First Aid
Image credit: Getty Images
From a kitchen burn to a playground fall, minor emergencies can happen in a heartbeat.
A well-stocked first aid kit at home ensures you can be calm, confident, and ready to act.
In an emergency, preparation is everything. A properly stocked first-aid kit can save a life, says Jody Frantz, Emergency Care Practitioner and Branch Manager at ER24 Somerset West. The right items allow you to act quickly, protect the injured person, and prevent a minor incident from becoming something far more serious.
What should be in your first-aid kit?
Most of us have plasters on hand when we need them, but it’s easy to overlook the items that really matter. According to AJ Esterhuizen, a paramedic at ER24 Somerset West, the most commonly missed essentials are disposable gloves, trauma shears, burn dressings, and instant cold packs. “Gloves aren’t optional,” he says. “They’re vital for infection control.”
Other must-haves are:
- Tweezers and saline for cleaning wounds
- Antiseptic solution or wipes
- Bandages
- Small flashlight
- List of emergency contacts and known allergies.
Check expiry dates
Both Esterhuizen and Frantz recommend checking your first-aid kits every 6-12 months and replacing anything you’ve used in an emergency. This is especially important for kits kept in cars, where temperatures can climb above 50°C – causing adhesives to melt, antiseptic wipes to dry out, and gels to lose their effectiveness.
“Medications and antiseptics degrade quickly in heat,” Frantz adds. “Latex gloves can crack, and hydrogels may leak or separate. A shaded or insulated box helps, but replacements every few months are safest.”
Quick-expiring items include:
- Adhesive plasters and tapes
- Painkillers, antiseptics and antihistamines
- Alcohol wipes and burn gels
- Latex gloves (nitrile lasts longer).
Think before you act in an emergency
“The biggest mistake in a medical emergency is jumping in before you’ve assessed the situation,” says Frantz. “People often rush to move someone or give them water without first checking for hazards or whether they’re breathing.” Esterhuizen agrees: “Safety comes first – you can’t help if you become a patient yourself.”
He suggests remembering the DRSABCD protocol, a first-aid action plan:
- Danger – Check for hazards to yourself, the patient, and bystanders.
- Response – See if the person is conscious or reacts to voice/touch.
- Send for help – Call emergency services immediately.
- Airway – Open and clear the airway.
- Breathing – Look, listen, and feel for normal breathing.
- CPR / Control bleeding – Start CPR if there’s no breathing, or control severe bleeding if present.
- Defibrillation – Use an AED as soon as it’s available.
Preparedness beyond the kit
Training is what really makes the difference. “Take a certified emergency care or CPR course,” says Frantz. He also suggests keeping an easy-to-see emergency contact list, having fire extinguishers and smoke alarms, and even doing a quick safety drill with your family.
“When people are calm and have practised what to do, they respond faster,” Frantz adds. “They give clearer information to the dispatcher and help calm the patient – that confidence can save lives.”
Being prepared isn’t just about having a first-aid box in the cupboard. It’s about your mindset. A five-minute check or a quick CPR refresher can turn fear into confidence. “Something is always better than nothing,” Esterhuizen says. “Even imperfect CPR is better than no CPR at all.”