College of DuPage Nursing Student Robert Sullivan shared that with the return to school and the start of fall sports, now is the perfect time to review a current first aid kit or to make one. Very often, the first people on the scene are bystanders and not the First Responders. Having and maintaining a first aid kit and becoming trained in first aid, will equip one to be more than a bystander but a responder. There are many items that will be helpful if the situation for response occurs, starting with what is applicable for a family of four according to the American Red Cross (American Red Cross, 2021). These items include:

• A first aid guide
• 2 absorbent compress dressings (5 x 9 inches)
• 25 adhesive bandages (assorted sizes)
• 1 adhesive cloth tape (10 yards x 1 inch)
• 5 antibiotic ointment packets
• 5 antiseptic wipe packets
• 2 packets of aspirin (81 mg each)
• 1 emergency blanket
• 1 breathing barrier (with one-way valve)
• 1 instant cold compress
• 2 pairs of non-latex gloves (size: large)
• 2 hydrocortisone ointment packets
• 1 3-inch gauze roll (roller) bandage
• 1 roller bandage (4 inches wide)
• 5 3 x 3-inch sterile gauze pads
• 5 sterile gauze pads (4 x 4 inches)
• A thermometer (non-mercury/non-glass)
• 2 triangular bandages
• Tweezers

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