Day 16: Update First Aid Kits (15 Minute Prepping Projects)

Welcome to DAY 16 of our 15 Minute Prepping Projects series. Today’s project is to do an inventory of the first aid items in your home and update them as necessary.

Every day for the month of September we will celebrate National Preparedness Month by undertaking a small task to help us get more prepared. Do as few or as many days as you want. Jump in at any time. Do them out of order, or more than one in a day. And feel free to share what you are doing!

Click here and scroll to the bottom of the post to view all the past days’ projects.

Everyone typically has at least a little bit of first aid supplies in their home (even just some ibuprofen and bandaids counts). So for today’s task it’s a two-part project. First, I want you to inventory what you currently have and check for expiration dates. As a general rule it’s best to avoid expired medicine but I know I like to push those limits to avoid waste. Here is a good guideline on things to think about when deciding if you should throw things away or not.

Make sure to check ALL your first aid stations in your home. I have some in my 72 hour kits, some in my car kits, and some on each floor of the house. Make sure all of them are up to date and fully stocked!

Here is a list from the red cross of recommended items that a family of four should have in their homes. It’s a good starting point if you are unsure of what all you should have.

2 absorbent compress dressings (5 x 9 inches)
25 adhesive bandages (assorted sizes)
1 adhesive cloth tape (10 yards x 1 inch)
5 antibiotic ointment packets (approximately 1 gram)
5 antiseptic wipe packets
2 packets of aspirin (81 mg each)
1 blanket (space blanket)
1 breathing barrier (with one-way valve)
1 instant cold compress
2 pair of nonlatex gloves (size: large)
2 hydrocortisone ointment packets (approximately 1 gram each)
Scissors
1 roller bandage (3 inches wide)
1 roller bandage (4 inches wide)
5 sterile gauze pads (3 x 3 inches)
5 sterile gauze pads (4 x 4 inches)
Oral thermometer (non-mercury/nonglass)
2 triangular bandages
Tweezers
First aid instruction booklet (I like this guide from the Red Cross)

Make a plan for your prescription medications, can you fill your refills a little early until you are able to stockpile some extras? Maybe have a discussion with your doctor about what to do in emergency situations when there could be potential supply issues. If your medicine needs to be refrigerated make sure you have an emergency power supply that can power at least a small fridge for your medications.

Consider storing essential oils and other natural items that can be used for healing and tend to have a longer shelf life than traditional medicines. We have a post about about stocking a “natural” medicine cabinet that you can review for more ideas.

Share Your Results

I hope today is a valuable day for your preps. First aid can be tricky if you aren’t confident in the basics. This should be a good starting point for you! Please share what YOUR first aid supplies look like so we can all learn from each other. Here are some ways you can share:

Instagram: Use #15minuteprep and tag @jodi_foodstoragemadeeasy on any post or story you do featuring your project. You can follow the hashtag to see everyone’s projects and if you tag me I will repost in my stories throughout the day (if your account is public).

Facebook: Comment on the PINNED posts in my Facebook Group (If you are not a member yet I will try to get you added within 24 hours so you can play along). The most recent day should show up at the top and you can scroll to the right to see past days. I will try to share some of these to Facebook stories as well (no names will be used, don’t worry!)

Text me: If you are not already signed up to get the daily challenges via text just text 15minuteprep to 717-788-3663. You can always reply to the daily text with your “report” so I can check in on you.