What should you put in your trauma kit? That is a question that we often hear from our students.

Keep your kit to a minimum. You don't want to sort through dozens of items in an emergency. The essential core items for your individual first aid kit (IFAK) should stay the same for mall runs, range work, or hunting expeditions. If you want to keep more than one, that's up to you. Most of us keep one in our everyday carry bag, one on our shooting rigs, and one in our vehicle.

Many online retailers offer an all-in-one kit filled with items ready for your use. That can work, but they can be pricey, and there are often extra items of marginal benefit thrown in there. It's easiest and most cost-effective to buy the items separately and stock the kit yourself. If purchasing components separately, you can also get things you are most comfortable or familiar with. It's helpful when restocking to use the same brands, so your familiarity with them remains the same.

Are you looking for training in how and when to use these items? Using all this gear is covered in our Trauma Management I class. We also offer a short course called Trauma Essentials covering tourniquet application, wound packing, and using a chest seal.

IFAK POUCHES

The two IFAK pouches that are our personal preferences right now are:

• ITS Tactical Fatboy or Tallboy
• Dark Angel Medical HEDR

BASIC IFAK 

• 1-2x Tourniquets
• 2x Wound packing gauze or 2x Quikclot hemostatic gauze
• 1-2x Hyfin Chest Seals
• 1-2x ETD Emergency Trauma Dressing (Israeli also works)
• 1x Nitrile gloves
• 1x Trauma shears
• 2x Triangular Bandage
• 1x Sharpie
• Band-aids and antibiotic ointment

Extended Equipment

• 1x Survival blanket
• 1x Sam Splint
• Standard Sick Call Meds
  • Basic Medications pack
  • Liquid IV (Electrolyte supplement)