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What should I include in my first aid kit when I take a cross-country vacation?

Your vacation first aid kit should include many of the same basic supplies that you keep in your first aid kit at home. So it should contain the following for treating minor injuries such as burns, cuts, and scrapes:

* Bandages for cuts and abrasions
* >First aid tape
* >Scissors
* >Antiseptic
* >Antibiotic ointment
* >Burn and sting relief ointment
* >Tweezers
* >Gauze
* >Bug Spray
* >Medical gloves
* >Elastic bandages for sprains and securing bandages
* Flashlight and >batteries
* First Aid manual

Since you'll be spending a lot of time in your car, you should also be prepared for the possibility of breakdowns--and getting stranded. So you should also carry a cell phone and put a blanket and a container of drinking water in your car trunk.

If you're planning to drive far off the beaten path or take hikes along the way, you may also want to take along a canteen, drinking water disinfecting kit, waterproof matches for starting a fire, a portable radio, and enough canned or freeze-dried foods to sustain you for several days and a can opener to open the cans. Also take >insect repellent, >sunscreen (SPF 15 or higher), >toilet paper, >soap, >toothpaste, >sanitary napkins and >disposable cleaning cloths, such as > "Chubs baby wipes" that you can use if bathing facilities are not available. Before your trip, read your hiking or mountaineering guide so you know you're prepared for weather changes, and have proper clothing and emergency supplies.

Carsickness medicine like >dimenhydrinate (brand name Dramamine) or diarrhea medicine such as >loperamide (Imodium A-D) can also come in handy on long trips. So can other over-the-counter medications, including >acetaminophen (Tylenol), >ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), or >aspirin for pain and fever, and an antihistamine such as >diphenhydramine (Benadryl) to help relieve reactions from insect stings or poison ivy.

Add supplies for any special needs of you or your passengers, with directions on how to use them. For example, nitroglycerin tablets for angina sufferers and bee sting kits for people allergic to bee stings should be carried at all times, preferably in a backpack, briefcase, or purse. And if someone wears contact lenses, keep extra >lens solution.

Finally, if you know your itinerary, compile a list of emergency phone numbers that you can use in the towns or cities you'll be passing through or visiting, and put that list in your first aid kit.

Sources:
Mayo Clinic Family Health Book. William Morrow & Co., 1996.
Smith, E. "Time Is Efficacy: Panel Rethinks Effectiveness of Emergency Poison Treatments," Drug Topics 142 (1998).

This answer prepared 11/30/00.