Medical Kit
Posted by admin on Tuesday Feb 21, 2012 Under Toys
Help! I’m Going on Holiday, but Don’t Know What Medical Supplies to Take!
It’s a question travel clinic nurses hear all the time; “I’m going abroad. Do I need to take a travel first aid kit?” OK, maybe not if you’re off to gay Paris for the weekend, but in areas where medical facilities aren’t on the same level as in the UK it’s an appropriate and sensible question. It’s always a good idea to have first aid equipment when travelling, but if visits are planned to remote areas, where medical facilities may be inadequate, you should take a sterile travel first aid kit containing needles and syringes.
In many countries rates of infection with blood borne viruses such as HIV and Hepatitis B and C are higher than in the UK. Some of these countries do not have medical standards as high as those in the UK and equipment used may not be adequately sterilised, blood used for transfusions may not be screened for HIV, Hepatitis B and C. You quickly realise how, even if you are careful, a sterile travel first aid kit can quickly mean the difference between life and death.
Minor injuries:
Cuts, grazes and burns are common when travelling and you should ensure you carry supplies to be able to self-treat any of these ailments. Your wounds are more susceptible to infection if you are travelling areas with poor sanitation or where there is a lot of dust. Wounds should be cleaned immediately, covered and if any signs of infection develop you should seek urgent medical help.
Insurance:
Even if you are ultra ultra careful and manage to avoid any sort of dangerous situation, accidents can still happen and you can still fall ill. You might fall off your bike, twist your ankle playing football, or just catch a good old fashioned stomach bug. Ensure you have comprehensive travel insurance that will adequately cover you in the event that you get sick or injured.
Pre-existing medical conditions must be disclosed to your insurance company, as non-disclosure could invalidate your claim. Make sure your insurance covers you for all the activities you wish to experience on your travels and includes cover for medical evacuation, personal injury and terrorist activity. A frightening statistic is that only 60% of insurance policies cover terrorism, so make sure you read the small print and have adequate cover.
What should my travel first aid kit have in it?
Contents of a travel first aid kit will vary for each traveller’s requirements. Things to consider adding to your travel first aid kit include:
Emergency Medications: antibiotics for wound infections, pain killers, prescribed medications – keep these in original packaging.
Diarrhoea Treatment: oral rehydration salts, especially for children. Antidiarrhoeal tablets can be purchased from your local pharmacy or travel clinic. Alcohol hand gel can be useful for when there are no hand washing facilities available.
Injuries: a selection of gauze swabs and dressings.
Lotions: ointments to treat eye infections (such as chloramphenicol) can be purchased from your local pharmacy, an antibiotic ointment for skin infections such as fucidin and a cream to apply to burns may be useful. An antihistamine cream is useful for treating rashes and insect bites.
Equipment: a digital thermometer, sterile gloves, ticket removers and safety pins, tweezers, scissors.
Mosquitoes: mosquito nets, insect repellents (especially if you are travelling to areas where malaria and other mosquito borne diseases are present).
Sterile Equipment: sterile needles and syringes, intravenous cannula for a drip, suture material for sewing up skin. These should be in a specially designed kit. Do not carry single needles and syringes as customs may suspect they are for drug use. Purchase a specially prepared sterile first aid kit that includes a declaration that the contents are for personal medical use in an emergency.
Documentation: first aid book, details of blood group and regular medication, copies of prescriptions if carrying prescribed medication.
The author is a travel clinic nurse working closely with
World Wide Nets
. If you’re off travelling, visit them to find an appropriate travel first aid kit.
For more information about
travel first aid kit
visit http://www.worldwidenets.co.uk/first-aid-11-c.asp
First aid kits
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