Medical Books Recommendation (in case of emergency)

I’ve looked everywhere in the forums, and I couldn’t find any recommendation of medical books for times when medical assistance is slow to respond or not available.

So, my question to you is…

What medical books do you keep at hand and find invaluable, and WHY?

Doing some Google research brought up these 3 books as very interesting, but before I buy any of them I’d like some recommendations from people that actually read them (or other books):

First Aid - FM 4-25.11 US Army Field Manual

The Survival Medicine Handbook: A guide for when help is NOT on the way

Herbal Medic: A Green Beret's Guide to Emergency Medical Preparedness and Natural First Aid

Medicine for mountaineering
Ditch medicine
When there is no Doctor
Where there is no Dentist
For stricly info: https://www.offthegridnews.com/extreme-survival/emergency-meds-how-you-can-use-veterinary-drugs-in-a-crisis/
I purchase my animal meds from "Chewy"
There are somethings that come in real handy with animals that can transfer to people: Suturing if not with silk/gut knowing how to use staples.  Giving fluids

For whatever it's worth I work on an ambulance as an emt, here's what I'd recommend.

Taking a WFR (Wilderness First Responder) course. A lot of medicine is hands-on, learning medicine is a lot like learning welding, you're only going to get so far with a book. It's less than a grand and I've seen lives saved by people having this training and deploying it.

Armageddon Medicine is a good book.

Drive safe, wear PPE when operating dangerous tools. Don't cut corners on safety, accidents don't just happen to other people. If you get seriously injured you will (rightfully) feel like an absolute idiot if the reason is because you shaved 10 seconds off from doing it "the right way".

Make friends with a medical provider who cares, not all do, but the ones who do will totally save your butt in their free time.

Tony Hawkins wrote:A lot of medicine is hands-on, learning medicine is a lot like learning welding, you're only going to get so far with a book.

This is so true, Tony…
But even though I took first aid and emergency response course… I still miss the hands-on experience…
Thank you for the wise recommendations.

I have no advice on specific books but I believe St John's Ambulance is active in many countries - they offer first Aid CPR and other training that comes with appropriate manuals/books.

I would ensure you are an expert in any conditions you KNOW could affect your family and sek guidence from your medical provider on what to do when "help is NOT coming". Adding standard first aid/responder training to that and you should be good.

Hitting second hand book stores for training manuals from respected organizations might be useful.

Volunteering for Search and Rescue/Fire type organizations commonly will include free or low cost training (as well as developing bonds with those that may one day save your butt!) so can also be very useful.

Do be cautious about using drugs/meds "off label (not all vet meds/supplies are suitable for humans) and keep in mind many "expire" in as short as a year; pills (antibiotics, pain meds, and prescription meds) ointments, eye drops, etc.

Haunt second hand stores for crutches, velcro/aircast type braces and other medical equipment. At the very least these allow you to save money on purchasing new (when faced with an emergency) and long term, allow you to stabilize bones/joints until able to access appropriate medical assistance.

I am not sure there is "one" book as it would likely need to be country if not area specific based on what may or may not be available/allowed as far as meds, supplies, treatments etc.

I have "The Survival Medicine Handbook: A guide for when help is NOT on the way" and "Preppers Natural Medicine".

I'd recommend both, either for situations where there is no other help available, or in other times for figuring out whether a hospital/doctor is needed or not.

One more I'd suggest is a PDR from a used book store I don't think they are publishing any more. Many human drugs are used for animals, some people focus on vet meds being used on people but it is really the other way around. I'm not suggesting you use vet meds or self prescribe, however I am saying some bipedal meds are in fact the same as a vet uses on your quadrapeds or fishies. A pill identifier in print or online could come in handy.

Robert Ray wrote:One more I'd suggest is a PDR from a used book store I don't think they are publishing any more.

What is “PDR”, Robert?

PDR:  Pharmaceutical Drug Reference Book?  Useful for identification of random pills, and provides the correct dosage and usage of each medication, including side effects.

Physicians Desk Reference, they even had a Herbal PDR, that I'm told is an excellent reference book, though I have never seen one.

Robert Ray wrote:Physicians Desk Reference, they even had a Herbal PDR, that I'm told is an excellent reference book, though I have never seen one.

Thank you, Robert…
Gonna look it up.

First on my list: Judson Carroll, a fellow permaculture person, has written a good herbal medicine book, including a first aid section. It's entitled "Herbal Medicine for Preppers, Homesteaders and Permaculture People". This comprehensive book is available for only $10 if you buy the pdf directly from him. I definitely recommend this one. He combines his own knowledge which was passed down from his Appalachian mountain ancestors with old German medicine which he has unearthed and studied. https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2021/10/herbal-medicine-for-preppers.html

I also have "Where There Is No Doctor"  and "Village Medical Manual". These are both very good for first aid; however, they both have only drug recommendations, no herbs. They do teach how to set broken bones, dress wounds, and other similar things, plus diagnosing and treating diseases. The Village Medical Manual is in two volumes; the one is for diagnosing diseases and the other is for practical first aid. "Where There Is No Doctor" is somewhat like a condensed version of the "Village Medical Manual".

