Building and Modifying First Aid Kits

I may have mentioned this before; I have an unusual hobby. I like to build and customize first aid kits. I have six kits, three of which I have built or modified.

Anyone here who does that? What do you include in your custom kits?

Jeanette Isabelle

I surely do.

Before I go on, it's worth noting that as a firearms instructor, I take a CoTCCC-focused trauma class about every year, with the intention that I should be able to treat survivable traumatic injury well enough to keep a patient alive until I can get him or her to definitive care. Also, as my username denotes, weird things happen around me, and it seems that I'm constantly patching people up and/or driving them to the ER.

I have a small kit for my laptop bag which has a comprehensive OTC med module (but not many doses of each), a fairly robust boo-boo fixing capability, and light trauma capability. I can't put anything in here that will cause me (more) problems with the TSA, so that limits what can go in there.

Each car first aid kit has a comprehensive OTC module (multiple doses of each), comprehensive boo-boo kit (good for many boo-boos), foot care module, and trauma kit with all the tools I know how to use. My main outdoor backpack has the same, but just one or two doses of each OTC med.

There's a boo-boo kit in one of the bathrooms, and a comprehensive disaster medical kit in one of the bug-out/bug-in bins.

Finally, I have a small boo-boo and trauma kit (similar to the one in my laptop bag) in a pouch on my bicycle.

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, I was Safety Officer in the office (about 40 or so employees) and thus in charge of the first aid kits which were quietly gathering dust in various nooks and crannies.. On occasion, they had been opened and their contents disturbed. About the only items that were used were bandaids and similar items used for boo-boos.

I restocked them and decided to place a band aid box next to, and outside the FAK so that thee contents would be in good order for more significant emergencies. This in turn led me to place about three or four band aids in my wallet, so that I could tend to the common incidents quickly, with no theatrics.

Doing SAR in that same galaxy, I developed a more heavy duty FAK more attuned to the situations we encountered, usually trauma as the result of falls - elastic bandages, leg splints, lots and lots of sterile dressings. Through time, I developed a smaller version of that kit for personal excursions. I have two or three such kits in handy locations around the house and car. My wife has even more, I found out the other day.

I would say that the most important component of any FAK is the training and experience of the person opening it. I would rather be treated by a trained person and no dedicated kit, than by a layperson with any kit you care to provide. The best situation is both an ample kit and a trained responder....

like Chaos, I carry some trauma supplies clipped my gun cart, and with my carry bag...contents are fairly similar... Kerlix, compression bandage,tourniquet, clotting sponge, Vaseline gauze for occlusive chest seal, NPA, syringe, gloves.... EMT shears added since picture...a new sling bag which has more room for some additional supplies replaces the older JanSport bag... it would be nice if Olaes were in a smaller pack

I do that. I like to make FAKs and Survival kits of different sizes and for for different applications. In fact, I like to make "kits" for various other purposes, too, like shooting range kits and repair kits, for example.

I have taken to carrying a sealed pouch of 325 mg. powdered aspirin in my wallet, in case someone shows the signs and symptoms of a possible heart attack.

QuikClot Sport sponges do not work well for penetrating trauma, as you cannot usually put them inside the wound where the bleeding is happening -- if a penetrating trauma wound is that big, it doesn't bode well for your patient. QuikClot gauze is the way to go. Be aware that I've recently seen it on sale but the sale package was for a four foot roll, the green-packaged versions I've seen (and use) are four yards long.

The CAT is the tourniquet of choice for non-professional responders. The SOFTT-W is very good for buddy aid but the CAT is the easiest to self-apply. In the most recent CoTCCC class I took the instructor showed us the difference between a real CAT made by North American Rescue and a cheap knockoff. To my horror I found that the one I kept in my wife's car was a cheap knockoff. Look for a lot number and a manufacture date stamp. If you can't find those things, I would recommend that you replace it and demote the knockoff to training duty.

I haven't advanced that far in first aid kit modifications. In my years of practicing first aid, I have dealt with scraped and banged-up knees, cuts, burns, a door closed on a hand and one or two sprained ankles. In most of those situations, I rendered first aid on myself.

Jeanette Isabelle

Mine are focused on trauma applications as well. As for the cuts and scrapes, I just amp up an off the shelf kit.

Nutnfancy's youtube channel has some excellent stuff on building FAK's. https://www.youtube.com/user/nutnfancy

Yes and no. I do make sure my FAK are well stocked and current, but I try to keep the numbers of FAK down. Otherwise it's too much to keep track of and too much to keep replace.

