Eric ... I'll get back to you here and post some general meds that we carry in our bags when we are working overseas. Basic stuff. Everyone here is welcome to look at the list.

Can I ask you a couple of questions? This might turn out to be research for you - but it would be helpful if you could report back to the forum on these issues.

PAIN MEDS: This is a big problem for people who are working overseas in remote areas, or in disaster zones. There are situations where both local people, and volunteers, could have accidents that create a lot of pain. Evacuation might be delayed and could take a long time. Probably no need to tell you that Tylenol and Aspirin are not going to do the trick for people with very high levels of pain. One option is codeine, which is legal as an over-the-counter drug in some countries (it is a controlled substance in others). Otherwise, it appears that the advanced painkillers are all derivatives of opiate drugs and are highly controlled (morphine, oxycodone etc.). If you come across any other options for pain relief, please post them.

RADIOACTIVITY: I'm hearing a lot on the press about Japan giving "iodine" to people who have some risk of exposure to radioactivity. This is a totally new area for me - I am not familiar with this treatment at all. Can you check and find out what form the iodine is actually in, and whether there are any possible complications from using it? That would be helpful to know.

thanks for your inputs,
other Pete