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Common first aid knowledge needed on the trail??

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    • Common first aid knowledge needed on the trail??

      ​Hey y'all.

      I don't have the money to get the $200 Wilderness First Aid Certification I'd hoped to obtain before hitting the trail in June.

      Obviously I know about blisters and cuts, but what are other first aid needs that hikers commonly experience on the trail? I'd like to compile a list with links to youtube videos demonstrating or teaching procedures for self-first aid. I'll post the final list here.
      www.appalachiantrailclarity.com - Life on the A.T.

      Sometimes you find yourself in the middle of nowhere, and sometimes in the middle of nowhere, you find yourself.
    • Just consider the types of injuries "likely" and bone up on the appropriate responses.
      e.g.
      Burns - both from fires and spilled boiling fluids - camp stoves are unstable.
      Twisted/broken ankles/knees - pretty obvious.
      Abrasions, bruising - from falls.
      Cuts - knives and gear being used by the inexperienced. Suppression of blood loss.
      What to do if someone ingests alcohol fuel thinking it's water - has happened.
      Snake bite. Tick bite. Wasp bite etc
      Just a titbit of Australiana info for you... our snakes, unlike yours, have a venom that attacks through the lymphatic system, not the blood. Not all poisons are the same. Learn the response appropriate for the local wildlife. ;)
      Resident Australian, proving being a grumpy old man is not just an American trait.
    • twistwrist wrote:

      ​Hey y'all.

      I don't have the money to get the $200 Wilderness First Aid Certification I'd hoped to obtain before hitting the trail in June.

      Obviously I know about blisters and cuts, but what are other first aid needs that hikers commonly experience on the trail? I'd like to compile a list with links to youtube videos demonstrating or teaching procedures for self-first aid. I'll post the final list here.


      Learn the Heimlich maneuver. Learn how to do it on yourself.
      Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.
      Dr. Seuss Cof123
    • Most first aid is stuff you do to others, not yourself.

      All you really need to know is how to take care of feet, remove ticks, trim toenails, and ...dont do anything stupid.

      You might have a plan to splint with a stick and duct tape, pack a bad wound with clothing item and tie up with bandana or ducttape, irrigate wounds with PURIFIED water, etc.
    • For a sprain. you're supposed to use the RICE method. Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation.

      Based on having a severe ankle sprain a few years ago, this is what I'd do. It's probably all wrong though.

      I would keep the shoe on and wrap the ankle with duck tape or cut the toes out of a sock or anything that will give compression without cutting off circulation.
      Get to town ASAP. I was able to walk on mine for several hours before the swelling and pain got too bad. (This is probably bad, I don't think you're supposed to walk on it but I'd do it anyway.)
      If I couldn't get to town, I'd keep it elevated, take Ibuprofen, and plan on being immobile for a few days.
      Lost in the right direction.
    • Rasty wrote:

      twistwrist wrote:

      ​Hey y'all.

      I don't have the money to get the $200 Wilderness First Aid Certification I'd hoped to obtain before hitting the trail in June.

      Obviously I know about blisters and cuts, but what are other first aid needs that hikers commonly experience on the trail? I'd like to compile a list with links to youtube videos demonstrating or teaching procedures for self-first aid. I'll post the final list here.


      Learn the Heimlich maneuver. Learn how to do it on yourself.



      I don't believe the hindlick can be done on ones self.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.
    • muddywaters wrote:

      Most first aid is stuff you do to others, not yourself.

      All you really need to know is how to take care of feet, remove ticks, trim toenails, and ...dont do anything stupid.

      You might have a plan to splint with a stick and duct tape, pack a bad wound with clothing item and tie up with bandana or ducttape, irrigate wounds with PURIFIED water, etc.


      I'm okay on all but this one...just can't seem to master it...maybe it'll come with age.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.
    • TrafficJam wrote:

      For a sprain. you're supposed to use the RICE method. Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation.

      Based on having a severe ankle sprain a few years ago, this is what I'd do. It's probably all wrong though.

      I would keep the shoe on and wrap the ankle with duck tape or cut the toes out of a sock or anything that will give compression without cutting off circulation.
      Get to town ASAP. I was able to walk on mine for several hours before the swelling and pain got too bad. (This is probably bad, I don't think you're supposed to walk on it but I'd do it anyway.)
      If I couldn't get to town, I'd keep it elevated, take Ibuprofen, and plan on being immobile for a few days.
      Another Kevin taught me another one...Price


      "P" is for ProtectionProtect the injured person and the area being treated but also protect yourself. If the injury occurs on the sports field, stop the game. Protect the area being treated with a splint if possible.
      If the athlete can move, carefully move them to a safer area using a stretcher or a crutch, but if there is any doubt, do not move the injured athlete.

