x chest seal
1x 4x4 pad

compartment 3
3x gloves
6x swabs
15x band-aids

compartment 4
1x variety of personal meds
1x 20cc suction syringe+ drain
2x 10cc saline bullet

compartment 5
1x tools& elementary survival stuff

Outside:
1xEMT Shears
3x safety pins