Finally put together a trauma kit...

[Ryninger]

All of our personal vehicles and camping packs have various first aid kits, but no "trauma" kit. With the state of affairs lately I decided to finally rectify that. I went with the KISS principle with immediately life threatening injuries in mind. Started with a RIP away pouch that can go on a plate carrier, backpack, or belt. Packed with a CAT tourniquet, SWAT tourniquet, Israeli bandage, 2-5x9 pads, 2 rolls of gauze, sterile dressings, 2 decompression needles, two chest seals, a pair of gloves, and a few band aids. The pictured mask is just for size reference. It went together nicely and stayed compact, and will compliment our other first aid/cpr kits nicely. My wife & I both have trauma backgrounds with experience with what we have put in it.

 

[fjw2]

Excellent choice! Keep something just like it with me all the time. Also with the less serious injury kit. Got both from skinny medics company. Will probably get more to put in the other vehicles and our camper soon.

 

[gregkl]

Would you recommend this type of set up if you don't have experience? And would you suggest a civilian like me get some training? And if so, where?

I can do some very basic first aid, but that's about it.

 

[Jones1776]

It's good to have a blowout or trauma kit even if you dont know how to use it because you might come across an accident or be in one yourself and someone there might know how to use it. It would be better to gain some training on your own. A lot of tactical training companies online offer basic medical training classes.

 

[Ryninger]

Would you recommend this type of set up if you don't have experience? And would you suggest a civilian like me get some training? And if so, where?

I can do some very basic first aid, but that's about it.

If you are interested in one, then I'd say absolutely. The only thing in the kit that is an "advanced" skill is needle decompression. Hollywood did a pretty decent job with it in this clip https://youtu.be/38rHuxIhf6I It can also happen spontaneously or from blunt force trauma. I'd recommend training for that one, but it's not complicated. If you are serious about wanting training, I'd look into a TCCC-AC course (https://www.naemt.org/education/naemt-tccc). Or see if there is a https://www.stopthebleed.org/ class near you, it's short and effective in addressing hemorrhage control.

The biggest thing with any kit is being comfortable and confident in using everything in it!

Edit: Jones makes a good point with online classes. May not be ideal, but can give you the basics!
Everything in my kit cane be found on Amazon, with the exception of the needles I believe. If you are going to get a CAT tourniquet, spend a little extra and get a proper one from North American Rescue, not a clone. They will usually start at about $25. I won't go so far to say the clones are junk, but if I'm in a situation where I need it, I don't want to worry about it holding up...

 

[frenchiectfd2203]

If you are interested in one, then I'd say absolutely. The only thing in the kit that is an "advanced" skill is needle decompression. Hollywood did a pretty decent job with it in this clip https://youtu.be/38rHuxIhf6I It can also happen spontaneously or from blunt force trauma. I'd recommend training for that one, but it's not complicated. If you are serious about wanting training, I'd look into a TCCC-AC course (https://www.naemt.org/education/naemt-tccc). Or see if there is a https://www.stopthebleed.org/ class near you, it's short and effective in addressing hemorrhage control.

The biggest thing with any kit is being comfortable and confident in using everything in it!

Edit: Jones makes a good point with online classes. May not be ideal, but can give you the basics!
Everything in my kit cane be found on Amazon, with the exception of the needles I believe. If you are going to get a CAT tourniquet, spend a little extra and get a proper one from North American Rescue, not a clone. They will usually start at about $25. I won't go so far to say the clones are junk, but if I'm in a situation where I need it, I don't want to worry about it holding up...

+1

 

[gregkl]

If you are interested in one, then I'd say absolutely. The only thing in the kit that is an "advanced" skill is needle decompression. Hollywood did a pretty decent job with it in this clip https://youtu.be/38rHuxIhf6I It can also happen spontaneously or from blunt force trauma. I'd recommend training for that one, but it's not complicated. If you are serious about wanting training, I'd look into a TCCC-AC course (https://www.naemt.org/education/naemt-tccc). Or see if there is a https://www.stopthebleed.org/ class near you, it's short and effective in addressing hemorrhage control.

The biggest thing with any kit is being comfortable and confident in using everything in it!

Edit: Jones makes a good point with online classes. May not be ideal, but can give you the basics!
Everything in my kit cane be found on Amazon, with the exception of the needles I believe. If you are going to get a CAT tourniquet, spend a little extra and get a proper one from North American Rescue, not a clone. They will usually start at about $25. I won't go so far to say the clones are junk, but if I'm in a situation where I need it, I don't want to worry about it holding up...

Looks like Stop the Bleed is on hiatus due to COVID-19 so I'll check back with them at some point. In the meantime, I'll look for some online knowledge and start working on putting a kit together. Thanks.

 

[Ruger_Ronin]

Nice post OP. I have several trauma kits I put together. Each vehicle, hunting pack, range bag, etc. Very similar contents to yours. Shears and a stubby flare are good too.