I have devide my FAK in to:
- lightweight FAK (for MTB'ing, climbing, hiking, etc)
- Medium FAK for the outdoors
(I think i will be turning them in to a lightweight one + a add on kit)

- Car FAK
- Large home FAK (which is also the one i bring with sport events)

My kits are different from the American style kits. I'm from Europe and trained using more basic medical supplies (I have had basic first aid and wilderness first aid training). Far less medication and heavy trauma things.

I continue to click "load more," going back four years (that's a lot of videos in four years, by the way) and I haven't seen a video on building first aid kits.

Jeanette Isabelle

Here you go. Nutnfancy FAK's on Yahoo https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0dboVSTCkuw The link is to his Level 1, link to Level 2 on the right...

No affiliation, haven't watched any of the video's.

When any of my FAK's is opened the first thing you find is a ziplock bag with an N-95 mask and a couple pair of nitrile gloves -- no digging through the kit looking for mask and gloves. My AMK commercial FAK's have also been supplemented with additional 4x4's and a couple WMI wound packs. I also added an irrigation syringe to the kits which didn't have one.

I get that, but it wouldn't work for me. I have different kits for different places and needs, and it's also easier for me to know that the right kit is already where it belongs, rather than worry about forgetting one. If I limited myself to one first aid kit it would be suboptimal for almost any of my regular uses.



First aid kits come in such a wide variety I'm not sure I know what an American style kit is. I wouldn't be carrying trauma gear if I wasn't trained to use it.

A decent trauma kit for an individual can be gauze, triangular bandages and Ace wraps. I prefer a tourniquet, but I agree that would need some training. Airway maintenance also would require training.

Your best first aid kit is your brain. Knowledge doesn't weigh anything and does not take up space. Get trained. There are many inexpensive or free opportunities to do so. Accidents can happen to anyone.

I noticed American first aid kits have far more heavy trauma items and far more wipes and pills then european ones.

Trauma bandages and tourniquets are pretty rare here. They aren't even on all ambulance's.

I agree on non carrying trauma gear bandages if you are not trained to use them. Wrong gear, combined with a lack of skill can cause more damage.

It's sometimes nice to know which country has which kind of items. First aid training differs and so do the first aid items. So I know in which country to visit the pharmacy to get certain items.

Tjin, you can't hurt someone with compressed gauze. You would have to try very hard to hurt someone with a triangular bandage or an Ace wrap. Everyone can carry these and apply pressure to stop bleeding or splint a break.

I am not sure what you are calling a trauma bandage. Yes there are some remade and designed for military and law enforcement use, primarily for gun shot wounds. I do not think it would hurt for anyone to carry these either.

Tourniquet training is easy, and they are not as dangerous as many people still believe. I would rather someone try to use a tourniquet to save my life than let me bleed out. I have applied them to myself many times in training with no ill effects. I have trained some of my scouts to use them, and they get to put them on me. Yes, if done properly it is painful, but you need to know how tight they need to be.

As for airway management, people need to learn the non-intrusive methods for helping keep the airway clear, at a minimum. A nasal pharyngeal tube is actually easy to use and does not take much training to learn. Yes, these are things generally taught only to EMS, but in military combat specialties it is a necessity, and is now widely taught.

I emphasize trauma kits because they can save your life. Bandaids can't stop even moderate bleeding. A small trauma kit with a tourniquet or 2, some compressed gauze (Quick Clot Gauze is good also, but training is needed), triangular bandages (1 or 2), and a couple of Ace wraps can do a lot. I include a nasal pharyngeal tube in mine, but not those for others.

Get trained, the life you save may be your own or that of someone you love.

Well training and ideas are different in parts of the world. So opinions differ, that’s ok. We have far fewer ex-military personal and far less firearm incidents, so I think that is a reason why we have less emphasis on trauma kits and more focus on everyday injuries.

An example what we are taught and why:
We are taught that overpressure with ace bandage can cause nerve damage and damage to valve in your blood system when applied incorrectly. So there are even different method for professionals (should have enough experience applying correct amount of pressure) and amateurs.

Professionals: Apply Ace bandage directly

Amateurs: Apply roll of synthetic cotton wool first, then apply ace bandage. (to prevent over tightening; the cotton wool spreads the force and makes is more idiot proof)

Edit/note: I only speak of applying ace bandage as i'm trained to, not where it's for. I have first aid training and i'm a trainer, but not a medical/first aid trainer, so I'll not go in to where this actually applies and when you use it,

The NOL's Wilderness First Aid course trains students for trauma injuries. American Red Cross seems more focused on CPR and calling 9-1-1, whereas the WFA course does not assume you are within cell-phone coverage or near a road. Breathing is good, but so is not bleeding out.

