subject: What To Put In Your First Aid Kit When You're Going Abroad [print this page] It's a question travel clinic nurses hear all the time; "I'm going abroad. Do I need to take a travel first aid kit?" OK, maybe not if youre off to gay Paris for the weekend, but in areas such as Africa, South America and parts of Asia its an appropriate and sensible question. Its always sound advice to have first aid equipment when travelling, but if visits are planned to remote areas, where medical facilities may be inadequate, you should take a sterile travel first aid kit containing needles and syringes.
In many countries rates of infection with blood borne viruses such as HIV and Hepatitis B and C are higher than in the UK. Some countries do not have medical standards as high as those in the UK and equipment used may not be adequately sterilised, blood used for transfusions may not be screened for HIV, Hepatitis B and C. In these situations, a sterile travel first aid kit may prove vital if you are seriously injured.
Minor injuries:
Cuts, grazes and burns are common when travelling and you should ensure you carry supplies to be able to self-treat any of these ailments. Your wounds are more susceptible to infection if you are travelling areas with poor sanitation or where there is a lot of dust. Wounds should be cleaned immediately, covered and if any signs of infection develop you should seek urgent medical help.
Insurance:
Even if you are ultra ultra careful and manage to avoid any sort of dangerous situation, accidents can still happen and you can still fall ill. You might get hit by a dangerous driver, slip off a kerb and twist your ankle, or just catch a good old fashioned tummy bug. Ensure you have comprehensive travel insurance that will adequately cover you in the event that you get sick or injured. Don't miss out any pre-existing medical conditions, because even minor conditions can invalidate your claim if they were not disclosed beforehand.
Make sure your insurance covers you for all the activities you wish to experience on your travels and includes cover for medical evacuation, personal injury and terrorist activity. A frightening statistic is that only 60% of insurance policies cover terrorism, so make sure you read the small print and have adequate cover.
What should I take in my travel first aid kit?
Contents of a travel first aid kit will vary according to each travellers needs. There are a few key areas you should consider:
Emergency Medications: antibiotics for wound infections, pain killers, prescribed medications should all be kept in original packaging.
Diarrhoea Treatment: oral rehydration saltsare particularly important if you are travelling with children. Antidiarrhoeal tablets can be purchased from your local pharmacy or travel clinic. Alcohol hand gel can be useful for when there are no hand washing facilities available.
Injuries: a selection of dressings and swabs.
Lotions: you can purchase treatments for eye infections (such as chloramphenicol) from your local pharmacy, an antibiotic ointment for skin infections such as fucidin and a cream to apply to burns may be useful. An antihistamine cream is useful for treating rashes and insect bites.
Equipment: scissors, tweezers, tick removers and safety pins, sterile gloves, a digital thermometer.
Mosquitoes: mosquito nets, insect repellents (especially if you are travelling to areas where malaria and other mosquito borne diseases are present).
Sterile Equipment: sterile needles and syringes, intravenous cannula for a drip, suture material for sewing up skin. These should be in a specially designed kit. Do not carry single needles and syringes as customs may suspect they are for drug use. Purchase a specially prepared sterile first aid kit that includes a declaration that the contents are for personal medical use in an emergency.
Documentation: first aid book, details of blood group and regular medication, copies of prescriptions if carrying prescribed medication.
