D Nikolls

Jill Dyer wrote:Here's a handy list   [url=https://www.ritas-outback-guide.com/FirstAidKitChecklist.html[/url]
Although it's suggested for Australian conditions, it applies anywhere.
I would make the tweezers really pointy for that stubborn splinter or thorn,  and add a paste of magnesium sulphate + glycerine for putting on a band-aid to draw out the stubbornest splinters/thorns (and things like boils, 'point' skin problems).  In the "Olden Days" this was Pasta Mag. Sulph.  Possibly available to purchase if you're lucky, otherwise do-it-yourself. Maybe add steristrips if they are available - good for pulling together the sides of a cut.  
Real Outback medical kits have prescribed remedies that are used under the guidance of the Flying Doctor - best kept that way, for obvious reasons! but any medications prescribed to you should be in it, if away from the homestead.

Nice, thanks! I've been looking at lists meant for long distance sailing, but another perspective is great.

Steristrips and good tweezers I've got, but I have not used drawing paste, and I can think of a dozen times it would have been useful.

Given how insanely slow access to healthcare can be here Canada, perhaps we ought to institute a similar system of having drugs available to be used under the guidance of a remote doctor.. but it certainly won't happen.

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:If you are shy on knowledge, get a couple books. I have both of these....

The Survival Medicine Handbook And Where There is no Doctor.

If you can only choose one, get the first one. The second one is more for a third world country.... Which we may become if shit continues to hit the fan. Be careful out there everyone!

Oh! And don't forget to get some antibiotics from here for your pet bird, or fishies! See the first book for more details....

Do read them several times and again every six months or so. I'm more than a bit overdue.

If you aren't familiar with hebal medicine, get this book by Dr Sharol Tilgnor. This one teaches all about the body systems, and has lots of featured herb monographs. Hmmm... It doesn't seem to have instructions how to make medicines. BUT! She has that information available free at her site. Do print those instructions out! I have 3 of her books, the other 2 do have detailed info on making medicines. All are very much worth the money! (Says this squeeky cheapskate.)

Thank you; books are definitely lacking. I am fortunate that I have a couple friends who are much more onowledgeable, but I cannot count on them answering the phone in an emergency.

Fortunately, I am for the first time in 14 years able to unpack and inventory my books, a good time to add as needed.

Unfortunately, animal antibiotics are not so easy to come by in Canada these days. There has been a substantial tightening of access to animal medications, many things require a good relationship with a helpful vet, which I do not have..

Robert Ray wrote:Not just kit, but knowing how to do some rudimentary skills. Many of us with animal husbandry skills have stitched or stapled a cut, lanced and drained an abscess. Sutures are becoming less common with staples and the new wound glues. Knowing how and when to close a wound is helpful skill. IV protocol for animals transfers over to people. Things that used to be easily accessible have become difficult. Blood clotting dressings, powders and syringes are now affordable. An IFAK though not an ideal answer to everyday first aid is in every car we drive in case of a trauma incident, smaller than a cell phone and stashed in the glove box.
Anticipated circumstance and skill will guide the construction of your medi-bag,. Readily and easy accessible an important consideration

Absolutely. I've watched videos and read guides, but as usual for me it doesn't see really lodge in my head for the long term unless I've actually done it, and mostly I haven't yet done these things. I've got a medical stapler, but I'm sure gonna be nervous the first time I go to use one.. we should probably do some practice on wound closure on the next animal we process.

Ali Green wrote:I recently sliced my arm quite deeply, doing DIY at home, alone. I realised that my neat first aid kit, with its zip up case, and ziplock bags of individually wrapped wipes and dressings was pretty unhelpful for someone to access quickly, especially with one arm bleeding and the other trying to stop it! I now have a pull out tray, with easy to grab first aid supplies in sections - including an empty section for used wipes etc.

So, as you think through what you need, also think about how you will store it.

I don't have a good list, so I'm glad to read through the suggestions.

Good point. The old kit lived in a tote under the bed in the tiny house, and this was certainly not ideal. We now have more space, so the new iteration will get new packaging and live somewhere easier to access.

Thinking about medic-ing with limited hands, I am going to keep a good headlamp with the kit, and something it came mount to.

Anne Miller wrote:Maybe would help:

https://permies.com/t/128483/personal-care/Homestead-Farm-Medical-Kit

Thanks! I was sure there's be some similar thread but didn't find that one when searching.

It's time to go through and update/expand my store of medical supplies.

Not having any particular background with this field, I'm looking for a good reference list.

Anyone have one to suggest, or your own version?

