Pack a First Aid Kit for Your Car

First aid kits are a necessity in cars. Not only are they useful for minor sports injuries with your children, but they are crucial for more serious wounds sustained in a car accident. Emergency kits are available readily packed, but it may be less costly to pack your own. Additionally, a customized first aid kit allows you to accommodate the needs of your own family. When you pack a first aid kit for your car, remember these important steps.

Steps

1. Purchase a bag or container that will hold your first aid items. Select something that has clear compartments so you can see what you need and easily access smaller items. You may even want to mark some of the pockets to remind you where items are stored. Additionally, choosing a waterproof bag or container would be ideal.
2. Remember the basics when packing your kit, such as:
   • an assortment of adhesive bandages
   • gauze pads
   • safety pins
   • adhesive tape
   • antibiotic
   • antiseptic and hydrocortisone creams
   • insect sting relief pads
   • cotton balls
   • cotton swabs
   • Vaseline
   • pain relievers
   • digital thermometer
   • tweezers
   • scissors
   • a needle
   • hand sanitizer
   • saline solution.
3. Include children's versions of the above, if applicable. Such as baby and children's pain relievers, prescribed medications, Benadryl spray, a syringe or medicine cup for administering medications, and baby wipes.
4. Don't forget the items for more concerning injuries. These items should include hot and cold packs, disposable synthetic gloves, a disposable mask, a suction bulb, anti-diarrheal medication, eye wash, and plastic bags for disposing unhygienic items.
5. Consider adding an easy to comprehend first aid manual to the items in your car's first response kit.
6. Add personal items that your family is bound to need. Examples include baby products, allergy and asthma medications, motion sickness medication, and an Epi-Pen.
7. Pack an emergency blanket and water close to your first aid kit, if you have the room.
8. Make room for a lite stick, flashlight, and call police flag, just in case you get stranded on the side of the road. A prepaid emergency cell phone can also be included.
9. Arrange all your items in an organized fashion. Put small items in accessible pockets around the edges of the bag or box. Pack the larger items in the center of the container, but stand them up side by side so you can see them immediately. Slide the manual in an outside compartment.
10. Finished.

Tips

• Check the contents of your first aid kit periodically, and replace all medications that are out of date.
• Store the auto first aid kit where it can be easily reached in an emergency, but not so accessible that a child can get into it. You also want to keep it out of the direct sunlight to avoid overheating the medications inside.

Warnings

• Never put a padlock on your first response kit. In an emergency you don't want to be fumbling through keys.
• Avoid storing your first aid kit in a compartment under a seat. A serious car accident may make the kit unattainable.

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See also

• Create a Home First Aid Kit
• Make a First Aid Kit for Kids
• Make a First Aid Kit for Camping

What links here

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• Know What You Need in Your Car's First Aid Kit