| Author | Message | ||
     Wbrisett |
Got back yesterday from the Arkansas Ozarks with my wife and daughter. We had a great time on the bikes (daughter rides pillion with me), but while riding on Hwy 7 (a dragon-like road), we came upon two HOG riders who went down when they didn't negotiate a corner properly. They were with a group and with six other cyclists and three cars there, we simply moved on knowing that there was nothing we could do. But it did get me to think a bit more what we had with us and didn't have with us. Anybody else ride with a first aid kit? If so, what do you have in it? Anybody take any sort of emergency first aid course? I have some basic stuff from the Marine Corps, but that was nearly 20 years ago and I'm not sure how much of it I really remember. I'm thinking of getting a kit for our bikes for the Homecoming trip, and while I have a general idea of what to put into it, I wanted to see what others have in their kit. Wayne | ||
| Firebolt32 |
That's a good point. I honestly don't ride with anything of that nature other than a cell phone. I had to make the dreaded 911 call in Dec after being hit. On the Uly if your set up with the travel gear carrying a first aid kit would be easy. Not so much for me with a 9R. I don't have saddle bags or a tank bag. If my wife is with me I can't use the tail bag. The cell is all I can carry really. | ||
| Slaughter |
Cell phone and current First Aid/CPR training. Unless you're travelling with large bags, there really isn't room for a significant first aid kit - except one to cover minor incidental stuff like burns and cuts. | ||
| Wbrisett |
Somebody on another board pointed me this direction: http://www.accidentscene.org/ looks perfect for those of us interested in gaining some insight as to what to do. Wayne | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Chad Hargis rides with a really nice First Aid Kit. Check with him to see what he uses. It's compact but has lots of great stuff in it. | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
I thought about riding with a nurse. But the wife would have objected.  | ||
| Geforce |
I always carry a "Combat Application Turnicate" under the pillion along with a SAM Splint, Curlex, Medical Tape... anything else is just way too bulky. Fortunately I've never used the CAT. I have used the SAM Splint, Curlex and Med tape on a HD rider who went down to stabilize his neck until the the hurt bus arrived. He had already taken off his helmet though before we arrived. This is a big no no, if you ever do go down. Keep your lid on until you can be swept and checked out by someone who knows what to look for. Learn the proper procedures to hold C-Spine in the event someone DOES have a head/neck injury. The BEST thing you can do is arrive on scene, call 911 and standby to relay to the operator vitals and a CLEAR, CONCISE description of the accident, age of the patient, name, medical history, etc. Of course this all depends on the victim and their willingness to cooperate and level of consciousness. In my truck I always carry a combat lifesaver bag which has a specialized stock of life saving materials that I have procured through the years of being a Soldier and I also made a pocket reference for trauma situations in the event I lose my bearing, this way I can quickly reference certain aspects of the victims state and react accordingly. The WORST thing any first responder can do is to get too wrapped up in the situation. You must be able to remain calm and assess the situation and stay in control. I also carry chemical lights in my CLS bag in the event I have to mark a landing zone or pickup point if the accident is off the road and not easily visible from the roadway. This all might sound like I take things a bit too seriously but in November of 2008 I was on my home from teaching a combatives class at 2200 HRS and I witnessed a car fly off the road 20-30 MPH above the speed limit, roll 3 times and come to rest right side up. Another vehicle had stopped, I stopped told the other vehicle to call 911 and standby while I grabbed my bag and ran straight down the drop off to find the vehicle on fire... ran back up to grab a water source and towel and put the fire out. I then saw two victims in the driver's side seat sandwiched between each other, neither had been wearing seat belts. One wasn't breathing and his pulse was very, very weak. Long story short... I ended up holding one victim’s airway open until the flight for life landed on the roadway. My other hand was on top of a wound to the driver's chest that was bleeding. I stood there for 35 minutes while the paramedics monitored them and the fire fighters cut them out of the vehicle. The paramedics asked if I could continue to hold as one victim could have died had I removed my hand to allow them to insert an airway. The medics were extremely grateful that I was willing to hold fast as they