Conference unifix::sailing

    One important item to keep in that 1st aid kit (or elsewhere on the
    boat) is something for motion sickness (my choice is Bonine).  I find
    this is the most often used item in the kit.
    
    ... Bob
    

    Does anyone have a good list of what to bring for weekend cruising?  As a 
    ski patrolman, here's a list of what we carry (and are equipped
    to use).  Any additions would be most appreciated:
    
    Bandaids
    Assorted sterile compresses (1/2 dozen or so)
    2 rolls of Cling
    2 rolls of Adhesive tape
    pocket Flashlight
    Swiss army knife
    Seam ripper
    Chicken wire (for splint)
    Tournequet (sp) materials
    1/2 dozen crevats
    whistle on lanyard
    disposable rubber gloves (how well do you know your crew!?)
    Tweezers
    pencil and note pad
    
    I would add, for a boat:
    Seasickness medicine
    Copy of red cross advanced first aid book
    Tylenol
    Earache medicine
    Green soap (poison ivy, etc)
    Disinfectant
    Vaseline
    Heat and Cold packs
    
    All of this should fit nicely into a fairly sized waterproof
    box clearly marked first aid.  Also, keep an inventory and 
    mark off anything as it is used.
    
                       
    	

    
    If anyone is allergic to bee stings, you might want to carry a bee
    sting kit.  I don't know why, but several times now I've seen bees hang
    around my boat for quite a while.  They're probably lost, or just
    looking for a place to rest up.
    
    I'm allergic, so I carry a kit, 'cause it's a long way back when you
    are in a hurry.
    
    Dick
    

    There are lot's of things aboard a boat that attract bees, just like at
    a picnic.  It's amazing what critters will fly onto your boat quite a
    way off shore.  We were coming up the coast of long island and there
    were hundreds of small black flies that kept coming over the bow. 
    Looked like miniature house flies but they bit.  Our cockpit was littered
    with them after swatting them all afternoon.  
    
      

Another nice-to-have is an air splint.  Though they come in different 
sizes, you can put an arm in a leg splint if necessary.  (Some models you
can fold back to a shorter length before inflating, though it's not as
neat as having the right item.)  Advantages include perfect fit even over
clothing, speed of application, adjustable pressure, inherent shock
absorption if the affected limb hits something, and ability to use in some
circumstances with a compress to stem serious bleeding. 

And that saves the chicken wire for keeping seagulls from going
belowdecks. 

From observation and anecdotal evidence collected from folks who help 
others on the water for a living, I believe the most common serious
injuries on board are burns, hypothermia and head injuries. 

- Burns require having a good quantity of *large* clean dressings; not
  expensive, useful for smaller injuries, and essential when you need them. 
  Dehydration and infection are the enemy in large burns which blister or 
  worse.  

- Hypothermia is mostly an education and early signs recognition issue;
  prevention is 1% the effort (and .01% the risk) of coping with
  significant core temp drop in a victim. 

- On sailboats, it seems there are a disproportionate number of head 
  injuries, too.  The line between manageable and life-threatening can 
  be finer than with the same injury elsewhere on the body; controlling 
  bleeding and getting help quickly are key.

Best thing to have on board is knowledge--if not already done, take a CPR 
and a First Aid Course, then buy, read and carry on board one of the
better on-board medical guides.  Most people prefer to avoid this 
obviously excellent strategy due to squeamishness, which is entirely human 
if not so sensible.

The second-best thing (if you're mostly coastal) is a good VHF and nav 
system that allows you to let help know exactly where you are so others 
can find you.  More than one person on board should know how to use both,
since the skipper is not immune from incapacitating injury. 

We all practice Man Overboard drills, right?  Try practicing medical 
emergency drills which require locating, preparing and using medical
supplies and playing out an Emergency Plan.  Everyone involved will be 
better prepared if/when an emergency happens, and feel better knowing they 
are.

J. 

One comment on seasickness:  For a day, no lasting effects.  Fro more than 
a day, the villain becomes dehydration.  Surprisingly to some, dehydration
is a signficant problem on board for cruisers anyway.  (Ever become
constipated after a few days or a week on board?) 

Apart from all the strategies for coping with seasickness itself, a good 
practice is to have all crew members--including those who are seasick--
drink at least one 8-oz cup of water per watch.  That's far less than one 
should have, but it's a step in the right direction and possible even for
someone fully green around the gills to sip through over an hours-long
period.  

J.

    re: .2; I'd carry a pocket mask, too.  They're useful in CPR, should
    you need it.  As you said, 'how well do you know your guests?'
    
    re: .3; Aren't bee-sting kits by prescription only?  If you're allergic
    and you have a script, then carry it by all means.  Otherwise, make
    sure allergic guests bring theirs.  But I would not have thought you
    can buy them without a prescription.
    
    re: .5; if I may suggest, if you use an airsplint, do not apply it over
    clothes.  Cut the clothes away first.  The same is true with most
    bandaging--expose the injury before you treat it.
    

    A copy of "your ship's doctor" or whatever it is called is a handy
    reference.  I believe it also has several list of recommended medical
    kits from band-aids, tape and sunscreen for daysailing to full blown
    kits with sutures and intravenous drugs.  We have one of these books
    aboard and had the unfortunate chance to use it when a crew member got 
    a finger stuck in a block and broke it.    
    
    An alternative to compresses are sanitary napkins.  These were
    recommended to me by one of the ski areas I used to patrol at.  Very
    absorbent, usually much cheaper than bandages and they are sterile.  

    About eight years ago I took a first-aid course from the American Red
    Cross when we lived in Minneapolis and had long range plans at some
    point to sail off into the sunset.  This was a 60 hour class that met
    two nights a week for three hours and ran for ten weeks.  This was
    required for all Minneapolis policemen and firemen.  It is a very
    extensive class that went way past what is normally considered
    first-aid.  I would repeat this type of training before actually taking
    a extended cruising trip.  This is excellent course and a good way to
    pass long winter nights.  They provided a very detailed book on
    first-aid which I keep onboard.  They also have information on what
    should be in a first-aid kit.  Even if you don't take any classes they
    are a good source on the subject.
    
    Chuck

    I just picked up Ocean Navigator and there is an outfitting a first aid
    kit article.  The publications they recommend to keep aboard are:
    
    Standard First Aid & Personal Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation - American
    National Red Cross
    
    Advanced First Aid Afloat - Peter F. Eastman M.D.
    
    Your Offshore Doctor - Michael H. Beilan M.D. 
    
    The Cruising Sailor's Medical Guide - Nicholas C. Leone M.D. &
    Elizabeth C. Phillips R.N.
    
    Complete Guide to Prescription and Non-Prescription Drugs - H. Winter
    Griffith M.D.
    
    Beyond this, the article seems to describe in detail the elements for
    being able to cope with just about every conceivable medical emergency
    off shore or in remote cruising areas.  The article is in the
    March/April 1991 issue of Ocean Navigator and begins on page 100.  
    
    Brian