      Read more: momsteam.com/health-safety/gen…orts-injury#ixzz3VWzUQkQq


      Protect
      Rest
      Ice
      Compression
      Elevation
    • muddywaters wrote:

      Most first aid is stuff you do to others, not yourself.

      All you really need to know is how to take care of feet, remove ticks, trim toenails, and ...dont do anything stupid.

      You might have a plan to splint with a stick and duct tape, pack a bad wound with clothing item and tie up with bandana or ducttape, irrigate wounds with PURIFIED water, etc.


      ...dont do anything stupid.

      That one there can remove many a bad situations just by not taking chances, ie stream crossing selections, fire location, resting when tired...ect.
    • socks wrote:

      muddywaters wrote:

      Most first aid is stuff you do to others, not yourself.

      All you really need to know is how to take care of feet, remove ticks, trim toenails, and ...dont do anything stupid.

      You might have a plan to splint with a stick and duct tape, pack a bad wound with clothing item and tie up with bandana or ducttape, irrigate wounds with PURIFIED water, etc.


      ...dont do anything stupid.

      That one there can remove many a bad situations just by not taking chances, ie stream crossing selections, fire location, resting when tired...ect.



      If it were not for that one I wouldn't have all these scars.

      But how boring it would have been.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.
    • Drybones wrote:

      Rasty wrote:

      twistwrist wrote:

      ​Hey y'all.

      I don't have the money to get the $200 Wilderness First Aid Certification I'd hoped to obtain before hitting the trail in June.

      Obviously I know about blisters and cuts, but what are other first aid needs that hikers commonly experience on the trail? I'd like to compile a list with links to youtube videos demonstrating or teaching procedures for self-first aid. I'll post the final list here.


      Learn the Heimlich maneuver. Learn how to do it on yourself.



      I don't believe the hindlick can be done on ones self.


      Use a chair back or horizontal object and apply full force just below the diaphragm by using your body weight.
      Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.
      Dr. Seuss Cof123
    • Another first aid technique that's good to know is how to lance a subungual haematoma (blood blister under a toenail). I stubbed a toe 20 miles from the nearest town back in October and had to do that on myself. It relieves the pain almost instantly.

      In town, I'd use a Dremel tool with a tiny drill bit. In the field, it's better to burn a little hole through the nail. I keep a paper clip in my first aid kit to use as a cautery. Unbend it, heat one end red hot and burn your way through. Video of the techique (trigger warning: blood) is here.
      I'm not lost. I know where I am. I'm right here.
    • jimmyjam wrote:

      Scrape a bee sting with credit card or like to remove the stinger. Never use twissers because it will squeeze venom out.

      Same reason behind not using tweezers to remove ticks. There are a variety of very small implements designed to remove ticks without squeezing. To be honest I usually use tweezers from my swiss army knife (cos I always have it in my pocket). I am very careful to pinch the tweezers right at the skin level beyond the "squishy" bit and onto the actual proboscis or sting and pull back gently.
      Resident Australian, proving being a grumpy old man is not just an American trait.
    • Rasty wrote:

      Drybones wrote:

      Rasty wrote:

      twistwrist wrote:

      ​Hey y'all.

      I don't have the money to get the $200 Wilderness First Aid Certification I'd hoped to obtain before hitting the trail in June.

      Obviously I know about blisters and cuts, but what are other first aid needs that hikers commonly experience on the trail? I'd like to compile a list with links to youtube videos demonstrating or teaching procedures for self-first aid. I'll post the final list here.


      Learn the Heimlich maneuver. Learn how to do it on yourself.



      I don't believe the hind lick can be done on ones self.


      Use a chair back or horizontal object and apply full force just below the diaphragm by using your body weight.


      ..............
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.
    • TrafficJam wrote:

      rafe wrote:

      +1 to Jacko's thoughts on this. Hiking pal Julie wanted to talk and speculate about this. Me, not so much. I don't see a big mystery in it. Prefer not to dwell on it.

