Suggestion for First Aid Kit

[Thomas Williams]

I am sure many, if not all, have a fairly well stocked first aid kit in the shop.

While sizing a tenon the other night I managed to stick a 1 inch wide chisel in the side of my finger. After a quick clean up I grabbed a band-aid to cover the cut. However, I only had 3/4 inch wide strips in the shop.

So, my suggestion is, that you make sure that you have band-aids at least as wide as your widest chisel.:)

[Mike Parzych]

My sister gave me some bandaids made from duct tape (seriously.) Felt like old home week.

[Eric DeSilva]

Back in my mountain biking days, I used to keep a rather largish first aid kit in the truck that got a fairly heavy workout. Either we weren't very good at mountain biking, or we all got dropped on our heads as kids. Either way, we got good practical lessons in wound care. Some things we found indispensible:

1. Povidone Iodine swab sticks. Great for cleaning wounds prior to dressing--think giant cotton swab on the end of a stick impregnated with povidone iodine. You can buy giant boxes of "single serving" sticks for relatively cheap.

2. Plastic gloves. A must if there is any possibility of treating someone else's wounds.

3. Neosporin. Stuff works great for minor wounds. I used to buy the "single serving" ones for convenience.

4. Gauze & tape. While I used to stock band-aids (including a supply of the funny finger/knuckle ones) and butterfly closures, there is no substitute for a bunch of sterile gauze pads in various sizes and first aid tape. Always fits.

Goes without saying, hope no one needs any of it...

[Mike Heidrick]

I got a large kit from Sams cub. It is well stocked and was $20ish. I have used it a couple times this week actually. Laminate puncture on left index finger base and dragged my right hand palm edge across a Bosch jigsaw blade at a 45 degree angle - Both more scrapes than anything but both bled. Having the kit handy is a great way to get the blood stopped before it gets on your work. Projects built with blood and sweat are the best I guess.

[John Thompson]

A roll of duct tape (which of course at my shop gets re-ordered as soon as I get down to 1/2 case) and various size gauze pads. And a tube of Super Glue for the small stuff. My last 6 stitcher from catching the dropped chisel (instinct I suppose) held nicely did I finished up and could get to my local health care provider.

Sarge..

[Rick Levine]

This is what I have just beside the main door of my shop. I've only used the kit once for a minor cut but it really came in handy.

[Wilbur Pan]

One of the best first aid tools you can have in your shop is a phone. You never know when you just need to call 911.

[Tom Walz]

I keep some big gauze bandages, 4" x 4" in baggies around the shop. If I ever do anything really stupid I want a big compress right there to slap on while I grab the phone.

[John Hixon]

It may seem odd, but sanitary napkins are great as a compress. They are clean, a pretty convenient size and obviously, quite absorbant. DAMHIKT.

[Kevin Groenke]

Yeah, if you're going to be working alone, a phone that you can use under duress is critical.

An easy to open and apply trauma dressing like the Bloodstopper is a lot easier than 4x4's and a roll of gauze. I really like the self-adherant, conformable, elastic tape, a good tweezers and scissors. A disposable eye wash is a really good idea too. OH, and don't forget the empty ziplock and the chemical ice-pack for the occassional stray fingertip.


http://www.swiftfa.com/images/Blood%20stop%202%204x4.jpg http://www.firstaidmonster.com/images/products/FAM_COBAN_TAN_2_X_5_YD-5020.jpg http://www.first-aid-product.com/industrial/our-ey2.jpg http://www.helptheagedshop.co.uk/modules/shop/images/FA0232.jpg

[Rob Diz]

One of the best first aid tools you can have in your shop is a phone. You never know when you just need to call 911.

I actually suggest two phones - one that is corded and one that is not, just in case the power fails. . ..

[David G Baker]

One of the first aid items I use frequently is New Skin. I clean the wound, dry it well, and apply New Skin. This won't work in all cases but if it is not a large wound I put it on and let it dry then go back to work.
John's suggestion about sanitary napkins is a very good one.

