Medical Kits

[toedtoes]

I'm creating a new thread here because the Camping Outings board doesn't allow posting by new posters but I thought this was an important thing to add to the conversation.

If you are creating a medical kit to be used by a group of people (scouts, etc.) who may not be aware of the medical history of individual members, do NOT include aspirin, ibuprofen, etc. in the kit.

If someone is in pain, the first thing people think of is to give a pain reliever - but it can do more harm than good. It can badly react with other medications, it can prevent blood from clotting (aka blood thinning), it can cause allergic reactions, etc. Let people bring their own pain medications for headaches, etc. In the case of an injury, if the pain is great enough to require medication, then it should be seen by a doctor. Better safe than sorry.

[Mike]

Re: Medical Kits

I'm creating a new thread here because the Camping Outings board doesn't allow posting by new posters but I thought this was an important thing to add to the conversation.

If you are creating a medical kit to be used by a group of people (scouts, etc.) who may not be aware of the medical history of individual members, do NOT include aspirin, ibuprofen, etc. in the kit.

If someone is in pain, the first thing people think of is to give a pain reliever - but it can do more harm than good. It can badly react with other medications, it can prevent blood from clotting (aka blood thinning), it can cause allergic reactions, etc. Let people bring their own pain medications for headaches, etc. In the case of an injury, if the pain is great enough to require medication, then it should be seen by a doctor. Better safe than sorry.

Leaving aspirin and ibuprofen out of your medical kit completely is a radical approach. Many times I have had a raging pain or headache and was very glad to have ibuprofen and aspirin. I would not like to suffer through the pain without it

What I do is only provide any medication to adults. They can decide whether to take it or not. They can also decide whether or not to provide to their own children

[Bigdog57]

Re: Medical Kits

A well-rounded medical bag would have several different pain meds, both for different camper's needs, and because (I have found) one med may treat a certain type of pain better than another. I found that I needed Med A for headache or muscle pain, and Med B for joint pain. The "One size fits all" approach seldom works.

[toedtoes]

Re: Medical Kits

My warning about pain relievers is ONLY if you are putting together a kit for a group of unfamiliar people (scouts, work, etc.). Pain relievers have so many interactions with other drugs, potential risky side effects due to individual health circumstances, etc., that it is not a decision someone unknown to you should be making. Look in industrial medical kits - no pain relievers. The are many companies that forbid adding pain relievers into their standard medical kits for workplace injuries.

If the kit is for your family, then no problem.

[James.]

Re: Medical Kits

My warning about pain relievers is ONLY if you are putting together a kit for a group of unfamiliar people (scouts, work, etc.). Pain relievers have so many interactions with other drugs, potential risky side effects due to individual health circumstances, etc., that it is not a decision someone unknown to you should be making. Look in industrial medical kits - no pain relievers. The are many companies that forbid adding pain relievers into their standard medical kits for workplace injuries.

If the kit is for your family, then no problem.

Not to be contradictory (but I am totally going to contradict you) but the first aid kit that I got when I worked at Shea Homes has Tylenol in it. That is both a store bought kit and one from a large company.

[toedtoes]

Re: Medical Kits

That's why I said "many" not "all".

Think of it this way, you're walking down the hall in your office building and suddenly collapse on the floor. Good co-worker Joe sees you collapse, hollers to Susie to call the paramedics and then rushes to the medicine kit. In it, he finds baby aspirin. Having just watched his dad collapse in a similar manner due to a heart attack, he rushes over to give you the baby aspirin and to save your life. Unfortunately, you're not having a heart attack. You're a hemophiliac and collapsed from internal bleeding. The aspirin is the worst thing for you.

Or

You come by work to pick up your paycheck and get accidentally hit in the shoulder with a heavy object - very hard. You become lightheaded, mention the agonizing pain in your shoulder and someone rushes to give you a couple extra strength tylenol. What they don't know is that you just recently had shoulder surgery and are taking Norco every 4 hours during recovery. You had just taken 2 full-strength Norcos right before you arrived. They just gave you a medication that seriously interacts with the Norco.

Pain relief is NOT first aid. The above examples are extreme, but it's not something you want a stranger administering to your kids, you, etc. unless you can direct them. Other medicines, unknown health issues, all make giving pain reliever to someone a risk not worth taking.

I remember there were incidents in school with pain relievers being shared between students that resulted in drug interactions. Because of that, we were not allowed to get pain medication from anyone at the school, including the school nurse. I also couldn't get pain relievers from the camp nurse at 4-H camp (who was a licensed RN), any of the workplaces I've worked at, etc. It could be a California law - I didn't think it was, but I know that at minimum it was a legal liability issue (too many things to go wrong, not a necessary first aid treatment). I worked in a pharmacy, and even the pharmacists wouldn't go near giving a co-worker a pain reliever (of course, they more than anyone knew the risks in doing so).

I just think people need to be aware of those risks when they put their first aid kits together and think of who is using it. All it takes is one mistake, confused moment, etc. for the wrong person to be handed the wrong pain reliever.

[jerrytoo]

Re: Medical Kits

For a sizable group outing for a of several, to many, campers from all walks, especially a scouting outing or the like with minors, would it be prudent to have all adults, and certainly the absentee parents of minors on outings,, to fill out and sign some kind of questionnaire, form, covering anything that might arise in in of all medical scenarios? Or even food or liquid do's and don'ts.

Have one responsible person, preferably a medical professional or two, of the outing be in charge of the file of the questionnaire of do's and don'ts, allergies, okay medication or no medications allowed for each person in the group. Keep a n alphabetized file of the forms within the groups FAK for quick reference.

How hard would that be to do for a well planned well organized outdoor outing.
I 100% primitive solo camp except with my two Labradors so don't have the medical logistics of a large group to deal with.

I can't imagine not having simple aspirin, or low dose aspirin, on any outing for a headache, etc.