What Is an IFAK?
If you’ve looked into prepping and stocking your own supplies, you’ve probably heard the term IFAK. But what does it mean? Here’s everything you need to know about IFAKs and why you need one.
What Is an IFAK?
An IFAK is an individual first aid kit, but it’s more like a trauma kit than your basic kit of first aid supplies. IFAKs are often carried by law enforcement officers and military members to use in emergencies in the field, like for obstructed airways and severe hemorrhaging from gunshot wounds.
But civilians are starting to carry them more as the number of active shooter incidents continues to rise in America.
IFAKs are compact and easy to carry, and you can use them in a variety of medical emergencies. While there are no standard contents in an IFAK, most all of them include a tourniquet. In general, they contain medical supplies that match the training of the person carrying them. They also address the possible risks that this individual may face.
If the person is part of a SWAT team, in combat or a paramedic, then their kits will likely contain airway insertions and needles for decompressions. Many have a surgical airway kit that includes a 10 cc syringe, #10 scalpel, 6.5 mm trach tube and 550-cord. Most of them have a tourniquet and QuikClot or a similar hemostatic agent that reduces blood flow from wounds.
Other items you can include are:
- 14-gauge catheter
- Medical tape
- CPR face shield
- Z fold gauze
- Betadine/iodine swabs
- Petroleum jelly
- Gloves
- Shears
- Emergency blanket
You may also find other supplies that you want to add to your IFAK. Many people create their own bags, but you can also buy fully stocked active shooter or trauma kits.
Of course, the type of supplies you include in your kit depends on the size of the bag you choose. Remember, an IFAK is something you need to keep on you at all times. It won’t work if you leave it in your car. Most kits come in little sewn pouches.
Photo by Artyom Kulakov
Why Do You Need an IFAK?
Law enforcement and military service members carry them because their jobs require them to work in high-risk locations where they may be shot or assaulted with a deadly weapon. Over time, military doctors investigated injuries that would kill a soldier if they weren’t treated on the battlefield. The same applies to injuries police receive on duty.
Blood loss from a bullet or stab wounds can kill someone quickly if the blood flow isn’t stopped. And the same thing can happen to a civilian in an active shooter incident. Life-threatening emergencies aren’t exclusive to shootings. You or someone else can become severely wounded in a traffic crash, industrial accident or other critical emergencies.
And the first person to be on the scene is likely a member of the general public with little to no medical training.
Also, if you’re hiking or camping in a remote location, you or someone else can suffer a traumatic injury. With no close medical help, someone can die without immediate medical attention.
Simply put, an IFAK can save your life. That’s why people carry them.
How Do You Use an Individual First Aid Kit?
If you plan on carrying an IFAK, take a basic medical class like a first aid course. No matter what you do for a living, this can help you use the items in an IFAK.
Even entry-level military soldiers and police officers are taught how to use a tourniquet in an emergency. You can also customize your individual first aid kit to match your medical knowledge.
Most major preventable deaths from trauma occur quickly and are related to hemorrhaging or an obstructed airway. Intervention that controls bleeding or opens an airway has been shown to significantly increase the likelihood that the person will survive.
Now that you know what an IFAK is and what it contains, think about buying one or gathering medical supplies to create your own. You never know when an emergency may happen, and it’s much better to be prepared than be without the vital medical supplies you need to save someone else’s life.
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