What should a car's first aid kit include for roadside emergencies?
Short Answer: Your car’s first aid kit should be fully stocked and ready to deal with a range of injuries and conditions, ranging from minor cuts and bruises to more serious conditions such as asthma, dehydration, and cardiac arrest. As such, it must include the following:
● Basic medical supplies- adhesive bandages and tapes, sterile gauze pads, triangular bandages
● Cleansing and disinfecting items- disposable gloves, antiseptic wipes, alcohol wipes, and saline solution.
● Medication and treatment supplies- antihistamines, pain relief medication, motion-sickness medication, and petroleum jelly.
● Comfort and Emergency Items and Accessories- safety pins, instant cold packs, scissors, tweezers, an emergency blanket, and a first-aid booklet.
Must-Have First Aid Items for Your Vehicle
Whenever you are travelling in your car, no matter how short a trip it may be, the following first-aid items are a must-have:
● Car first-aid kit
● Bottled water and non-perishable food
● Torch with spare batteries
● High-visibility safety vest and reflective triangle
● Rug or blanket
● Fire extinguisher
Emergency Preparedness for Road Trips
When it comes to emergency preparedness for road trips, there are things you can do beyond packing a vehicle first-aid kit. They include:
Ensuring Vehicle Safety
● Carrying spare tyres and a tyre repair kit
● Carrying functional jumper cables and portable battery packs
● Carrying a basic toolkit
● Carrying extra fuel canisters
Navigation and Communication
● Obtaining updated and offline maps and GPS
● Carrying portable chargers and power packs
● Carrying a two-way radio or satellite phone
Food, Water, and Comfort
● Carrying plenty of drinking water
● Carrying non-perishable snacks (e.g., nuts, dried fruits, jerky)
● Carrying any required prescription medication
● Emergency blankets and sleeping bags
● Carrying torches with spare batteries
● Carrying a compact fire extinguisher
● Carrying plenty of bug sprays and repellents
Furthermore, depending on the destination, you may need to carry an additional, more specialised first aid kit. For example, if you are planning an excursion into bush country where there are plenty of venomous snakes, you will need a snake bite first aid kit, much like the SURVIVAL Snake Bite Kit.
The Best Car-Specific First Aid Kits
If you’re looking for the best car-specific first aid kits that money can buy, then look no further than the SURVIVAL Vehicle First Aid KIT. It's the perfect kit for anyone who loves to travel light or has limited cargo space. As a bonus, it is WHS-compliant, making it the perfect first aid kit for work cars as well.
Every item in the first aid kit is labelled and colour-coded for easy access during an emergency. The contents of the kit include:
Trauma (Thick Red)
● 50X adhesive dressings, individually sterile wrapped
● 2X cotton gauze swabs
● 1X emergency blanket
● 2X sterile eye pads
● 3X sterile non-adherent wound dressings (5 cm x 5 cm)
● 1X sterile non-adherent wound dressing (7.5 cm x 7.5 cm)
● 2X Pressure bandages - 1 SMART Bandage
● 1X Triangular bandage
● 1X sterile pack of three wound closures
● 1X sterile No. 14 medium wound dressing
Hygiene (Thick Blue)
● 5X sterile 3.5 ml sachets of hydrogel
● 2X Nitrile gloves (1 pair in CPR Kit)
● 3X plastic bags
● 2X sterile 30 ml saline
● 4X skin cleaning wipes with cetrimide (1 in CPR Kit)
Utilities (Thick Black)
● 1X stainless steel bandage shear (19 cm)
● 1X fever scan strip
● 1X hypoallergenic adhesive tape (25 mm)
● 1X disposable resuscitation shield, including 1 pair of gloves and skin cleaning wipe
● 6X safety pins
● 1X sterile splinter probe pack (5 per pack)
● 1X rust-resistant, stainless steel tweezers
Information (Thick Green)
● 1X CPR card
● 1X First Aid Booklet
● Notepad and pencil
How to Store a First Aid Kit in Your Car
If your car's first aid kit is on the smaller range, you can store it in your glovebox or the centre console. If it's a larger kit, you can store it in the trunk and secure it with a container to prevent it from moving around while driving.
However, temperatures in Australia can go as high as 40°C, and if your first aid kit is left out inside the car, its shelf life can deteriorate rapidly. Therefore, when you are not driving your car, we recommend that you take it out of the car and keep it stored in a secure, dry, and cool location within your home. Just don’t forget to take it with you when you go for a drive.
Related Question
Q: Should I have more than one first aid kit in my vehicle?
One well-stocked first aid kit should be more than enough to cover your family. But if your car first aid kit is not portable, we recommend that you split your supplies between your primary kit and a smaller grab-and-go kit, which you can take anywhere with you.
Conclusion
Whether it be the routine trip you take between your home and work, a long drive on the highway, or an expedition into the outback, there is always the possibility of there being a roadside emergency for you to deal with. In such a scenario, having a well-stocked car first aid kit would mean that you are more than ready to deal with any emergency that may come your way.
If you’re planning your next road trip and are looking for the best car first aid kit in Australia, then look no further than our SURVIVAL Vehicle First Aid Kit. Travel anywhere in Australia with the peace of mind knowing that we have got your back.