Building your Bug Out Bag: First Aid

Your B.O.B should contain items to meet your basic medical needs. You could purchase one of the many pre-assembled first aid kits on the market or build your own. Creating your own means that you will know what you've packed and hopefully how to use it.

This is a list of the most basic items you should pack:

• Tylenol
• ibuprofen
• antihistamines
• anti-diarrhea meds
• tweezers
• gauze
• assortment of band aids in varying sizes
• iodine wipes
• triple antibiotic ointment (can also be used like petroleum jelly to start fires)
• waterproof medical tape

I assembled my own kit using a pouch from an old first aid kit

Along with the above items I also include the following:

• Quick Clot (to stop serious bleeding)
• sutures (in case the medical system collapses)
• Military Field dressing (they are versatile)
• a Military Cravat (versatile)
• burn gels
• smelling salts
• antibiotics
• moleskin (blisters)
• latex gloves (in case I have to give someone else treatment)
• Krazy glue (to seal minor cuts)

A few tips
You will need to remember to rotate time-sensitive medications. Attending a basic first aid and CPR class should be on your agenda if you haven't already. Don't carry supplies that you don't know how to use and only treat people within your scope of training.