First aid kits?

McGregorMan

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We will be taking possession of our first pontoon boat, a 21SXSR, in less than two weeks. (Boating season here is short and off to a late start. The water is cold. More snow expected this week at slightly higher elevations.) In the meantime, I am trying to acquire all the miscellaneous items needed to equip the boat to get out on the water. As a very new member, I have already found many excellent suggestions and discussions on this forum -- thank you all, but nothing regarding first aid kits for the boat. Any suggestions or comments?

Our pontooning will be mostly on an inland, freshwater lake of under 2000 acres and a little over 200 feet deep. Cell service is very limited and about half the shoreline is undeveloped public forest land, so assistance can be distant, especially in seasons with low lake activity. But lower risk waters in general.

Thank you!
 
I got one at Amazon ,nothing fancy it's a small case we leave on board . I go through it every spring to check what may have expired ,ointments etc and what may need replacing . Some band aids and tape, dont stick as they should after some time in the heat
 
CVS has several first aid kits to choose from. Not expensive.
 
Ammo box from harbor freight and fill with what you think you would need. Maybe look at contents of other first aid kits. Put a flare gun in there too, sorta all in one. Box at HF is about $5-7.
 
If you have an FSA card, they are eligible for purchase. I got a nice waterproof kit for our boat with my FSA. Came in handy couple times for small issues.
 
Couldn't get past "more snow expected". Jeez!
 
Ammo box from harbor freight and fill with what you think you would need. Maybe look at contents of other first aid kits. Put a flare gun in there too, sorta all in one. Box at HF is about $5-7.
I use an ammo box in the camp trailer. Works great. Guess I was wondering if the case in the boat should float.
 
Couldn't get past "more snow expected". Jeez!
Supposed to be a high of 43F Tuesday at my house. The low will be above freezing, so we'll be getting rain, but the snow should be falling not much uphill of us. The bears are down low this Spring because the snow is melting late. My wife saw a boar and my son a sow with two cubs last week. Black bears. Haven't seen any Grizzlies near the house this year. No sharks to worry about in our waters, just the occasional bear or moose swimming in the lake. For the first aid kit, I was thinking more being prepared for severe trauma after a collision or run-in with a prop after our doctor friend said he's seen too many of the latter. (He and his wife bought a jet boat because of that.)
 
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Great suggestions. We bought a waterproof box and have items needed to keep us on the water in case of minor (emphasis on minor) injuries because we are itinerant boaters (no lake house to return to). This includes a variety of large and small bandaid, ointments, and disinfectants.

But I wonder if in your case, you should consider adding elements of a trauma kit.

We frequently camp remotely and have an extensive first aid kit including trauma bandages in our trailer.

I included these Israeli clotting bandages in our boat kit:

6" Israeli Style Emergency Bandage, Compression Trauma Wound Dressing, Medical Sterile Vacuum Sealed, Combat Tactical First Aid Kit IFAK Supplies, 2 Count https://a.co/d/6Fs2oxN

Never needed them, thankfully!

We all want to know - WHERE ARE YOU?
 

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We all want to know - WHERE ARE YOU?
We are in northwest Montana. On the Thompson chain of lakes between Glacier National Park and the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness area. (I thought I included "NW Montana" with my avatar photo, etc. Let me know if it doesn't show, and I'll check my settings.) The biggest water near us, but we don't boat there too often, is Flathead Lake. And Lake Pend Oreille isn't too far away, but there are enough lakes closer to us that we rarely go there, except occasionally to sail with friends.

For bad bleeding, I also carry Celox hemostatic granules. Likewise fortunate to have not had to use them so far. They pack light and small; excellent for hiking, mountain biking, etc. I think they will withstand storage temperatures the boat may see with dark mooring cover on in the sun. https://www.celoxmedical.com/na/celox-faq/
 
Supposed to be a high of 43F Tuesday at my house. The low will be above freezing, so we'll be getting rain, but the snow should be falling not much uphill of us. The bears are down low this Spring because the snow is melting late. My wife saw a boar and my son a sow with two cubs last week. Black bears. Haven't seen any Grizzlies near the house this year. No sharks to worry about in our waters, just the occasional bear or moose swimming in the lake. For the first aid kit, I was thinking more being prepared for severe trauma after a collision or run-in with a prop after our doctor friend said he's seen too many of the latter. (He and his wife bought a jet boat because of that.)
100 here tomorrow. Upper 90's otherwise. Snow ? Really ? It's brutal here now. NC.
 
