RV First Aid Kit

RV First Aid kits are available from a number of sources.  The American National Red Cross website (http://www.redcrossstore.org/Shopper/Product.aspx?UniqueItemId=408offers) a First Aid kit designed by the National Recreation and Parks Association specifically that is great for RV’er’s. 

When shopping for a pre-made First Aid kit, you should remember that buying in bulk can save a lot of money.  A plastic food storage container will suffice for keeping all of your supplies together, in a convenient location, and dry.  Larger zip-top freezer weight bags such as a one gallon size can also be used.  The zip-top bag will take up less room and is a good idea for tent camping or hiking.  The main thing to keep in mind with pre-made kits is to make sure they have what you want/need for your camping trips.  

Trailer Life Magazine (www.trailerlife.com) recently had an article on RV First Aid.  Below is a list of the minimum recommended supplies from the article: 

• Adhesive bandages in assorted sizes
• Adhesive cloth tape
• Anesthetic spray
• Antacids
• Antibiotic ointment
• Antiseptic cleansing wipes
• Aspirin
• Butterfly wound closures
• Burn cream
• Conforming gauze roll bandages
• Diphenhydramine Hydrochloride (Benadryl) tablets and cream
• Finger Splints
• First-Aid instruction manual
• Flashlight
• Hydrocortisone ointment
• Ibuprofen/Acetaminophen tablets
• Instant cold compress packs
• Large absorbent compress dressings
• Lighter or matches
• Non-latex gloves
• Oral thermometer
• Plastic zip-top bags
• Pocket mask/breathing barrier for mouth-to-mouth resuscitation
• Prescribed epinephrine auto-injector, if applicable
• Safety pins
• Scissors
• Space (mylar) blanket
• Sterile gauze pads in various sizes
• Tweezers
• Whistle for each member of the group

Pre-made First Aid Kit available at most pharmacies and big box department stores

We purchased our kit from our local pharmacy.  Our kit contains the following: 

• Cleansing wipes
• Burn cooling gel
• Anti-itch lotion
• Adhesive bandages in various sizes
• Finger & knuckle adhesive bandages
• Extra large fabric adhesive bandages
• Gauze
• Butterfly closures
• Oval eye pad
• First aide tape
• First Aid guide

When traveling with pets, you should remember them when supplementing your First Aid kit.  Our cocker spaniel, Sulley, has food allergies so we make sure we have an adequate supply of his prescription dog food packed in the pantry.  There are also some supplies that are unique to our pets.  Super glue can be used to temporarily close up a cut in a paw pad.  On one camping trip Sulley received a cut on his right paw pad.  We didn’t have super glue or anything else we could really use to close up the wound.  In order to keep him from obsessing with the paw and pulling off the cloth taped gauze, we used one of Jonathan’s socks as a barrier to the bandage.  We cleaned the cut, applied some gauze held in place with some of the adhesive tape and slipped the sock over his paw securing it in place with some cloth adhesive tape.  It worked great to keep Sulley from constantly licking it and we were able to replace it with a clean one when it became soiled. 

I grew up during the 1970’s era of the sitcom.  In one episode of “All in the Family” Archie explained to his son-in-law that he had grown up during the depression.  One winter his family didn’t have the money to buy Archie a new pair of shoes when one developed a hole in the bottom.  His father found an old boot that would fit Archie and made him wear it with his shoe on the other foot.  The kids at school teased him and called him “Shoe-bootie”.  Seeing Sulley on our walks with one sock reminded me of this episode and I thought of poor Sulley as “Three-paw-sockie”. :LOL:   

As you can see, there is a wide variety of supplies that can come with a pre-made First Aid kit.  You should make sure that in addition to these items you include any medications needed by members of your group and adjust the contents to reflect any types of camping that varies from your norm.  Also, it is imperative that you check the contents on a regular basis to replace any items as they expire or as contents are depleted.   

We hope that these lists will give you an idea of what to look for when purchasing your First Aid kit or when building one from scratch to meet your needs.

Tags: First Aid Kit, RV, Safety, Sully