What Do You Keep in Your Car for Emergencies?

Wuzzie · Dec 13, 2016

Gloves, CPR mask, cell phone and maybe some gauze. You don't need anything else. While your desire to want to help is commendable as nurses we are not trained to provide emergency care outside of the hospital and should leave that up to the people who are.

ETA: Didn't see the part about freezing winter. I also have one of those foil rescue blankets.

AceOfHearts<3 · Dec 13, 2016

I have my first aid kit that I take hiking (it has gloves, bandages, aspirin, etc), a CPR mask, and a thick mat/blanket. In the winter I always make sure I have extra gloves, hats, and a scarf.

I agree that I'm not properly trained to provide extensive care in trauma situations and I will leave that for the first responders, but I would do all that I could.

dishes, BSN, RN · Dec 13, 2016

Read the many media reports of good Samaritans who have been killed trying to help crash victims, in many cases the best thing to do is stay in your car and call 911.

RNperdiem, RN · Dec 14, 2016

I have a cell phone which I can use to call for emergency care. In a well-populated area, EMS can get here quickly.

KatieMI, BSN, MSN, RN · Dec 14, 2016

Gloves, a bottle with aspirin 325 mg pills (renewed yearly), Exedrin (same), 1 pack of chewable glucose pills, Chlorox desinfection wipes.

My own kit: 2 AdrenalClicks, 2 standard epinephrine amps, syringes, needles, tourniquet, alcohol swabs, sublingual Benadryl, Solu-medrol, ProAir. Can be used for someone else in case of anaphylaxis.

Non-medical: heating blanket which can be used in car, 2 power cells 5000 amps each, water, meat jerky, energy bars, paper towels, warm gloves, hygiene kit, flashlight with spare batteries.

Not that I always jump out of the car, but I had to use things a few times - mostly in bad traffic jams or if seeing a car with kids in a ditch among endless fields after a big snowstorm.

akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P · Dec 14, 2016

The things I would keep in my car for "roadside" emergencies would likely be a bit different from the typical stuff you would find in a commercial first aid kit. The primary reason for this is that I'm also a Paramedic. What's NOT going to be in there is probably more important than what is. In general, I won't have advanced airway equipment (though I could). I won't have any IV stuff. It's generally better to keep a trauma patient "dry" than to flood them with fluid, concentrating on stopping leaks is more important. Bandaging materials, an adjustable c-collar or two, a BVM, various kinds of tape, a SAM splint or two, and a couple triangular bandages is often what's in my kit.

I have an even greater need to communicate so I also usually have my cell phone and my handheld HAM radio with me too. Soon I'll also have my HF mobile radio in the car. Using these things (of which I'm properly licensed as necessary), I can pretty much reach out and get in touch with nearly anyone I need to, even in places where there is no cell phone service.

sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN · Dec 14, 2016

My 38 revolver & .380 semiautomatic

gloves, stethoscope., bpcuff

gauze pads...if I lived in blizzard areas blanket.....

anitalaff, BSN, RN · Dec 20, 2016

I have my first aid kit that I take hiking (it has gloves, bandages, aspirin, etc), a CPR mask, and a thick mat/blanket. In the winter I always make sure I have extra gloves, hats, and a scarf.
I agree that I'm not properly trained to provide extensive care in trauma situations and I will leave that for the first responders, but I would do all that I could.

Aspirin! Good thought. I will include that. Good point about the spare winter clothing too!

anitalaff, BSN, RN · Dec 20, 2016

My 38 revolver & .380 semiautomatic
gloves, stethoscope., bpcuff
gauze pads...if I lived in blizzard areas blanket.....

Yes, I have been wondering about assessment tools. Where do you store the weapons?

anitalaff, BSN, RN · Dec 20, 2016

The things I would keep in my car for "roadside" emergencies would likely be a bit different from the typical stuff you would find in a commercial first aid kit. The primary reason for this is that I'm also a Paramedic. What's NOT going to be in there is probably more important than what is. In general, I won't have advanced airway equipment (though I could). I won't have any IV stuff. It's generally better to keep a trauma patient "dry" than to flood them with fluid, concentrating on stopping leaks is more important. Bandaging materials, an adjustable c-collar or two, a BVM, various kinds of tape, a SAM splint or two, and a couple triangular bandages is often what's in my kit.
I have an even greater need to communicate so I also usually have my cell phone and my handheld HAM radio with me too. Soon I'll also have my HF mobile radio in the car. Using these things (of which I'm properly licensed as necessary), I can pretty much reach out and get in touch with nearly anyone I need to, even in places where there is no cell phone service.

Thank you! This is great and it speaks to stocking supplies according to your level of training and licensing. What is your opinion on some of the new "Stop the Bleed Kits" that are on the market?

Wuzzie · Dec 20, 2016

Aspirin! Good thought. I will include that. Good point about the spare winter clothing too!

I hope you know that you can't give that to someone without an order (outside of family members and friends who are unlikely to sue you). Better to wait for EMS to administer it. That's not to say you couldn't assist someone in taking their own ASA though.

Seriously, don't go crazy with this unless you live in some remote area. You don't need anything fancy. As nurses we really don't have the training to provide emergency care beyond the ABC's and putting pressure on bleeding things. Let the people who do provide that kind of care. Our goal as nurses is to keep them breathing, keep the blood circulating and don't make anything worse.

FTR: I am a seasoned flight nurse, a Paramedic and a first responder in another role.