There is a companion to "Where There Is No Doctor" called "Where There Is No Dentist". I do believe it's better to try to heal tooth decay naturally if possible though. "Cure Tooth Decay" by Ramiel Nagel might be a better guide. However, there might sometimes be dental emergencies that you would want to treat using some of the techniques taught in "Where There Is No Dentist".

"Be Your Own Doctor" by Rachel Weaver is another excellent herbal/home remedy book that I have. She also has written "Be Your Own Doctor II",  "Backyard Pharmacy", and "Be Your Child's Pediatrician". This series is also highly recommended. They are easy to read and understand.

This is my go to book as a first step:  Primary Clinical Care Manual (PCCM).  It is designed for primary clinical care in rural and remote clinical practice.  It is designed to be used by paramedical personnel to nurses and doctors.
It is well worth a look. It is endorsed by the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) which is a remote primary care and retrieval service, as well at the Australian Defence Force.
https://www.publications.qld.gov.au/dataset/primary-clinical-care-manual-10th-edition
Note that it is Australian so the drug names will be different to other countries.

I was suggested American Red Cross 'Home Care Nursing', but apparently it is no longer published. There are some legacy 1942 and 1950 books.

I am disappointed with most of the self help medical books out there. I find military manuals to be the best.

As a caution, health care is moving forward at such an incredible speed, even some books as new as three years are considered out of date.  The old ARC Home nursing care is a beautiful read though and well worth looking for a copy.

I ditto the recommendation to take a WFR Wilderness First Responder course.  I was an ER nurse, I don't think much that needs to happen in extended field situations won't be covered there.  That being said, always have Yarrow and Plantain on hand, whether in your garden, dried or tinctured.  Matthew Wood says Yarrow can be given to all stroke victims regardless if whether it is from bleed or clot...externally it is the best anti- hemorrhagic.  Plantain is the best at drawing out, so for bites (up to and including snake bite, but you had still better find a way to help here), splinters and the like.  Both are great wound healers.  If you have something to splint and sling with, something to use as pressure/ tourniquet, activated charcoal for ingestions and these two herbs you will have a lot of the bases covered.

Thorough but asumes you will eventually be able to get to higher levels of care.

denise ra wrote:Thorough but asumes you will eventually be able to get to higher levels of care.

For a lot of things, you will, there's not a lot ways around that. You need to get better diagnostics, things imaged, etc. But WFR assumes that you have a need for prolonged pre-hospital care in an austere setting, generally defined as at least 2 hours from definitive care.

I've found this useful if you want to use homeopathy
https://homeopathic.com/product/homeopathic-emergency-guide-5/

Cris Fellows wrote:Yarrow

Interesting stuff, you've got me reading. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5569446/

You can probably find what you need here, they have first aid information.  I have an old Special Forces survival guide that has first aid in it. I'll see if I can find it, I saw it a few months ago.

https://www.indianapolisunderground.com/pdf.htm

These are very basic, multi-purpose, generic, cheap medicines.
You may be surprised by how simple and widely effective many of these medicines are.
Many of them are anti-parasitic meds. Many of the meds can cheaply be purchased for your livestock at a feed supply store.

I would download the 2019 edition (or earlier), not a more recent edition.

W.H.O. List of Essential Medicines. 21st List  2019
https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/325771/WHO-MVP-EMP-IAU-2019.06-eng.pdf

The core list presents a list of minimum medicine needs for a basic health-care system, listing the most
efficacious, safe and cost–effective medicines for priority conditions. Priority conditions are selected on the
basis of current and estimated future public health relevance, and potential for safe and cost-effective
treatment.

Jin Shin Fee (by Felicitas Waldeck)

The original Jin Shin (Jyutsu) book by Mary Burmeister is attached to courses so hogtied by copyrights nd costs that it can exclude the average person. Felicitas Waldeck is an accomplished master of Jin Shin via the Burmeister company, but she wanted folks to be able to heal each other and those they know. So she published the boiled-down essence of Jin Shin in JIN SHIN FEE.

The book credits Master Jiro Murai and Mary Burmeister, the two who made Jin Shin known to the world.

The book is a "Guide to Quick Aid and Healing from A-Z Through the Laying on of Hands (no previous knowledge necessary. Immediate use on yourself and others") It includes "Important First Aid," the Organ Flows, Symptoms from A-Z, Disease - What do You Want to Tell Me, as well as What is Jin Shin Fee. It is clear and has sufficient illustrations so you can "get" the information and use it.

