Articles Index
Fieldtex First Aid Kit
Chances are pretty good you won't need or use all of the supplies that come with this first aid kit. Prefilled first aid kits like this one are intended to cover a lot of bases. You could do the same thing cheaper by building your own, but it can be a lot of work. To fill a kit like this you may end up buying more than you need. Overall, this is a reasonable kit at a reasonable price -- good for putting in the RV, the camping box or the disaster evacuation kit.
The Life You Save
The Life You Save: Nine Steps to Finding the Best Medical Care - and Avoiding the Worst by Patrick Malone should be on the coffee table of every person with a chronic medical condition. More importantly, it should also be on the coffee table of every person yet to be diagnosed with any medical condition.
Home Emergency Pocket Guide
This is a good reference tool for use in the heart of the emergency. It's more limited as a preparation tool because of its small size and lack of a traditional table of contents. Most of the information needed to prepare for a disaster is in there -- it's just hard to find.
Behavioral First Aid
Behavioral First Aid by Virginia J. Duffy, Ph.D., RN covers behavioral emergencies from the first responder point of view. This text fills a void in prehospital education, but it would benefit from some vigorous editing. Read the review of Behavioral First Aid.
American College of Emergency Physicians First Aid Manual
The American College of Emergency Physicians First Aid Manual is a comprehensive first aid text, but it may be too much for the average household. The tips are good, and the images clearly illustrate the steps. Unfortunately, many readers will be scared away by the sheer volume of technical information presented.
EMS Field Guide: ALS Version
The EMS Field Guide by Informed is probably the most popular pocket reference guide carried on ambulances across the country. It does what it's supposed to do better than any other guide on the market.
The Little Book of Big Medical Emergencies
Too little information for serious medical emergencies, and too little coverage of minor medical emergencies puts this reference book off the mark. Dr. Fischer is capable enough of writing for the layperson, but the subject matter doesn't serve most of the folks he's attempting to reach. It's easy to read, but mostly irrelevant.
First Voice Self-contained Emergency Treatment System
The First Voice first aid kit system provides a unique way to help non-trained rescuers respond to emergencies. Unfortunately, I think the value of the First Voice system falls short of its price.
Backcountry First Aid and Extended Care
This pocket (or pack) guidebook has enough information to get a trained packer through almost any wilderness medical emergency - big and small. A packer without training, however, might not have enough medical knowledge to follow the detailed instructions.
Hypothermia Frostbite and Other Cold Injuries
Hypothermia Frostbite and Other Cold Injuries by Gordon G. Giesbrecht, Ph.D. and James A. Wilkerson, M.D. provides a fact-filled discussion of extreme cold injuries and cold exposure pathophysiology. Here is a review of Hypothermia Frostbite and Other Cold Injuries.