We trained using a triangle bandage as a tourniquet, a sweater as a neck brace, and sticks and magazines to fashion a leg brace, among other hands-on exercises using other students as our "dummies". I took the course and highly recommend it for anyone interested in taking a first aid course.

I was fortunate that my EMT training, provided by my employer (National Park Service) emphasized wild situations and inability to reach a medical facility, which standard Red Cross (call 911) certainly does not. Most of my experience over the last forty years, both on the job and as a volunteer, has been in fairly wild, off road settings. Most of my experience came when tourniquets were out of favor, and considered only a last resort. I have been a first responder at probably about two hundred incidents involving bleeding. In all cases, a firm bandage and dressing, augmented occasionally by direct pressure, stopped the bleeding.

One of these was a virtual arm amputation (subject walked into a rear helicopter rotor) but apparently muscle spasm clamped down the blood vessels.There was surprisingly little blood involved. Good thing - where do you apply a T when the arm is off at the shoulder?

The cornerstone of my first aid treatment is an elastic bandage,used for immobilization of a dinged appendage or, properly applied, as a pressure dressing on a bleeding wound. They are not the kind of thing you apply and forget. Watch them carefully and readjust as necessary. It is best if the patient is conscious.

In any case, your equipment should reflect your training and experience. This discussion is a splendid example of this....

Trauma is not just caused by gun shot, think car accident, gas explosion, falls, chain saw, etc. A simple fall on a trail can produce a penetrating wound and collapsed lung or sucking chest wound.

If pressure is dispersed, then it will not work. It is actually surprising how much pressure it takes to stem arterial bleeding. Some people may need to place most of their body weight on the wound, directly on it. What is described by Tjin is more for cuts that do not produce massive bleeding.

While my experience may not be normal (at least I hope it isn't), it has taught that you can keep a person alive in spite of massive trauma. It does involve learning how to do it. I highly recommend the Wilderness First Aid course, wherever you can get it. It is not only taught by the National Outdoor Leader School (NOLS), though they may be the best. It is focused on dealing with a wide variety of injuries and illnesses where help may take some time to get to you.

In spite of all of the training I have had, experience tells me that I always need to plan for communications and trying to get help with evacuating the casualty. First aid, especially in trauma cases, is only to keep them alive until more help arrives or you can get them out. Deep in a canyon with no roads in the Summer, even a sprained ankle can be catastrophic in certain circumstances.

Amen to that.

With anything reasonably serious (the victim is not ambulatory) you need either a helicopter or a crew of eight to sixteen, plus specialized gear (typically something like a wheeled litter) plus time to get to definitive care.

My experience was before cell phones were common, but typically ambulatory victims ambled out, and SAR was notified for those who were immobilized. Thank heaven for helicopters! They save time, effort, and lives.

Today cell phones or something more sophisticated make response both quicker and more efficient. The SAR team goes in with a much better understanding of the situation.

*did a edit on my post. The example was only about ace bandages, not when to use it.

I long learned that there are many different procedures between country's and regions. Many are opposite of the other, which at first will drive you nuts... After awhile you just reconigze different training and it doesn't matter.

I agrea with everybody here, get trained (and then you will also know what to pack).

Yesterday, at Big Lots, I bought what looks like a store brand first aid kit distributed by Tender. It looks like one of the older Easy Care first aid kits. I don't like the plastic case, it's hard to open and close. For $5 it makes an economical refill kit.

Jeanette Isabelle

along those lines, I like my kits to be clearly labeled on the outside - red and if possible "First Aid" and open to show the contents in a clear way for a non-me user.

I like them to fold open and show gloves, booklet and large sterile pads, in that order. ( and an cpr mask when possible)

i did not read all the posts but the the kit should be labeled for a fast find and not just by the owner but by anyone who finds and needs to use it.big easy to read labels like PAIN-BEE STINGS-APPLY TO BURNS will help in those confusing minutes when first aid is needed.a kit that opens like Teacher said with gloves and pads right on top.
with all the small computer stuff they have now someone should make a talking instruction book.a RN sort of calm voice would say when you push the bleeding button.."remove the pad from the green package and push down on the wound" or something like that.
in the Army we were told never to use our own wound bandage on someone else,they should have one on their belt.thats something to think about in a large group like Scouts.everyone has a ziplock bag with the basic fast first aid stuff in it someplace handy.
that way if six people sprain their ankle the main kit does not run out of elastic wraps because everyone has one.