An example of using Jin Shin Fee in an emergency is: You are driving down the highway and are the first to come upon a serious wreck. Someone is hemmorhaging badly. You don't have any clean towels (and they would probably become quickly soaked anyway and then what).

You recall that Jin Shin says to "repel" energy (and blood coming out), put your right palm down on the area first. I remember this as "Right" starts with "R", just like "red (blood)" does. So Right hand down first. Then left on top of the right hand. As other folks show up to help, get them to gently "pigpile" their right hand down on top of yours, then the next guy, then right and left the person after that and so on up the stack of hands, palms down.

This can actually slow or stop the flow of blood, depending upon how bad the injury AND how many other folks's energies are in that "pigpile" of hands.

Fainting, heart attack, shock, sadness, flu, bad knees...you name it, the book covers it. No equipment required. Just your hands!

For inquiring minds: I have studied Jin Shin and used it both professionally and in my private life for years now. It is one leg of my healing "milking stool" (3 legs total). The other two "legs" are the Chinese energy manipulation (Yuen Method...I learned from Yuen, but do NOT recommend him...you'll learn faster and more from LeRoy LeMouf!!), and "Tapping" as taught by Gary Craig before he went to Ho'oponopo. I do not believe that you can "screw up" anyone with Jin Shin. It is gentle but effective.

Happy Healing!

Cheri Ryan wrote:The book is a "Guide to Quick Aid and Healing from A-Z Through the Laying on of Hands (no previous knowledge necessary. Immediate use on yourself and others")

Very interesting, Cheri…
Thank you for your recommendation.

Herbal ABC's The Foundations of Herbal Medicine by Dr. Sharol Marie Tilgner.

I cannot express how useful this book has been to me. The chapters about body systems (Respiratory system, endocrine system, etc.) help me to understand the medical terminologies. This has helped me understand the medical research papers on NIH such as this article on lavendar. Included in the book are scientific research references for the herbal actions.

I also have her book Herbal Medicine From the Heart of the Earth. You can read about it here.

The Prepper's Medical Handbook  "How to provide medical care when you can't rely on anyone but yourself."

Author: William W. Forgey, MD  -- author of many wilderness medicine and camping books
Published: 2020

A few of the covered topics:

vital signs, shock, CPR, heart attack symptoms, eye injuries, ear aches and issues, snakes bites, dental issues, soft tissue care, pain and trauma management, insect bites and stings, off grid infectious diseases, hypothermia, cold/heat stress, lightning, high altitude illness, off grid medical kit (alternative and herbal therapy and replacement medications) skin rashes, wounds and infections, fishhook removal, aquatic stings, cuts and rashes, plant or food poisoning, splinter removal, animal bites, in depth exploration of diagnosis and care protocols of sprains, dislocations and fractures,..

You know...all the stuff we hope we never get.

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:Herbal ABC's The Foundations of Herbal Medicine by Dr. Sharol Marie Tilgner.
I also have her book Herbal Medicine From the Heart of the Earth. You can read about it here.

Which of these books would you recommend, Joylynn?

If you absolutely have to chose between them, get Herbal ABC's. She explains the actions that the herbs do to help the condition. With this information, if you are out of your usual herb, you can substitute another with the same action. She inlcudes dosages in this book as well.

Not covered in ABC's is how to make herbal oils and how to make those into salves, or how to make tictures, etc. The basics of these things are however available on the web for free.

In her Herbal Medicine book she includes all the methods of making medicine, from suppositories to the complicated formula of concentrated strength tinctures. She also has extensive herb examples with details about: parts used, taste and smell, tendencies (ie: drying or coolong, etc), constiuents, dosage, use (action of the herb such as central nervous system stimulent, etc.), how it works, and contraindications (side effects, or warning of not using it if the patient is pregnant, etc.)

I hope that helps.

I've gotten good use from the Merck Manual of Medical Information, but I wouldn't necessarily say its good in a pinch or emergency situation

N. Neta wrote:I’ve looked everywhere in the forums, and I couldn’t find any recommendation of medical books for times when medical assistance is slow to respond or not available.

N. Neta, I have been thinking further on your question and one thing that I cannot see addresses is that even though you have the book (s) you still need a bit of low cost technology to assist you to know what is going on.
So, you may consider a simple pulse oximeter that is battery operated and goes on a finger or toe.  The better ones have an LCD coloured traces and/ or LCD numerical screens.  Additionally there are ear clips, useful for children.
This would be my start point for research so you know what is available  https://www.healthline.com/health/best-pulse-oximeter They are within the the ball park of US$40 which is about 35 Euros

Depending how remote you may be and the circumstances, you may consider doing an advanced resuscitation course.  This teaches such things as hypovolaemic resuscitation and control of major haemorrhage.  (sorry Aussie spelling).
Once you know the numbers and you have some advances skills, the books make more sense.  There are some great books listed above, so my other bit of advice is to look at the book reviews and then choose the one or two you are most comfortable with.

