Home Medical Care and Equipment

[GeoffH]

I carry and use a Lifestraw water bottle, it filters water so it’s (generally) safe to drink.

It has reduced the problem for me a lot.

[Tommy T.]

A couple of days ago L started complaining about her knee hurting and swelling a bit. I thought nothing of it because she complains often about various aches and pains that usually go away with a paracetamol or rest... not this time. She had apparently done some dancing and exercises at school on Friday and then experienced these symptoms on Saturday. She kept fairly active and it got worse.

So I reminded her and helped her with basic first aid RICE:

Rest

Ice

Compression

Elevation

I think these are mostly self-explanatory.  Except maybe the compression should be described a little?

Add elastic bandage to your home first-aid kit. Look in a book or go online and somewhere there will be a description or illustration how to properly wrap an injured ankle, knee, elbow, wrist. After wrapping snugly, you or your helper or partner must periodically check for circulation at fingers or toes. Easy to do - just take a finger or toe and gently but firmly squeeze the nail between your thumb and index finger for a moment. You will see the area below the nail turn whitish immediately. Then release the squeeze and the nail should turn pink again right away. You are squeezing the blood away for a moment then, if your circulation is okay, it rushes back in when you release. If not, then your bandage is a bit too tight and you should re-do it a little looser. If you are a novice, this might take a couple of tries to do it right...

I wanted her to also take anti-inflammatory medicine. She used Alaxan - which was new to me - and is an OTC med with both paracetamol and ibuprofen. That's a great combination! So she takes one every 4-6 hours depending on pain. It's important not to stop taking just because the pain is less, because it will return when the medicine is stopped. She will experiment after taking this for at least one or two days before letting it go without for a time. If pain returns, then return also to medicine.

Reminder from before - when taking this sort of pain med, it is important to NOT drink alcohol, drink plenty of fluids to flush your kidneys and liver and to eat something when taking because they may cause stomach upset.

Remember that this is just our experience, NOT proper medical advice.

Finally, this reminder from an online website:

The RICE method is best able to treat mild or moderate injuries, such as sprains, strains, and bruises. If a person has tried the RICE method but experiences no improvement, or if they are unable to put any weight on the injured area, they should seek medical attention.

[Tommy T.]

I think we have covered most of the primary medical concerns of ex-pats here already, mainly blood supply and pressure disorders leading to stroke or heart issues? I am getting a bit busy so am suggesting we let this thread run on a while and members can just continue to offer their good advice or ask questions. I will be happy to give suggestions from my background if needed.

One last thought for equipment right now - I think it would be wise to have a bathroom scale in every household. This way people can monitor if there seems to be unexpected weight loss or gain - either of which can be a symptom or sign of a possible underlying medical problem. I check mine weekly and so learned that I really do need to keep an eye on the amount of carbs (rice and pasta mainly) that I consume or I gain weight rather quickly. Same thing with beer .

Cheers!

[earthdome]

Just wanted to thank Tommy and all the others who contributed to this thread. Very valuable information. A good refresher for the first aid I learned as a Boy Scout and in the USN.

[Tommy T.]

9 hours ago, earthdome said:

Just wanted to thank Tommy and all the others who contributed to this thread. Very valuable information. A good refresher for the first aid I learned as a Boy Scout and in the USN.

Thanks, Earth.

You just made me think about this all again. I am sure I mentioned it before but, considering the proliferation of earthquakes recently I will make also some suggestions as reminders:

I think it's a good idea to keep some quantity of "extra" supplies on hand - from the basics of rice, canned food, pasta, bottled and washing water, long life vegetables - to medical supplies.

Consider having some extra bandages and wound dressings of small to large size. Also antibiotic ointments, anit-fungals, Betadine (or equivalent). You may require them due to earthquake damage or a relative, friend or neighbour may require assistance from you. Stock some extra paper towels (if you use them), toilet paper, rags, sanitary supplies, soaps.

Keep maybe a two week's - or even a month's - supply of over the counter meds to treat pain, allergy, heart maintenance (like aspirin) or other ailments. We discussed these before.

Visit your doctor and make sure to get back-up quantities of prescription meds, especially for heart, blood pressure, breathing, diabetes. Just rotate them through as you use them routinely to keep them fresh. Seldom used meds will usually last a year or more if stored even a bit properly - typically in a fridge. Don't forget the blue pills...

Supplies and electricity and water can be disrupted for anything from hours to weeks, depending on your location and the state of preparedness of local authorities and businesses. L was recently in Tokyo during a Cat III typhoon followed by a strong earthquake. Every store was closed - not even 7-11s were open - for a few days. This was very unsettling for her and an eye opener for me.

Keep on hand extra batteries for flashlights (and have more than one really bright one), radios, emergency lights. Also kerosene for oil lamps. If you have a car or motorcycle, consider either keeping an extra jerry can (locked up so it won't be siphoned or stolen) or maybe make a habit of keeping at least 1/4 or even 1/2 tank of gas in your vehicles instead of waiting for them to be running on fumes when you tank up.

Here in the Philippines the supply lines seem a bit thin so, after some sort of disaster strikes that shuts down these lines, it may take a long time to re-establish - count on it.

Good luck to us all!

Edited November 14, 2019 by Tommy T.