Eons ago, 1971 to be exact, when you could (and I did) be certified as a National Registry EMT by written test and practical examination, I was one of the 17 founding members of an urban Volunteer Ambulance Corps. Envision high rise buildings and 5 converging highways, pre common use of seatbelts and purpose designed vehicle crash zones and collapsible steering columns. Prior to us, police just picked up victims and beat it to a hospital. To maintain a sub 4 minute response time, the 3 person duty crew was in uniform, in the Ambulance building. We didn't stay inexperienced for very long. We ran about over a thousand real emergency calls a year. The membership rapidly expanded, thank heaven.

We found our biggest challenge was a response to an unknown event in a high rise building, not all of which had elevator control overrides. Standard practice was 2 crew members to go up, one to stay with the rig to bring up extras. The problem was to have the first two carry enough equipment to deal with life threatening issues, light enough to run with, up several flights of stairs or on the 30th floor, even if an elevator was available, because extras would take precious time to arrive. Standard kits in ambulances at that time were built around heavy tool boxes. Purpose built backpacks & shoulder bags were unknown. I designed a multi purpose kit , from an air traveler's type shoulder bag , to carry trauma supplies ,bandages/ tape, triangulars,sterile saline, zephyrin chloride ,choke forceps(pre-Heimlich), wire ladder splints,"turkey baster" bulb syringe+ small barrel body with makeshift shortly tube cathprovided basic suction, plastic oral airways ,burn sheet, cord clamps & bulb syringe, activated charcoal, BP cuff, stethoscope, run sheet-vitals pad and penlights to hold in your mouth if there was no power. That kit weighed about 12-15 lb.s. Add to that a portable two-way radio and a positive pressure resuscitator connected to a D size O2 bottle in a hard case and we were ready for most life threatening issues. Anything else we needed could be called up later, including the gurney.

The gurney issue, in small elevators was a major problem. We later solved it by working directly with the Ferno Washington company to design and build the first or one of the first ambulance gurneys that could raise the back and drop the foot, to become a chair. It also had early auto dropping and locking wheel legs. Now this is all industry standard and commonplace.


As the region became more urban I assisted other neighboring corps to assemble similar kits. I loved doing this and over the years I developed additional modular kits for our and other corps. I was fortunate to later be able to trade ideas with a very few like minded volunteer designers.

In my 5 years of service, I responded to hundreds of serious car accidents, shootings, stabbings, poisonings, heart attacks/ strokes, jumpers, floaters, CPR calls (3 sucessful resuscitations, dozens of failed attempts) , a forceps choke save on an unconscious woman & other traumas . I even delivered a baby on the narrow floor of an apartment hallway! Thankfully all went well with that. I "retired " as a Life Member when I graduated Law School. Many of my colleagues became ER doctors, nurses, oral surgeons, medial techs, engineers & other professionals.

I return to my corps ever so often to ride as an observer and of course I peruse the kits. They haven't changed that much, except they've added Narcan, anaphylaxis auto injectors & pulse Ox meters.

I still design and build first aid kits, compact survival kits & GHBs for family and friends, especially for their kids going to college abroad or on long hiking trips. I have even received some compliments from pros in the field, who examined my kits.

I've had a pretty sucessful career as an attorney. But of all the things I have ever accomplished, the two things I am most proud of are my kids and my volunteer ambulance service.

Made of awesome.

That was an interesting story; thanks for sharing it. I have a similar background as an attorney/paramedic/firefighter. Now I work in disaster management & response, and I still enjoy reviewing, designing and assembling FAKs and similar kits.

Chaosmet, thanx for the compliment. I still miss the field work. My doc says I'm very fit , even for a man 15 + years younger, but the back is dicey. So I guess too long in the tooth to resume regular ambulance response work.

In my law practice I've helped towns with volunteer corps qualify for legal insurance payments, while maintaining their volunteer status with no co-pay fee from residents . Those insurance premium payments have proved a valuable resource to volunteer corps and helped assure their financial health despite trimmed direct government support.

JeffMc, I'd love to hear how you made the transition from active attorney to emergency manager? Care to share? I still enjoy the practice of law, almost 40 years in. But I'll admit to a twinge of envy at your successful transition.

IANAL, but IAAA (I am an archaeologist), and I have had a long and rewarding career in that field. But I feel that my work as a SAR volunteer was the best and most rewarding work I have ever done..

Volunteer work has all kinds of subtle rewards....

All first responders and emergency services personnel have my respect and gratitude. Their dedication, skill and courage are demonstrated daily around the world. It is nice to be part of something like that, and it becomes such an important part of you that will never go away.

I usually add a small flashlight and cutting tool; folding knife or bandage scissors.