Each house should have a minimum set of drugs for any occasion, especially if the family has elderly people and children. There is no need to buy the whole range of pharmacy products, many drugs do not have a long shelf life, and they need special conditions for storage. So, in the first-aid kit should be something that will help for an ordinary case and something that can be used before the ambulance arrives.
The contents of the first-aid kit can be divided into categories:
- Materials for dressings and antiseptics: cotton wool, bandage, bactericidal plasters, chlorhexedine, hydrogen peroxide, iodine. All these are useful to treat the wound, stop the blood and bandage the wound.
- Various devices. These include a tonometer, thermometer (conventional or electronic), pipette, enema, syringe, nasal aspirator, sterile gloves, disposable masks, measuring spoon for medicines, syringes.
- Medications. They also can be divided into categories:
- The pain can be of a very different nature: headache, toothache, menstrual, in any part of the body. If the pain is acute (especially in the abdomen), you cannot self-medicate. You need to call an ambulance as soon as possible. The most famous painkillers: Algesal, Apo-Diclo, Flexura, Gabapin, Brufen, Celeheal, Diclofenac Sandoz.
- Mostly spasms occur in the abdominal region and causes pain. A spasm relieves, for example, Colofac, Dantrium or Doverin.
- Colds: drops in the nose, antipyretic, antiviral drugs (effective in case of influenza). Also in the medicine cabinet you can put drugs, which help relieve sore throat.
- They help fight allergies and their manifestations. These are drugs such as Flixonase Nasal Spray or Alerid.
- Laxatives and enzymes. They help solve the problem of constipation and digestive difficulties. These include such as Bekunis or Creon 10000.
- Remedies from sprains and bruises. They have analgesic and warming effect. These are drugs such as Cataflam or Apo-Diclo.
- Representatives of this class include Validol and Ramitax.
Drug storage
It is impossible to store medicines in an easily accessible place. It is dangerous if there are small children in the house. And besides, you should not keep the first aid kit in a very hard to reach place, because if necessary you will not be able to quickly get the necessary medication. It is best to select a special shelf for the first-aid kit, a cabinet, a box where the medicines will be sorted as much as possible. It is also important not to forget to regularly check the expiration dates of tablets, drops and ointments. Some drugs can be used only for a month or two after opening. Do not store medicines on whose packaging the date of manufacture is absent.
There are special portable first aid kits on sale. But you can adapt for this a simple little box. Then, taking pills outside the house will not cause you any trouble, and there will be no need to carry bulk packages with medicines.