A serious cut with a knife while skinning, is probably the most likely of injuries...
So I've been thinking of carrying some quick clot, along with some bandaging materials. Any thoughts or suggestions?
I ran one of those sharp broken branches through my calf. Had to walk out, then drive 60 miles to a hospital. Barely missed an artery. Not fun. That big scar is a constant reminder that things can happen.
Probably should have had it stitched up, but I I just kept putting clean gauze and black tape over it. It healed up.
So, gauze and black tape I guess. First aid kit for sure. Quick clot is a good idea.
My kit (I carry it in a small pouch on my climbing harness so it is always with me): quick clot Field dressing Duct tape. Band aids for small wounds Cell phone and knife in separate pouches also on my harness. I think I'll add a tourniquet
On my harness so that if I fall, they are with me and accessible in case I can't move enough to dig them out of a pocket or something. In my truck a small trauma kit- pneumatic splint, cervical collar. more field dressings, minor surgery set, Stethoscope, BP cuff, IV quick start kit, Liter of LR solution, emergency sleeping bag. Naso pharyngeal and oropharyngeal airways. Gauze pads and rolls, ace wrap, tape
We were an easy 2 miles from the truck and an hour plus drive till cell reception or help.
TMBB
Also some Ibuprofen
And a bunch of meds in case my back gives me trouble.
I've always been FAR more worried of back troubles in the back country than other types of injuries. If anything besides my back happens, I'll be screwed, but I'll have enough meds on board not to feel it, I guess :) :)
I really should get some more stuff.
I also carry prescription eye drops (antibiotic/steroid). If you scratch your eye, you are in pretty serious trouble. With the drops, you are back in business the next morning.
Beendare's Link
Superglue isn't the best as its chemical makeup can cause heat problems. You can buy a close version of the superglue the hospitals use or close to it at a vet supply- see link "vetbond tissue adhesive"
Beendare's Link
Many cuts can be sealed with little steri strips...a good thing to have.
I did a little low level BASE jumping with a pack full of goat meat a couple years ago in the mountains in the dark. That sucked. Sinched the boot down tight and spent a lousy night on the rocks wrapped up in my foil blanket, then hobbled out in the AM. (ended up with mild broken ankle and tore the nail off my thumb rock crawling down on one good foot - that hurt just as bad!)
2 years ago, first night in the Kilombero wet lands of central Tanzania I was assembling my arrows for buff hunting (1150 gr single bevel "telephone poles" by the way). Tapped my grip hand on the base/ side of the index finger with the broad head... Sharp suckers. Ended up putting in 3 sutures and was able to do the whole hunt and not get it infected.
I tend to be a minimalist. If I'm packing in, I always take a wound ointment (don't think one is better than another). I like the well adhesive band aids over the top. I will typically carry a small vial of lidocaine for local if I"ve got to stitch some one up, and a small needle/syringe. Or a staple kit. I've carried quick clot for years, but have yet to come across a wound that did not stop bleeding with pressure. I carry mole skin as well. Any bootlace or rope braided would work as a tourniquet. I have not faced a big amputation/ gunshot wound in the field. With the helicopter coverage over most of this land, get pressure on the spot, and call for evac if you're bleeding that hard -ASAP.
Super glue can work really well on smaller wounds. Bit of advice- wash it out. ALOT! Then dry it and keep pressure till it stops bleeding, then put the glue over the top. I've seen several people who glue the sides together. Do not let the glue get in the wound or it will just keep it open. GOtta have the sides touching for the skin to knit together. Don't glue dirty wounds. Leave the open with a band aid on the top as infection is worse than typical scar.
For sutures or staples- If you don't have experience, I would not recommend suturing in the field as people can really stich in some nasty bugs that make an ugly laceration really bad. If you do- wash it out. Go to a fast flowing stream, wash out in the creek. Pull it open and flush with high flow water. Scrub with simple soap then close it up.
AS per meds- Zofran for vomiting, very few pain meds, naproxen, Claritin, cipro if traveling overseas and anti-diarrhea meds.
I love medicine, and am impressed by the skills of my fellow hunters. Love to hear feedback. Good luck and be safe.
My experience with Dermabond is very poor. It turns into a rock in the vial very quickly. It doesn't like elevation, heat, or cold. I've had multiple vials turn solid before they could ever be used - often on a single trip. I've had better luck with gorilla glue, but I prefer steri strips with benzoin. I think they just flat-out work better than any glue. I agree with your opinion that you should wash your wound out first, even if it's a stream.
