Necessary items for a home first aid kit and how to store them correctly

For the health and safety of family members, there are many details that need to be paid attention to when stocking first aid items in terms of type selection, storage environment, cleaning and disposal. But do you know what should be in a home first aid kit and how to store it properly?

1. What should be in a home first aid kit?

• Flashlight and battery: Can be used for lighting when rescuing in dark environments.

• Sterile protective items: sterile gloves, masks.

• Gloves: Can prevent the rescuer from becoming infected. Used in contact with wounds and wounds to prevent secondary infections. Those with latex allergies should be careful when using it.

• Mask: It is mainly used to isolate the contamination of wounds by mouth and nasal gases. As a reminder, you must wash your hands before and after wearing it, and replace it immediately after wearing it once.

• Disinfecting bandaging tools: iodine volt cotton balls, tweezers, cotton swabs, saline, gauze, tape, pins, band-aid.

• Iodine volt cotton balls: used to disinfect hands or pliers before first aid.

• Tweezers: disposable sterile tweezers used to take medical supplies such as iodine volt cotton balls.

• Cotton swabs: used to clean bleeding wounds with a small area of disinfection.

• Saline: Used to clean wounds. It is best to choose individual small packages or medium-sized bottles. It is important to note that the leftover after opening should be thrown away and no longer put in the first aid kit.

• Sterile gauze: used to cover wounds. Sterile gauze is used for wound isolation and hemostasis bandaging. It directly touches the wound and needs to be fixed with medical tape.

• Tape: Used to fix gauze.

• Hemostasis fixation tools: tourniquets, bandages or triangular scarves, scissors.

• Tourniquet: It is mainly used to stop bleeding in the upper or lower limbs.

• Bandages and triangular scarves: mainly used to bandage wounds, support injured limbs, fix dressings or fractures.

• Round Scissors: Round head scissors are safer and can be used to cut tape or bandages. Can also be used to cut clothes when necessary.

• Commonly used drugs: Indicate important information such as drug name, expiration time and method of use. Prescription drugs that family members are taking, such as antihypertensive drugs, hypoglycemic drugs, etc., should be used under the guidance of a doctor.

• Cardiovascular first aid: If you have cardiovascular and cerebrovascular patients at home, you can choose to use it as a backup and need to be guided by a professional.

• Cold medicine: Over-the-counter cold medicine can be equipped in the home medicine kit. Read the drug manual carefully before taking it.

• Digestive drugs: Home medicine boxes can be equipped with over-the-counter drugs to treat symptoms such as acid return, constipation, and diarrhea.

• Disease monitoring tools

• Thermometer: When using an electronic thermometer, place the probe in the position where you need to measure the temperature until you hear a beep and read out the measured value.

• Blood glucose meter: essential monitoring for diabetics at home.

• Sphygmomanometer: Essential monitoring for patients with high blood pressure at home.

2. How should the items in the home first aid kit be stored?

First of all, the choice of a home first aid kit is particular.

Home first aid kit should be clean, dry, odor-free, suitable size, simple structure, easy access, strong and durable, there are many kinds on the market, as long as it is purchased in a formal place, such as: Homecare First-aid Kit Bag; avoid the use of cartons, avoid too deep, or simply placed in a drawer, closed container is not necessary.

What medicines and appliances should be stored in a home first aid kit?

The following types of instruments can be prepared in the home first aid kit according to the illness and physical condition of yourself and your family: thermometer, blood glucose meter, sphygmomanometer, scissors, tweezers, etc.;

Commonly used drugs: such as drugs you are using, cold medicines, antipyretics, antidiarrheal drugs, cough suppressants, gastric kinetics, acid suppressants, etc.

Emergency drugs: such as anti-allergic drugs, alcohol, scald ointments, hemostatic drugs, disinfectants and preservatives;

Consumables such as band-aid, gauze, masks, tape, cotton swabs, gloves, etc.;

Regular health products such as vitamins, fish oil, chondroitin, melatonin, etc. Do not store and use prescription drugs on your own, other than those prescribed by your doctor.

Drugs can be stored according to factors such as health status and age of family members, and can be divided into children's drugs, commonly used drugs for adults, and drugs for chronic diseases in the elderly.

Children's medicines should be placed separately from adult drugs, and medicines for internal use and external drugs should also be placed separately; the outer packaging boxes of medicines should not be thrown away and stored together with the drugs; and drugs should not be combined. Finally, remember to make a list of medicines.

Improper storage of medicines may endanger health. Medicines should be stored strictly in accordance with the instructions. Generally, the temperature of the medicine box should not be too high or too low. Avoid placing them in refrigerators, heaters, electric blankets, etc. Some medicines can be placed in the refrigerator according to the instructions for use.

At the same time, the humidity of the medicine box should be moderate, and avoid placing the medicine box in the drying box, bathroom or toilet.

In addition, expired drugs are regularly cleaned up and discarded, and drugs are checked every 3 months. All drugs should be removed and placed one by one to observe whether there have been changes in color, hardness and viscosity, changes in oil-moisture layer, clarity, crystallization or moisture absorption, mildew, etc. Expired drugs and packaging should be placed in hazardous trash bins. Drugs should be destroyed before disposal, and special drugs must be returned to hospitals for disposal.

Finally, special attention should be paid to the timely replenishment of emergency supplies (medicines) that have been exhausted and expired “discarded”.

Conclusion: Some “accidents” are inevitable in life. It is important to be prepared. Home first aid kits are an indispensable must-have item.