Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Medical and Healthcare
Appin
Posts: 285
Joined: Wed Jun 20, 2012 6:04 pm

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by Appin »

A couple of thoughts

Nexium or similar for severe indigestion. Available over the counter in Asda. Much more effective than simple antacids

If you have the cash and I agree not cheap a pulse oximeter which gives a measure of the bloods saturation with oxygen. They are now used outinely to assess how ill someone is and in Covid a low pulse ox reading is a serious sign even if patient appears well. It is used as part of the NHS NEWS score ( National Early warning Score). In pandemic flu planning the oxygen saturation reading would be used to decide if admission to hospital would be needed.

https://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/projects/ou ... ore-news-2


https://www.wms.co.uk/wms/en/GBP/Pulse- ... /p/W435019
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Pete_59
Posts: 61
Joined: Thu Feb 02, 2017 6:51 pm
Location: Norfolk

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by Pete_59 »

Appin wrote: Fri Jul 17, 2020 10:03 pm
If you have the cash and I agree not cheap a pulse oximeter which gives a measure of the bloods saturation with oxygen.
These can be had for less than a tenner

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/UK-Fingertip ... Swk6RfDVrT
jansman
Posts: 13623
Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2010 7:16 pm

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by jansman »

Where do you stop though? Diy appendectomy anyone? The kit is only any good if you know what to do with it. That old saying, " a little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing" springs to mind here.My next first aid training will involve tourniquets.Until then,that is a piece of kit I'll steer clear of.I was trained way back in 1980 in the Navy to use one in battlefield conditions,but it ain't current.

My wife and I have both got accredited workplace first aid training,and that's just it - FIRST aid. To keep someone alive until a proper medic gets there. Even at the height of the pandemic,an ambulance was never far away if you were seriously ill.

The last time I visited my doctor ( a rare occasion,thankfully), he askwd me if I had already looked up my symptoms on the web.I said no. His response? " Thank Christ for that,everyone knows my job better than me these days! " My dentist said similar about DIY filling kits; " you could be lucky,and patch it up temporarily,but you could also lock an infection in the tooth. "

Even OTC medicine has to be taken under instructions.
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

Robert Frost.

Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.
Arzosah
Posts: 6323
Joined: Fri Jun 22, 2012 4:20 pm

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by Arzosah »

jansman wrote: Sat Jul 18, 2020 6:53 am Where do you stop though? My dentist said similar about DIY filling kits; " you could be lucky,and patch it up temporarily,but you could also lock an infection in the tooth. " ...

Even OTC medicine has to be taken under instructions.
Oh! I just bought some ... I'd rather have it than not have it, of course, but thats definitely something to be aware of.
jansman
Posts: 13623
Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2010 7:16 pm

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by jansman »

Arzosah wrote: Sat Jul 18, 2020 8:29 am
jansman wrote: Sat Jul 18, 2020 6:53 am Where do you stop though? My dentist said similar about DIY filling kits; " you could be lucky,and patch it up temporarily,but you could also lock an infection in the tooth. " ...

Even OTC medicine has to be taken under instructions.
Oh! I just bought some ... I'd rather have it than not have it, of course, but thats definitely something to be aware of.
As you say, better have and not need, and in a real crunch, who knows? I just don’t chance it, as my teeth need constant attention these days!
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

Robert Frost.

Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.
Lemne
Posts: 286
Joined: Thu Jul 09, 2020 6:44 pm

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by Lemne »

I am definitely buying some of the toothy peg doo dahs. I had two teeth out at the beginning of the year and got 'dry socket' in both of them. I thought an abscess was painful until I got that.

I have basic first aid at work and hubs has level 3 first aid at work. We both have dog and cat first aid so you may end up with a bandaged ear and vet wrap lol I going to work through the courses and get a much better knowledge. I'm mainly starting with replacing the things I already have and am stocking up on OTC because of brexit just in case. I already have a healthy backup supply of script meds. This is more of a list to work through will will probs change as I go along. I will defo look at the oxygen sats.
Nurseandy
Posts: 690
Joined: Sun Jul 29, 2018 7:12 am

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by Nurseandy »

If you're going to buy a pulse oximeter its worth considering getting one with an ear probe. All pulse oximeters are just an indication of blood oxygen saturation not a definitive result. Nail varnish,dirty nails, fungal infection of the nail, poor circulation or just being cold will all affect the reading you get from a finger probe, hence the ear probe generally gives a more reliable reading.
Personally (for what it's worth) I wouldn't bother and use the money for something else. The patient will not be admitted directly to hospital on your say so of low oxygen sats from a home machine. The paramedics will still have to attend and decide for themselves.
Respiratory distress or deficiency is pretty obvious and you don't need an instrument in a first aid environment to alert you. Helpful in a healthcare setting to monitor deterioration/improvement trends but not so much at home.
As others have said, training is more important than shiny kit.
There endeth the sermon ;-)
Arzosah
Posts: 6323
Joined: Fri Jun 22, 2012 4:20 pm

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by Arzosah »

Lemne wrote: Sat Jul 18, 2020 12:46 pm I am definitely buying some of the toothy peg doo dahs. I had two teeth out at the beginning of the year and got 'dry socket' in both of them. I thought an abscess was painful until I got that.
Yikes! Didn't know about dry socket ... there's always more research to do.
I have basic first aid at work and hubs has level 3 first aid at work. We both have dog and cat first aid so you may end up with a bandaged ear and vet wrap lol
Awwww! That's a very, very good idea. Good for you.
jansman
Posts: 13623
Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2010 7:16 pm

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by jansman »

Our youngest saw our dentist this week.She has been there since being a baby,and that's a few Summers! We are private patients,( not stinking rich though!), but it has paid off when we have had problems,as we get straight in.

Bob told her that he was very,very annoyed with the government for shutting him down,as firstly,he is NOT NHS ( we pay for his services),and secondly, the government underestimated the severity of dental health.As he stresses when he has done an extraction on me; get it wrong with teeth,and you DIE!

Medical professionals are worth their weight in gold.
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

Robert Frost.

Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.
Appin
Posts: 285
Joined: Wed Jun 20, 2012 6:04 pm

Re: Home Medical/Brexit Kit list

Post by Appin »

Just a thought on the how far do you go / whats the point in a Pulse oximeter discussion.

Even in current times being able to give more information to the amulance service if you call them will help.

It is becoming well recognised that some people with Covid have very low oxygen levels but still seem ok. A pulse ox allows early recognition before the patient gets too sick.

So if you call ambulance and say "my spouse has a cough and is short of breath", they will deal with you but you will not be top priority.

Call and say he is not well and has sats of only 80% they will react far more. ( Normal is 94 - 98%).

Equally you may feel not too bad but if your pulse ox shows sats of 80% you need to be assessed.

It's the same as the difference between saying "my kid feels hot" and "my kid has a temperature of 39.5". The first is an opinion the second is a fact. Often with ambulance or GP/ hospital exactly what you say matters. Likewise at a road crash, Two people are hurt is OK but add "one is unconscious and I can see blood spurting out of their leg" it moves up the priority scale.

Generally I reckon it a bit like sorcery, you have to know the right incantation but if you do, you get a reaction.

Appin