As far as staples, I think they're pretty damn easy to use. Even for a novice, if you have a 25 staple unit, you can click a couple together in the air and see how they work and I don't see people bungling it up too much. I don't encourage people to use sutures who don't suture since the knot is essential to it not coming undone.
I don't bring Lidocaine into the field. I think it hurts just about as bad as suturing and slightly less than staples. I had 9 staples placed in my scalp without Lido once and it convinced me that the Lido is definitely worth it for staples, but I don't know that it's worth its place in my field 1st aid kit.
One thing that's bulky, but really nice to have are the disposable suture kits, the ones with a kelly clamp and sterile 4x4 gauze. The kits have a million different uses.
IV fluids are the best, but not always available. If the person can drink, they should. If they can't, then 911 is the best option. Even shooting water up one's backside is better than dying, but that's why I carry IV supplies!
The Israeli Army actually wrote the book on heat exhaustion and prevention. A little-known fact is that they essentially won the 6 day war on the backs of heat stroke. They basically beat several countries simultaneously and they did it in under a week and their secret was knowing how to fight in extreme temps. They'd learned through training that even in very high temps with very high activity, that if you drink 2L of water per hour, heat stroke is very rare. They deployed water tanks to the front lines and throughout the fighting, hydration was mandatory.
I can't remember which country it was, I think the Egyptians, but they lost something like 100,000 soldiers in one day and it wasn't to bullets, it was to heat stroke. All the Israelis had to do was to keep fighting in 120 degree temps and not die and their enemies just melted before them.
It really gets to the point that hydration and prevention of heat stroke is key. Don't get to that point in the first place.
IWA- nice med pack!
BTW- strong believer in doxy over other options for malaria prevention.
Saved on of my dogs life with one of those.....
My "base" in my pack is gorilla glue and gorilla tape. That right there can do just about anything.
I don't carry the quick clot stuff or tampons. Maybe I'll be sorry some day, but wounds like that are getting into the very rare category.
There's a ratio of Frequency:Severity ... maybe an injury is very rare but deadly (severe bleeding) or very common and mild (boot blisters). Maybe I cut the ends of that equation off a bit, and how you prepare for the extremes of that equation is as individual as "how far is your maximum shooting range?"
I have a more comprehensive kit if I'm going to be truck-based, and there I like to have sutures and staples. Idyll is right -- staples are tough to mess up. I've stapled dogs, horses, and humans, and they've all lived, and I think they were even happy with the work!
Clean the wounds, dry them, and like huntindoc said, don't get the glue inside the cut. The glue is for the skin. Like Idyll, I've had mixed results with Dermabond, but gorilla glue has never let me down.
I like to have Aspirin along -- great pain reliever and it treats heart attacks, too. I'll carry some other pain relievers, antibiotics, and something for diarrhea.
(I learned the diarrhea thing caribou hunting in AK ... never leave home without an anti-diarrheal again!)
Ask your physician if he'll prescribe a back country arsenal of meds. Many of us will do that for our patients, and I often treat people who do things far more dangerous than bowhunting, and send them with a good pharmacy when they go to the far corners of the world.
But ... the one thing I always want to point out is to bring a first aid manual. You can improvise just about anything in a first aid kit -- but you can't improvise knowledge!
Taking a few minutes to read how to do something correctly is almost always the right thing -- it's very RARE for things to happen so fast that you must act without preparing -- but it's very COMMON for people to rush what could be a more calm approach, and screw it up!
The one thing a First Aid manual does is it forces you to SLOW DOWN ... which is almost always the right thing.
(There are rare exceptions like CPR and severe bleeding, but those become "train-for-it" issues, whereas most other injuries can be "learn-from-it" issues".)
Most if us do not possess the knowledge of extensive field medic operations, best to get the wound controlled/stabilized and to better care ASAP. Taking a first aid course is not extensive knowledge, but better than nothing. My employment sees to it we have up to date basic first aid and adult CPR training every year.
luckyleo- Altitude sickness can be a really big deal. For most of us, the fact that Viagra is indicated for some altitude prevention is good news! Bigger deal is to go slow and stay well hydrated.
I have a small surgical staple kit and a few other items...Being on blood thinners, I know I'm going to bleed!
Great book BTW, "Blackhawk Down"...sooo much better than the movie ___ BTW, thx to Ike and huntindoc for the straight scoop on Dermabond.
An epipen because my wife is very allergic to hornet stings.
Prescription codeine-based pills in case I have to walk out on a busted ankle.
An aerosol can of saline spray to cleanse a wound before closing it up.
Tweezers.