[Mike Schueler]

I agree with the gauze and the coban (self adherent wrap), but very importantly is several sizes of telfa or similar non stick pad.

As a family doc, it really isn't fun to remove someone's home-done dressing that is stuck firmly to the wound and everything else around it.

BTW, the sell coban as "vet wrap" at tractor supply stores for cheaper, generally, than the drug stores.

Oh, and bandage scissors. Invariably, when trying to dress your own bleeding wound, it's hard to fumble with gauze or coban without them.

[glenn bradley]

I think there was another thread on this awhile back. Along with everyone else's good suggestions my contributions then and now are that:

- you should be able to open it one handed and in a hurry.
- it should contain a tourniquet.

My kit is a plastic storage box about the size of a shoe box. I clipped the ridges off so the lid just sets on it and doesn't latch.

The tourniquet is just a piece of smooth nylon rope looped to a short wooden handle sized to easily go over my arm.

[David Keller NC]

This is a bit of an aside on this topic, but I'm a carver that gets my fair share of small nicks that bleed for 30 minutes - while I guess a tool far beyond razor sharp is good in that the wound heals far faster than a ragged one, they bleed profusely.

I used to use cloth-backed bandaids for these nicks, because the stretchable backing allowed putting a lot of compression on the wound. Inevtiably, though, I'd wind up re-opening it by continuing to work and stretching the skin around the cut.

I tried J&J's liquid bandage (it's cyanoacrylate (super glue), just a lot more expensive because it's FDA approved), and I'll never go back. Not only is it painless, but it's very resistant to washing your hands, and seals really, really well - it's hard to tear the wound back open.

One other comment - don't try to save money by buying the store-brand generics billed as the same thing. In this particular case, it's not. J&J bought the rights to this from Closure Medical, and their patent means that the generic "equivalents" are basically nail-polish, and they sting like the dickens.

[Derek Stevens]

Not that my response to this should be seen as an attack on the medical profession in general, I would like to say this. After all my years of working in construction and woodworking, I had my first injury not easily fixed with duct tape or super glue. I, like the first poster in this thread tested the sharpness of my 1" against my index finger with some force. 7 stitches later ( and no feeling in the tip anymore) I was back at it. though insured, the bill was well over 1300 bucks. I will never use insurance again. I will stock up on duct tape. ( as well as having a needle and thread in the shop from now on.)

[Brent Smith]

Being on Coumadin (an anti coagulant) I always keep one of these in the shop. http://www.duluthtrading.com/search/searchresults/69139.aspx?feature=&kw=blood

[Mike Schueler]

I think there was another thread on this awhile back. Along with everyone else's good suggestions my contributions then and now are that:

- you should be able to open it one handed and in a hurry.
- it should contain a tourniquet.

My kit is a plastic storage box about the size of a shoe box. I clipped the ridges off so the lid just sets on it and doesn't latch.

The tourniquet is just a piece of smooth nylon rope looped to a short wooden handle sized to easily go over my arm.

I almost disagree on the tourniquet. The only time to use one is for a significant amputation, like a hand. Not even really for a finger. Just be careful, especially on fingers, as a tourniquet could crush the arteries and nerves too much to allow for reattachment. They pretty much have a role in keeping you from bleeding to death before getting trauma care.

[dan lemkin]

I am an emergency physician and care for shop type injuries not infrequently. As you can imagine the two most common body parts injured are hands and eyes. As living and working without either is really difficult - I strongly encourage my patients to wear safety glasses and gloves when appropriate.

Here are a few recommendations regarding medical care and first aid kits:

1) Don't under-estimate the seriousness of hand injuries. The posts I have read about duct-tape and avoiding medical care concern me. Although an ED visit is expensive and annoying, the lost of function of your hands and livelihood is much more expensive and frustrating. (BTW... hospitals take most of the $$ -- insurance companies knock down physician pay to about $100 a visit.)