      I'm actually a bit surprised this kind of thing doesn't happen more often, especially with more retired boomers on the trail all the time.
      I put together a FAK for my daughter (19) and we talked about how to use the stuff in it. I told her, there's a lot of old guys out hiking :) , be sure you know the signs and treatment of an MI.
      OK... I know the signs and the conventional treatment (get aspirin on board, keep the patient quiet, transport ASAP, CPR if indicated).

      On the trail, I think that's likely to turn into a "not much to be done" situation. I can get aspirin on board the patient, surely, and light a PLB or try (if there's a big group) to carry the patient to a trailhead. But what are the chances of getting the patient to an ED in time for clotbusters to be effective? Is there a better idea that I'm missing? Go back to the brutal treatments of fifty years ago, such as rotating torniquets around arms and legs to cut back on venous return in hopes of temporarily alleviating CHF?

      This is more of a resolution than my family ever got when my stepgrandfather disappeared, in much the same way that Inchworm did. They never found any trace of him, despite a months-long search with at times hundreds of volunteers, and a princely reward posted.

      In any case, I can think of worse ways to leave this life than having the Guy who owns the place decide to call me home while I'm Out There. Sure, there'd be a lot of pain and fear, but that would come with practically any way of passing. If I'm fit enough to be hiking nearly to the end, I can't ask for much more. I've had the Last Rites once and failed to depart on cue. The twenty years or so of extra time I've had have been a gift. There will always be more for me to do, but I know that at some point I'll be called away from doing it.
      I'm not lost. I know where I am. I'm right here.
    • When I hike I try not to get my blood pressure up because I don't want my mid cerebral aneurysm to burst.
      But I hike partly because I would rather it burst out there where mortality would be close to 100% certain than in town where mortality would be about 60% because a high proportion of the other 40% is a fate I would not prefer over mortality.
      We're all born with terminal life.
      You just have to make sure you live it to the end.
      Resident Australian, proving being a grumpy old man is not just an American trait.
    • When I hiked the Hundred Mile Wilderness in 1990 it was a lot wilder than it is now. On that hike I walked south from Baxter after climbing Katahdin. I had a bit of an epiphany on the way up Whitecap Mtn. I hadn't seen any other hikers for the better part of a day or more, and from where I stood on the mountain there was no sign of civilization whatsoever. No roads, no power lines, no buildings... nada.

      And I realized (among other things) that if I had some sort of medical emergency at that moment, I was well and truly f*cked.
    • OzJacko wrote:

      When I hike I try not to get my blood pressure up because I don't want my mid cerebral aneurysm to burst.
      But I hike partly because I would rather it burst out there where mortality would be close to 100% certain than in town where mortality would be about 60% because a high proportion of the other 40% is a fate I would not prefer over mortality.
      We're all born with terminal life.
      You just have to make sure you live it to the end.
      Kinda agree with this, I'd rather kick than have a stroke that leaves me paralyzed, Dueling, unable to wipe my but and a bird on on my family, not be able to hike/walk and maybe have the eat oatmeal with a sttraw...and I love oatmeal.
    • AnotherKevin wrote:

      TrafficJam wrote:

      rafe wrote:

      +1 to Jacko's thoughts on this. Hiking pal Julie wanted to talk and speculate about this. Me, not so much. I don't see a big mystery in it. Prefer not to dwell on it.

      I'm actually a bit surprised this kind of thing doesn't happen more often, especially with more retired boomers on the trail all the time.
      I put together a FAK for my daughter (19) and we talked about how to use the stuff in it. I told her, there's a lot of old guys out hiking :) , be sure you know the signs and treatment of an MI.
      OK... I know the signs and the conventional treatment (get aspirin on board, keep the patient quiet, transport ASAP, CPR if indicated).
      On the trail, I think that's likely to turn into a "not much to be done" situation. I can get aspirin on board the patient, surely, and light a PLB or try (if there's a big group) to carry the patient to a trailhead. But what are the chances of getting the patient to an ED in time for clotbusters to be effective? Is there a better idea that I'm missing? Go back to the brutal treatments of fifty years ago, such as rotating torniquets around arms and legs to cut back on venous return in hopes of temporarily alleviating CHF?
      I don't know about tourniquets. Don't do CPR in the wilderness if...
      • There's no sign of life
      • It puts the rescuer in danger
      • There's dependent lividity
      • There's an obvious fatal wound
      • The chest is frozen
      • There's a written DNR
      CPR is discontinued after 30 minutes.

      (Source is Wilderness First Responder, 3rd ed, Buck Tilton. I've been studying to prep for a WFR for healthcare professionals course.)
      Lost in the right direction.