Here’s Why You Should Keep a First-Aid Kit in Your Home
A good first aid kit is an essential thing to own, whether you’re a single occupant in a small inner-city apartment or a large family living in a sprawling suburban home.
After all, accidents happen, no matter your lifestyle, interests, or age. And the best way to treat life’s little mishaps is by having a well-stocked first aid kit on hand.
In this post, we’re covering six reasons why it’s wise to keep a first-aid kit at home.
Time Is of the Essence
Sliced a chunk out of your finger with a kitchen knife? Or perhaps you’ve scalded your hand on a red-hot stove top?
Either way, you need to address that painful injury immediately. Without a first-aid kit, you’d be forced to drive to the nearest pharmacy and purchase the requisite supplies—assuming your local chemist is open.
This extra travel time means excessive bleeding and throbbing pain as you delay getting the attention you need. Keeping a first-aid kit at home lets you address injuries immediately, thus reducing the pain and severity.
Everything is Within Easy Reach
While you could stuff a whole bunch of bandages into your medicine cabinet, it’s hardly the ideal approach.
For starters, you’ll have to dig through a bewildering array of medications to pinpoint what you need. That task becomes all the more challenging when you’re panicking or in pain.
Furthermore, there’s a good chance you’ll forget a few essential items if you create a DIY first-aid stash. Maybe you’ll leave out antiseptic or forget to stock antihistamines for those irritating allergic reactions.
But with a professionally-curated first-aid kit, you can rest assured everything you need will be there when you need it. The best first-aid kids have hundreds of items so you can treat injuries of all shapes and sizes. Plus, they’re user-friendly and well-organised, which lets you rapidly locate what you need.
Stop Bleeding Immediately
It’s crucial to stop bleeding immediately.
Should a large volume of blood loss occur, you’ll quickly succumb to a condition called hypovolemic shock. Considered a life-threatening medical emergency, the condition occurs when excessive blood loss inhibits the heart’s ability to pump blood through the body. Consequently, your tissues won’t receive enough oxygen, which can rapidly result in organ failure.
A small cut to your hands won’t result in excessive blood loss, but a significant head wound could easily lead to hypovolemic shock. Addressing bleeding immediately with a first-aid kit could mean the difference between life and death.
Disinfect Wounds
Blood loss isn’t the only thing you need to worry about when bleeding. Even a tiny cut could cause a nasty, painful infection if not promptly cleaned with a suitable antiseptic treatment. Any infection typically requires a lengthy course of antibiotics to cure, which means going to the doctor and acquiring a prescription (or the emergency ward if the injury occurs after hours). Should you neglect to treat an infection promptly, you could even lose a limb or worse.
We’re all guilty of neglecting to sterilise a minor wound, whether it be from laziness or forgetfulness. Having a first-aid kit handy at home makes it much more convenient to clean a wound and prevent potential infection.
Treat a Wide Range of Conditions
While cuts are the primary purpose, a reputable first-aid kit can treat a broad range of conditions.
Found a tick in your hair? Use the tweezers to twist the horrible little critter and safely pull it out. Saline drops help relieve eye irritations, while splinter probes are perfect for extracting excruciating wood splints.
Any decent first-aid kit will come with a small tube of burn relief gel so you can reduce the pain of those inadvertent kitchen mishaps.
Plus, should you suffer a large or inconveniently placed cut, you’ll have a wide array of different gauzes, bandages, and plasters to choose from.
Provide Relief Until You Can Get Medical Attention
The first-aid kit is primarily intended to address minor to moderate injuries. However, this handy ensemble of medical essentials could also prove crucial in the event of a severe injury.
Should a householder experience excessive bleeding from a deep wound, you could quickly apply a bandage to slow the blood loss until help arrives. Burn relief gel can soothe some pain from a severe burn until you get the patient to the emergency ward.
Not only is a first-aid kit convenient for minor injuries, but it also provides peace of mind that you‘ll be well-prepared to confront an emergency.
Purchase a First-Aid Kit in Australia from the Home Safety Store
As specialists in all safety-related matters around the home, we stock a wide range of first-aid supplies from Trafalgar, Australia’s leading first-aid kit brand.
Take a look through our catalogue to pick out the perfect option for you.