Hands are immensely complex and there is an entire specialty devoted to hand surgery. Ignoring a laceration by gluing it or taping it can result in long term problems from missed tendon injuries, or infection which can spread rapidly along flexor tendon sheaths.

This does not mean go the ED for every nick and scrape, but if you have a deep laceration or serious injury - please seek appropriate medical care.

On to my recommendations:

Glue - sucks on the hand for all but the most superficial lacerations. The problem is that the hand and fingers stretch with movement - these are considered high-tension wounds which do not work well with skin glues. Once you glop glue all over a wound, it is very difficult to remove (acetone) and can not be easily repaired by suturing. However - for small, simple, low tension wounds the stuff is great. It is bacteriostatic and does not need any care or followup. Make sure to clean the wound well before sealing it up. This does not mean pouring betadine or alcohol in the wound. That is not only cruel and painful - it is tissue toxic and delays wound healing. Use lots of clean running tap water, the more the better. There is a saying in the OR "The solution to polution is dilution"

Bandages - Bandaids are great for really small boo-boos, but have no role in anything more significant (at least initially). The initial care you render is really important, and it helps to have the right stuff around. As the Family MD mentioned - stay away from cottonballs, toilet paper, or other materials that disintegrate and create a foreign body issue in the wound. Stock up on 4x4 gauze pads which can be bundled together and used to dress wounds. Cling rolls - work well to secure 4x4s. Ace wraps can be used for pressure dressings over 4x4s. Don't use as tourniquet however.

Tefla or xeroform are non-adherent dressings which are great if you have them. The wound will have to be examined, and removing adherent dressings is painful.

There are several hemostatic dressing devices on the market, but I was not aware they were available to the public. Primarily they are used for miliatary applications. If you are bleeding enough to require one, you should be dialing 911.

Hemostasis
To stop bleeding there are several things you can do. Direct pressure (squeezing over the 4x4) is enough to stop almost any kind of injury. If that fails, you can use a combination of elevation of the extremity and pressure points (compressing arteries where you can feel pulses at the wrist or brachial artery near the biceps) Tourniquets should be used as a last resort. Most clean amputations will not require one, but if you get your hand stuck on a drill or lathe and get shredded, you may benefit from application of a tourniquet. The clock starts when they are applied and depending on location, you only have a few hours to get to an OR before you loose limbs from tissue ischemia. Make sure someone tracks the time it was applied. They should never be released in the field once applied.

Amputations
These are unfortunately really common with woodworkers - again for obvious reasons. Most are clean cuts and many can be reattached... DO NOT PUT ON ICE. Freezing the tissue renders the fingertips useless. They should be cooled by: 1) Place in wettened by not soaking gauze. 2) place gauze in a plastic bag. 3) place bag on ice. Watch to ensure that they don't freeze. Obviously seek appropriate medical attention immediately. Appropriate does not always mean the closest hospital. If you do this a lot, you may want to find out what facility near you has hand surgeons and can handle this kind of injury. If not, you will waste precious hours in a local ED only to find out you need to be transfered to another facility for care. As time progresses, often the chances of reattachment diminish.

This is such a huge topic, that could span pages.... so I will stop ranting...

Here is some of the stuff to put in a kit:
4x4 cotton sponges
cloth tape
cling rolls
tweezers
bandaids
neosporin
gloves
skin glue

Good luck, be safe.

Legal disclaimer: This information should not be construed as medical advice. Each situation differs, and these recommendations may not be applicable to specific injuries. If injured, seek prompt professional evaluation as appropriate.

[Frank Drew]

Excellent advice from the two docs.

Field dressings/suturing with old rags or household needle and thread... maybe not such a good idea. People with robust immune systems resist many infections, but not all. How lucky do you feel?

If you're not ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN your tetanus shot was within the last 10 years (less is, of course, better), do get one ASAP if you have a serious laceration or penetrating wound. Resistance to the tetanus toxin is not within the product specs for duct tape.

Forgetting wound care for the moment, gaffers tape is far superior to duct tape for most applications. IMO.