How about unexpectedly useful items; what weird thing has helped you with a medical situation?



I've got a tabletop makeup mirror with a light, and standard/magnifying sides. This came amongst a basement worth of junk that I bought for the tools, but it's proved quite helpful when dealing with eye issues; the combination of light plus magnification is very useful when trying to see if there is still something stuck in my eye, or I've washed it out and am just feeling the leftover irritation.

The other helpful items I lacked in my first iteration were:
-Extra strong tweezers for stubborn splinters
-Sterile scalpels for the same, and for opening up infected minor wounds
-Serious painkillers. I find off the shelf stuff to be nearly useless most of the time, and I've had multiple occasions where the issue needs rest and time, but the pain is too intense to allow for rest or sleep, and prevents safely/easily getting to a hospital. And then you sit there for many hours only to get a prescription and get sent home..

Obviously these are tough to come by, and need to be used with due care, but if you have the option for have a small supply on hand, they can be of tremendous value.

Robert Ray wrote:My cats have begun bringing in live chipmunk and storing them in the bathtub to play with later. They aren't killing them just bashing the hell out of them till the wife or I perform a rescue.

With the price of cat food lately, I'd be tempted to chuck the poor little beasties in the freezer..

Our most interesting visitor was a duck, stuck upside down in the very bottom of the flue of the masonry chimney for the upstairs fireplace in my parents house, which ends in the basement.. no visibility via the cleanout, had to reach in blindly..

He was fine once we chucked him in the pond..

Shaking cabinet sounds exciting.. looking forward to updates. Use good gloves!

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:Hey Sk8r Boi. If the layout allows it (a stairwell usually), it's best to create a suction in the coolest, farthest part of the basement with the intent of pumping cold air into the warmest part of the upstairs. The result is a constant circulation path.

Squirrel cage bathroom fans do this quite effectively and are fairly efficient in their electricity consumption.

The fly in the ointment is that this also moves moist air from upstairs and deposits it in a cool basement. The resulting condensation can cause a new set of problems.

I'd say your version is less work and should be effective, dependent on just how leaky the basement and the rest of the house is. It seems possible that pulling air up, combined with the natural chimney effect, would result in sucking more outside air into the basement, rather than pulling air back down in a circuit.

I definitely agree that squirrel cage fans are a great option; another good one is modern EC ducted fans such as those sold for grow tents. I'm using an AC Infinity CLOUDLINE S6 as an attic mounted bathroom exhaust fan, I've been really pleased with it.

John Weiland wrote:

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:.....

Otherwise it's Sk8er Boi and other assorted doodles. Ugh.

Just had to laugh at this ....   no relation at all to what I'm about to ask.  lol

So farther (further?) above there was discussion of ways to move heat/cooling around the house.  As old man Winter is again knocking at the door (although not quite in earnest yet...), I'm wondering about  ways to move main-floor heat down into the basement.  Yes, I won't go into why that crack-filled basement is so poorly insulated in a place like northern Minnesota, but our winter heating is a mix of propane furnace (basement location) and woodstove (main floor).  I like to try to keep the furnace reduced in use when possible and so try to use the woodstove to provide as much main floor (900 sq. ft.) heating as possible.  With the transition just two years ago from a heating oil furnace to a more efficient propane unit, the basement is now colder.... cold enough that there is worry of pipes freezing and some creative and difficult heat tape wrapping has become necessary in certain reaches of the basement ceiling.  As this house is over 100 years old, somewhere along the way there were floor registers introduced.  These are not hooked up to any kind of ducting....just grated ports to the basement to allow for air transfer.  I began poking around on the "old information gravel road" (Internet) for register fans that might be able to pull warm air from the main floor and push it downward into the basement, to be used on days or nights most concerning for freezing.  But I'm finding that such fans appear to only work in one direction??....to pull warm air more efficiently from a heating duct/register into the main floor room.  Any ideas of such a fan exists that would have a reversible fan for pushing air downward....without having to tip the decoritive side facing down?  Any other potential solution are welcomed....Thanks!

If I needed to pull heat down in such a situation, I might put the fan/s, blowing down or sideways, near the basement floor, connected to a length of ductwork run to the existing registers, leaving the existing grate in place above..

Seems like the heat would be more likely to circulate if it's starting off down there, rather than just hanging out near the basement ceiling.. also, most fans perform a bit better sucking than blowing, and this setup would let you use larger fans if you so desired. Just necessary to cobble up some ductwork, which is pretty easy to do if you have very low visual standards, and are careful to wear good gloves..