Home First Aid Kit & Basics
A well-stocked kit and a little training let you handle small injuries and keep someone stable until help arrives for big ones.
- Families
Photo: open home first aid kit with contents laid out
What to keep
- Adhesive bandages in several sizes, sterile gauze pads and rolls, medical tape
- Elastic (ACE) bandage, triangular bandage
- A tourniquet and hemostatic gauze (and training on how to use them)
- Antiseptic wipes, antibiotic ointment, hydrocortisone cream
- Tweezers, scissors, disposable gloves, instant cold packs
- Thermometer, eye wash or saline
- Pain and fever reducers, antihistamine; any personal prescriptions and an epinephrine auto-injector if prescribed
- CPR face shield, emergency blanket, flashlight
- A list of emergency numbers, including Poison Help 1-800-222-1222
Keep one kit at home and one in each vehicle. Check expiration dates twice a year.
Call 911 for
- Trouble breathing, chest pain, signs of stroke (face drooping, arm weakness, speech trouble)
- Severe bleeding that won’t stop, deep wounds, suspected broken bones with deformity
- Unconsciousness, seizures, severe allergic reactions
- Serious burns, head, neck or back injuries
Learn more in First Aid Basics, Severe Bleeding Control, Burn First Aid and CPR & AEDs. Better yet, take a hands-on class.
Standards & references
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