I Took a Wilderness First Responder Course, Here’s How My First Aid Kit Changed
I just got back from FINALLY taking a wilderness first responder certification. I took a hybrid version through NOLS which consisted of 45 hours of online modules and 5 full in-person days with 2 night sessions. Overall, I felt it was TOTALLY worth taking this course and I feel much more prepared for dealing with medical situations that could arise in the backcountry. Regardless of what version you take or who you take it through, I think a WFR course is a great resource for ANYONE who spends extended time in the backcountry.
That said, I was super curious to see how much it affected my typically “ultralight” mentality and specifically how it changed my approach to a first aid kit.
This is NOT medical advice, you should take a course if you’d like to make your own informed decisions about your personal first aid kit. I’m just sharing what works for me and what I’ll be doing moving forward. I am also framing this in the context of a PERSONAL first aid kit, this would probably be more comprehensive if I was guiding, this is just what I’m comfortable carrying for myself and for potential situations I could help with.
For some context, my first aid kit before was pretty minimal. I am proud of some of the items I already had in there.
I’m going to go through each section of my backpacking first aid kit, and talking about what I was already carrying and why, plus what I’m going to be adding or swapping.
WOUND CARE: HAD
Gauze pads: Keep!
I like having gauze pads to be able to cover larger wounds and also cut down for smaller issues. It’s more versatile for me than carrying a bunch of different sized bandaids and I find that luekotape and gauze sticks better than traditional bandaids anyway.
Leukotape: keep!
I love leukotape. It sticks so much better than anything else I’ve found. The only thing to consider here is potentially carrying one other type of tape in case someone is allergic to leukotape.
Minimal bandaids: keep!
Sometimes having a bandaid to slap on to a small cut is convenient, so I’ll keep 2-3 of these in my first aid kit for when I don’t feel like cutting gauze and leuktoape and it’s not in a high friction spot where I’m worried about it falling off.
Alcohol pads: keep!
Alcohol pads are nice to have for cleaning small cuts and blisters.
Triple antibiotic ointment: update! > Single antibiotic ointment
I will be updating my triple antibiotic ointment to something that is single antibiotic. People can be allergic to one of the antibiotics so it makes more sense to minimize the types in the ointment.
Mini swiss army knife (tweezers and little scissors): keep!
The mini swiss army knife is a great little versatile tool that is helpful for cutting gauze and bandages and also comes with tweezers.
Safety pin: Keep!
Safety pins can be a great repair item and also can be used to drain blisters. Plus, they are tiny and light.
WOUND CARE: ADDING
These are so tiny and light and are kind of just a no brainer to add in case of bigger avulsions or lacerations. Especially now that I’m getting into trail running and more trips may be in my future.
I really like the idea of transparent bandages to be able to keep an eye on a wound over several days in the backcountry. These are also super light and equivalent to adding a few bandaids. They also work well with the gauze I already carry.
I’ll probably keep a box of gloves at home and keep a pair in my first aid kit so I can be ready if I do ever have to help someone else. Plus, I have a friend who uses these for fly fishing to keep his hands a little warmer so I could also use them for that/ as rain mitts in an emergency. I’ll use nitrile so I don’t have to worry about latex allergies. I also chose nitrile to avoide any issues with latex allergies.
An irrigation syringe works well for everything from small scrapes to open fractures. It’s also super light and easy to add to the kit, so this is something I’ll be picking up for my kit.
Medications: Had
Ibuprofen: keep
I’m pretty sure this is a staple of all thru-hiker first aid kits, and I don’t plan on leaving mine at home any time soon! Good for pain relief.
Diphenhydramine (Bendaryl): swap!
Although I don’t have any known allergies, I keep benadryl in my first aid kit for potential reactions. It’s great to have on hand for someone else or yourself. It can also double as a sleep aid. I will be swapping the typical tablets with generics that don’t have the pink coloring because people can be allergic to the red dye.
Immodium: keep
Immodium is an anti-diarrheal which can help with a variety of illnesses you may come across in the backcountry. I’ll be keeping immodium in my kit to help myself or others who might have any sort of gastrointestinal distress that is leading to lots of diarrhea and therefore fluid loss.
I have 325mg aspirin in my kit in case I run into someone who is having a potential cardiac issue. It’s super light and worth it to me in case I ever come across that situation. I will be adding 81 mg doses in case I come across someone in this situation who has already taken an 81 mg dose that day.
NOTE: 81mg doses have been called “baby aspirin” but this is a misnomer and I learned that giving baby’s aspirin can actually cause deafness so do NOT confuse that name with it being a medication for infants.
Medications: Adding
I plan to add glucose tablets for diabetics to my first aid kit after taking my WFR. It’s a super light thing that is easy to have on hand in case of an emergency and could make a real difference in the backcountry.
Honestly, I can’t believe I didn’t have tums in my kit before. I deal with enough tummy upset that this is sort of a no brainer for me to add.
Acetaminophen (Tylenol)
I’ll be adding tylenol as an additional pain relief option.
WARNING: don’t give medications to someone if you don’t have enough information. Learning how to administer over the counter medications for people who need it is another great reason to take a WFR course.
MISC: Had
Aquatabs: keep!
Aquatabs are great when you are filtering water from a source that you suspect may have viruses and you want to use extra caution to treat your water.
I always keep a few tampons in my kit in case my period catches me by surprise or in case someone else’s does! The kind I use are super light and not bulky. Plus, they make a great backup fire starter!
MISC: ADDING
Especially now that I’m doing more trail running, adding an emergency blanket seems like a really good thing to add to my first aid kit. It’s great to have for a variety of situations and is light enough to add without stress.
Print out of PAS with “normals”
Now that I’m a certified WFR I will also be adding a print out of the patient assessment system with some cheat sheets for normal vitals, etc. I know that I won’t remember EVERYTHING from my course so it’ll be good to have this on hand if/when a situation arises where I could help.
In summary, I highly recommend anyone who spends a good amount of time in the backcountry to take a WFR course. It will prepare you to respond and help when more help may be very very far away.
If you have any questions about my first aid kit please leave them in the comments. I’d also love to hear from you and what you like to pack in yours!