DIY First Aid Kit

[Marbles]

Marbles,

I'm trying to remember if you're a medic or M.D.?

Just an NP and former ED nurse.

You're correct. I do greater than 10:1 but I don't work in the city where people get stabbed and shot. I see very few sucking chest wounds but I've needle decompressed dozens.

I carry a couple 14g 3" for that purpose when snowmobiling. I do not carry those while hunting but I do have knife.

Knife beats a needle in my opinion (of course you need something for blunt dissection), though my opinion is based on learning from others, not personal experience.

 

[dirtshooter]

Very informative posts here, thank you everyone. Here in AB we have CTOMS so I believe I could buy tourniquets from them.

I know one can apply a TQ to themselves for practice, does this render that TQ useless after? Should I buy one just for practicing applications?

 

[Sled]

Very informative posts here, thank you everyone. Here in AB we have CTOMS so I believe I could buy tourniquets from them.

I know one can apply a TQ to themselves for practice, does this render that TQ useless after? Should I buy one just for practicing applications?

You can reuse them if you don't pop stitches during practice. A quality brand will be fine, assuming you're limited in practice use and not teaching classes. I retire them them after they reach exp date(~10 yrs), get left out in the sun or go on a patient.

 

[Marbles]

Very informative posts here, thank you everyone. Here in AB we have CTOMS so I believe I could buy tourniquets from them.

I know one can apply a TQ to themselves for practice, does this render that TQ useless after? Should I buy one just for practicing applications?

I would not practice with one to be carried. It puts stress on the components and could lead to failure. I have broken a CAT tourniquet putting it on my thigh for a demonstration, it had been used for training prior (teaching classes, so a lot of training).

It will probably work fine after practicing with it, but for a life saving device that is cheap, why run the risk.

 

[dirtshooter]

I would not practice with one to be carried. It puts stress on the components and could lead to failure. I have broken a CAT tourniquet putting it on my thigh for a demonstration, it had been used for training prior (teaching classes, so a lot of training).

It will probably work fine after practicing with it, but for a life saving device that is cheap, why run the risk.

Thanks for answering. I figured that was the case.