91热爆网

 91热爆网 Stories      July 9, 2019

Whether you鈥檙e biking the Virginia Creeper Trail, hiking to Waterrock Knob or paddling the Tuckaseigee River this summer, don鈥檛 forget to pack a first-aid kit, along with that water bottle and sunscreen.

It鈥檚 easy to assemble 鈥� or purchase 鈥� a first-aid kit and can make the difference in whether a good day outside goes bad, said Ben Tholkes, an associate professor in Western Carolina University鈥檚 Parks and Recreation Management Program and a long-time seasonal employee of the National Park Service and National Ski Patrol.

鈥淚n the outdoors, you need to be prepared for the unexpected,鈥� said Tholkes, who teaches an American Red Cross-certified wilderness first-aid course and a National Ski Patrol-certified outdoor emergency care course at 91热爆网. 鈥淎 first-aid kit is always listed in any outdoor person鈥檚 list of 10 essentials to take on an outdoor activity.鈥�

There are many options for getting a first-aid kit, said Tholkes, a 91热爆网 faculty member for 27 years. One is to make your own with a zip-lock bag, which allows you to quickly see what is in it and where the items are, or purchase a red, empty first-aid bag at any outdoor specialty store that carries them and fill them with essential items from your local drug store. You can also purchase pre-packaged kits from the Red Cross or outdoor specialty stores.

To make a personal first-aid kit for a day hike, include items such as adhesive bandages, sterile gauze pads (size 4x4 inches and a few 5x9 inches, for large bleeding wounds), adhesive tape, mole skin (for blisters), hand soap or alcohol-based sanitizing gel, wound gel antibiotic, scissors, gloves, CPR breathing barrier (mask) and tweezers. And don鈥檛 forget items that are personal to you, such as allergy medicine, aspirin, diabetic supplies, etc.

鈥淎dhesive bandages and gauze are the two most important things you can take if you just need to do something about bleeding from cuts and scrapes,鈥� Tholkes said. 鈥淕loves, gauze and a little bandaging take care of most things like that.鈥�

Optional items include a space blanket for warmth, splint (handy in the backcountry), cold compress, denture adhesive (in case you knock out a tooth), thermometer, antihistamines and alcohol or another antiseptic for cleaning a wound.

One size does not always fit all when it comes to first-aid kits, Tholkes said. A large kit, which should support a group of 12 or more, simply means having more of the items from your small kit. 鈥淚f I鈥檓 going out for a simple day hike, I just take a small kit. If I鈥檓 working Park Service on an evening, I take the big one, which has more things in it that I can then use if I need it, not just for me, but for someone else,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t depends on if you鈥檙e responsible for yourself, others with you and how big a group you鈥檙e with. I take the big kit on extended trips and activities that we do. I like the small ones because you can keep it in your car or put it in your backpack.鈥�

Just as important as building a proper first-aid kit is making sure it stays that way, Tholkes said. 鈥淎lways make sure things that are used get replaced. Treat your first-aid kit like other camping gear. Make sure all the pieces are there when you put it away after a trip,鈥� he said.

If you鈥檙e wondering where snake-bite kits fit into a first-aid kit, they don鈥檛, because they never worked very well, Tholkes said. 鈥淲hat I鈥檓 teaching my students is don鈥檛 kill the snake. It鈥檚 not the snake鈥檚 fault,鈥� Tholkes said. 鈥淚f you get bitten by a snake, don鈥檛 make any cuts, don鈥檛 put ice on it, don鈥檛 put on any kind of tourniquet or constrictive band, don鈥檛 panic. Mostly, just weigh your options. Ask yourself, 鈥榟ow do we get out of here as safely and as quickly as we can?鈥� A snake may not inject venom. If it has eaten recently or it doesn鈥檛 consider you a food source, it might just be a dry bite.鈥�

Having an injury-free day in the outdoors has a lot to do with prevention, Tholkes said. 鈥淚f there鈥檚 a snake on the trail, leave it alone. Don鈥檛 eat anything you find in the outdoors if you鈥檙e not sure what it is and don鈥檛 touch unknown plants,鈥� he said.

To learn more about outdoor first-aid, Tholkes suggests visiting the American Red Cross website at , Landmark Learning at and Jackson County Parks and Recreation at , or enrolling in a parks and recreation management course at .