Regarding your location, I was using my phone and just discovered your location only shows shen I click on your avatar.
 
I think a more complete First Aid kit is essential, meaning having the right equipment to match how you "boat" and what then is a "possible" outcome / accident - as often help is not so close. That translated for us into something can cope with heavy bleeding, clear an airway, stabilize a neck injury, and have a few more advance tools. As such, I invested a few extra dollars into a My Medic FAK Large Pro ($300), added an extra bleed kit, and Adjustable Extrication Collar (neck brace), plus a plastic first aid guide - all of which I felt was important as we actively wakeboard, tube and cliff dive on a lake that is 30 miles long (and that is just the lower half). Work Hard, Play Hard, Plan for the Worst.
 
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Welcome, McGregorMan! Congrats on your new boat!

As an ER doctor, my advice to you would be to keep it simple. There's not much that either some ibuprofen, a bandage, or a beer can't make better.

As far as what you will see out on the water, I'd try to think of some common injuries/situations you might run into and pack a kit that would theoretically allow you to stay out on the water and not have to return immediately/ruin your day of boating to address it. If you run into a critical situation, your best first aid kit is calling 911 and getting to help ASAP. If you are truly that remote, I might recommend one of those satellite phones (which I don't pretend to know anything about).

This is what I've brainstormed:
Bleeding - bandaids/gauze with tape. If severe, a tourniquet is essential to any kit (cheap, easy to use, infinite shelf life, can get wet, etc)
Musculoskeletal Injuries - ibuprofen and immobilization. grab some elastic bandages and a SAM splint and you can pretty much splint any injury
Fishing hooks/splinters - any multi-tool should suffice
Sunburn/bee sting - ibuprofen/acetaminophen
GI illness - hopefully your new boat has a toilet!

At the end of the day, only pack stuff that you feel comfortable using. Really with a tourniquet, a splint, some bandages/wraps, and ibuprofen, you'll be all set for most things that come your way.

Enjoy the new boat!
 
Welcome, McGregorMan! Congrats on your new boat!

As an ER doctor, my advice to you would be to keep it simple. There's not much that either some ibuprofen, a bandage, or a beer can't make better.

As far as what you will see out on the water, I'd try to think of some common injuries/situations you might run into and pack a kit that would theoretically allow you to stay out on the water and not have to return immediately/ruin your day of boating to address it. If you run into a critical situation, your best first aid kit is calling 911 and getting to help ASAP. If you are truly that remote, I might recommend one of those satellite phones (which I don't pretend to know anything about).

This is what I've brainstormed:
Bleeding - bandaids/gauze with tape. If severe, a tourniquet is essential to any kit (cheap, easy to use, infinite shelf life, can get wet, etc)
Musculoskeletal Injuries - ibuprofen and immobilization. grab some elastic bandages and a SAM splint and you can pretty much splint any injury
Fishing hooks/splinters - any multi-tool should suffice
Sunburn/bee sting - ibuprofen/acetaminophen
GI illness - hopefully your new boat has a toilet!

At the end of the day, only pack stuff that you feel comfortable using. Really with a tourniquet, a splint, some bandages/wraps, and ibuprofen, you'll be all set for most things that come your way.

Enjoy the new boat!
Only thing I'd add to this is super glue, Steri-Strips, and Tegaderm dressings. We've used this stuff twice now while boating to "stitch" wounds closed and to cover them up. Once was from the hydrofoil of an Air Chair. The top of a foot was sliced just swimming the Air Chair back to the boat. Second time was from launching a jetski when a finger was pinched.

And we've actually used a suture kit and YouTube to stitch up a wound at the sand dunes when a leg was pinched in between a sand car and a motorcycle, and the cut was just too big for Steri-Strips/super glue.

I love those Tegaderm dressings. They somehow allow the wound to breath and heal while keeping it waterproof, which I've used for all sorts of cuts/scrapes at home also, especially for mountain bike crash wounds. But it is really a lifesaver when boating, as you can still participate in the trip, instead of having to worry about keeping the dressing dry.
 
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