Across America, Australia, Europe and I suspect a lot of other pars of the world, Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) are being widely rolled out in case of sudden collapse or sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).  Unfortunately these are $2 - 3 thousand dollars.  We are currently rolling out  eight 24/7 available AEDs where we live as a community project and some shops have their own already. It is well worth while learning how to use these.

Hope this helps a bit with your deliberations.

Cris Fellows wrote:Plantain is the best at drawing out, so for bites (up to and including snake bite, but you had still better find a way to help here), splinters and the like.  

Cris, since you mentioned snake bites, do you know of a book you can recommend that a person who lives an hour from the nearest doctor or emergency room can do learn how to treat snake bites?

We have killed 7 rattlesnakes this year when we usually only see none to one.  This was the first years since 2013 that I have found one and I found three of the 7 rattlesnakes. These were all on our front patio.

I know what I see on TV or in movies though I am not sure of how I would react in that situation.

I don't feel we would have time to just jump in the car and head for the emergency room.

The last rattlesnake we killed was just as I came out the front door.  I could have easily stepped on that snake.

Try Dr. Glidden ND, his book " Attempt to cure " has all sorts of Naturopathic cures and Nutritional supplements. He also has webinars twice a week where you can ask on cures for alliments. His web page is riseupintohealth.com.

Tom

Paul Fookes wrote:You may consider a simple pulse oximeter that is battery operated and goes on a finger or toe.

It’s interesting that you mention this, as I have a couple of those from my mountaineering days (we used those to measure when our oxygen level falls into a dangerous level in high altitude).
I might need to replace the battery - but I wouldn’t know what to use them for in “daily” life…
Would you enlighten me?

Paul Fookes wrote:Across America, Australia, Europe and I suspect a lot of other pars of the world, Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) are being widely rolled out in case of sudden collapse or sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).

Those are so important, Paul.
We have purchased one for our home and did the AED course (included in the first aid and emergency response course)…
We charge it at home, but when we drive we put it in the car, so we become a mobile AED unit, as there are not as many units available in public spaces on our island (yet).

Thank you for bringing up those important issues…

N. Neta wrote:
I might need to replace the battery - but I wouldn’t know what to use them for in “daily” life…
Would you enlighten me?  Thank you for bringing up those important issues…

Thank you. Your comments are really appreciated.  My wife and I originally bought the pulse oximeter when she was having heart/ respiratory issues and it was recommended by the cardiologist.  He also wanted blood pressure done multiple times per day so we bought a Blood pressure machine.  Since then I have used the oximeter when I was bush walking just in case there was a medical emergency.  It is light weight and is not a problem to carry.  We have also used it when a neighbour was feeling faint.  In our experience it is a handy thing to have when waiting for an ambulance, but better if we never have to use it.  The best thing is that it can give a very quick, down and dirty assessment of what is happening. - peripheral pulse rate, rhythm and oxygen saturation.  It is an indicator if resuscitation is being effective when doing CPR.

Paul Fookes wrote:The best thing is that it can give a very quick, down and dirty assessment of what is happening. - peripheral pulse rate, rhythm and oxygen saturation.  It is an indicator if resuscitation is being effective when doing CPR

Thank you, Paul… much appreciated.

Anne Miller wrote:

Cris Fellows wrote:Plantain is the best at drawing out, so for bites (up to and including snake bite, but you had still better find a way to help here), splinters and the like.  

Cris, since you mentioned snake bites, do you know of a book you can recommend that a person who lives an hour from the nearest doctor or emergency room can do learn how to treat snake bites?

We have killed 7 rattlesnakes this year when we usually only see none to one.  This was the first years since 2013 that I have found one and I found three of the 7 rattlesnakes. These were all on our front patio.

I know what I see on TV or in movies though I am not sure of how I would react in that situation.

I don't feel we would have time to just jump in the car and head for the emergency room.

The last rattlesnake we killed was just as I came out the front door.  I could have easily stepped on that snake.

The absolute BEST, and fastest way ,to deal with snake bites, or any emergency, is to take a homeopathic home prescribing course. One day my boxer decided to ask a dugite (one of our West Australian poisonous snakes) to play with her. Too big to carry, she had to walk the half mile or so back home where she promptly collapsed. A few minutes after administering the remedy, she got up and followed me into my homeopathic clinic. She was fine thereafter.
We encountered the dugite the followig morning, taking a sunbathe at the end of winter. My boxer gave it a wide berth.