treated other injuries I hadn't found. We all began to coordinate and treat the victims as one big team, it was truly amazing. I never saw those two kids again, but I was told they both survived and will lead normal lives. I was submitted for the Soldier's medal but after many arguments between me and my chain of command on "just doing my job" and "above and beyond" I ended up getting an Army Commendation Medal. Either way, my only concern was to keep them alive. When in doubt, stop the bleeding... open the airway... treat for shock. Take classes, study and keep yourself sharp. My only wish is that if my family or even I ever happen to be involved in a major accident that someone else will be there to save our lives. I always pull over. A lot of people don’t, life is a very precious thing. Short of becoming an EMT, there aren't many civilian certifications you can do. The military offers a wide variety of courses. You don't HAVE to be a medic to attend all these courses either. CLS is in many ways a joke until it saves the life of one of your Soldiers. I had the opportunity to attend some very serious training in Camp Leguene with bearded folks. This training, on live specimens, has proved to be the best training I have ever had in my career. | ||
| Firebolt32 |
I thought about riding with a nurse. That's probably because YOUR thinking about a naughty nurse! | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
Guilty as charged. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Sounds like we should carry GeForce with us.  | ||
| Britchri10 |
ABC. Airway Breathing Circulation Always check the above after first calling 911. A BLS (Basic Life Support) class can be very useful when dealing with accidents/injuries. Stay calm. Use common sense. Pray? | ||
| Geforce |
Nah, you don't need me. I'm no where near an "expert", I just take first responder stuff seriously. Just get out and learn a little about what first responders need you to do and then go from there. The funny part about my little story was that I didn't even tell my chain of command what had happened. The local PD called them up and told them what I had been involved in and that landed me in front of the CSM. Who was proud that one of his Soldiers had done such a thing, but mad that I refused to give a statement so they could process an award. :P Even if you never take classes, having someone on scene who can relay information to 911 *who should in turn relay that to the medics* will greatly speed up the process. Being able to communicate that in a medical manner isn't as important as communicating. For instance, you come upon a rider who has had a high side, impacted a tree, and has a serious deformation in their left leg. You can take a wild guess and ASSUME that the rider more than likely has a fracture to their leg. That little scrap of info tells the medics to bring the traction splint, or other items of special equipment. Another thing to consider is that if you are unsure, just do what you feel is appropriate. If they are awake and alert, just talk to them. After you ask them where the pain is, or what happened, get them to talking about their kids, families, something that would be important to them. This will keep the mind off of pain and time. The hard part is taking the pulse, doing the math in your head to get a rough blood pressure reading, talking on the phone, AND the patient. If you have people standing around, give them jobs. You, watch the road. You, take care of the vehicle. You, make sure that no one else pulls over this evidence or item. You, sit here and hold this. You, relay information to the 911 operator. You, grab this and tie it here. You, help me hold this. You, watch his chest and count the number of times it rises and falls when I say "Go". When you are in a situation where you have other with medical experience, do your best to work as a team. The less you crowd around a patient, the more the feel like everything is ok, and some people may not take kindly to being pushed around and told what to do, but in an emergency you are either a part of the problem, or the solution. One day three of us Army fellers were out riding and we happened upon an HD rider who went down in a corner. All three of us have different experience levels and all three of us went to work assessing the rider as a team. We never said a word to one another about what to do. I took the left side he took the right and we started our assessments while I took the lead on talking to the patient. The other Soldier was already on the phone, moving people away from the rider, moving vehicles out of the way, marking the road for emergency vehicles, getting updates from us on patient information. He took care of the bike, found his wallet and relayed that over to 911. It went very well. The man's son came out to meet us a week later and his father was released with a couple of broken ribs. Bob and I knew he had 2-3 broken ribs within 5 minutes of being on scene just because we knew what to look for. Sadly though, we couldn't do anything to help ease the pain of busted ribs. The medics were happy that someone pulled over to take care of him and make their job that much easier. No easy way to prepare for every situation. Knowledge is power in the medical realm. | ||
| Britchri10 |
My wife is a nurse! (but she rarely rides with me) Chris C | ||
| Dfbutler |
I always care just a simple first aid kit from the drug store, band aids, wipes, etc. to which I've added some Immodium, diarera on the bike would be very bad. | ||
| Aesquire |
Carry a kit to match YOUR skill level. If you don't know how to apply a splint why carry one? OTOH, I can't see a oxygen tank fitting in my tank bag..... I'm a St. Johns first responder.....sorta. I've got the very very slightly higher than first aid training, masks, oxygen, etc. but I'm nowhere near an EMT. Do no harm. I have a keen awareness of my limitations, but what I can do, sometimes helps. Take at least the Red Cross first aid & CPR courses. Most work places can hook you up, even if they don't pay for them, and it can only help even if it only teaches you what NOT to do. If thinking about broken people doesn't freak you out, consider taking higher level classes. Advanced first aid, through L.P.N. level stuff with needles and such. For the adventurous you can even get Civilian Contractor Combat Medic training complete with I.V. work while flash bangs go off, as you engage targets on an insanely realistic course. I do warn you, EMT's have wicked sick senses of humor. For example.... to establish the right rhythm for CPR, to keep a steady pace without speeding up ( you get too tired ) or slowing down ( not enough oxygen to the brain & heart ) a common trick is to mutter/think a common song lyric to keep the beat. "Another one bites the dust" by Queen happens to be nearly perfect......just don't let relatives hear you. I've been first guy there at a few accidents. It's not easy to not be overwhelmed, and you have to keep your skill limits in mind. But when the car is on fire, upside down in the median, and you're the only one there....you do what you can. Keep doing what you're doing Geforce. Thank you for..... you know. | ||
| Ratbuell |
I have an operators tube under my left saddlebag with a basic kit: bandaids punch-packs (cold compresses) ACE bandage bite/sting-eze gauze tape alcohol swabs waterproof matches 222 (awesome Canuck pain reliever) LED flashlight ...anything beyond that, I'm making a phone call anyway. My goal is to have enough stuff between that tube, and whatever I'm wearing (belt, shoelaces, whatever) to see to it the person in question sees the ambulance arrive. From there...the pros take over  | ||
| Ourdee |
I'm on blood thinner because of the doc's heart disease accusation. So, I carry super glue, in case I get cut. It's easier than sewing yourself up like Rambo. | ||
| Blasterd |
I carry a kit in my saddlebag, have about everything in it I could possibly need if the situation arises, including a CPR mask. | ||
| Satori |
I got a nice kit from Target last yr, in a nice nylon fabric carry case, added a few things, benadryl, etc. Was only about 12 bucks. I bought it for the cage. | ||
| Rwven |
I have an old First Aid Kit that came with my father-in-law's GMC Suburban. It is very basic. It has a First Aid guide booklet (probably the most important item in it), a pair of scissors, 2 rolls of gauze, a roll of adhesive tape, a triangular bandage, a package of gauze pads, a package of "band-aids", some sterile wipes, some insect sting wipes, a tube of antiseptic ointment and a "SpaceBlanket". Better than nothing I suppose.... | ||
| Jasonk |
Highly recommend a class from http://www.accidentscene.org/ Two levels of class to learn what you may/may not be comfortable with. Will also give you the opportunity to purchase pre-assembled kits of differing levels of equipment, utilizing the same stuff the instructors are teaching with. Couple things to note: tourniquets are not encouraged, taking a helmet off is taught, both two person and single person removal techniques. I am a registered advanced ASMI certificate holder, a founding member of the Road Guardians, and getting into the Rescue Rider organization as well. | ||
| Jb2 |
Aerostitch offers several levels of kits just for riders. I have their best kit and it has never failed me. I restock it with good products as I use them. Excellent quality and very thorough first aid guide. Take a Red Cross course to go with it. | ||
| Satori |
I just stumbled on this site tonight, has a page with some good checklists, including one to build a Professional doctor/emt firstaid kit. Sites free, and no I am not associated with it. http://micapeak.com/checklists/ Hope this helps | ||
| Pwnzor |
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