Five Easy Ways to be Prepared for Medical Emergencies While Camping

By Jasmeen Patel

Shortly after college, I had an amusing experience. I went camping with several friends, and it was the first time any of us had camped without our families. We discovered something that surprised us – preparing for a camping trip, even a local one, was a LOT of work!! We realized that our parents had done a lot for us that we didn’t realize as we grew up. We had always thought camping was easy.

With all of the usual preparation for a camping trip, it can be easy to forget to prepare for something less fun – the possibility of medical emergencies. However, knowing what to do in a medical situation is much more important than remembering the hot dogs. No one goes camping expecting a medical emergency to occur, but there’s always a chance – and it pays to be prepared. Here are five easy ways to be sure that if something happens, you are ready to handle it.

Pack a First Aid Kit. First aid kits have very basic medical tools in them – adhesive bandages, cloth tape, rolled bandages, scissors, aspirin, and the like. Be sure to also have a flashlight for nighttime incidents. Familiarize yourself with the contents of the kit and read the instructions included on how to use it. When a minor incident arises, you will be prepared.

Bring a Medical Guide Book. There are hiking and camping medical guides that have short, direct instructions on what to do in case of an emergency while away from home. This is an invaluable addition to your first aid kit, and will cover many more serious emergencies, like snake bite, broken limbs, or foot infections.

Make Sure Someone Knows Where You Are. If you are doing a more local camping trip, you may have cellular phones that will work in the camping area, which is great for calling for help. For a more remote camping trip, make sure that someone knows where you are and can direct searchers if an emergency arises. Also be sure you are aware of the quickest way to a ranger’s cabin or road to get help.

Bring a Weather Radio. A weather radio can alert you if tornados, fires, or other weather events are moving into your area. It’s important to be ready to move for shelter if the need arises, especially if you are camping in a more remote area. It can be useful to have a kit with food, water, and your first aid kit ready to grab if you need to make a run for shelter.

Know CPR and Other Techniques. Ideally, everyone in your camping party should know how to do CPR, the Heimlich maneuver, and other lifesaving actions. You never know what may happen and how long it may be before help can reach you. Being prepared with life-saving techniques can be the difference between a scare and a tragedy.

Camping is a great experience that can build bonds of family and friendship while creating life-long memories. Part of being prepared for the trip is being prepared for any medical emergencies that may occur. The five tips above will go a long way toward helping you have a great and safe trip. Have fun camping!

Elsevier Health is a leading publisher for scientific and medical textbooks used in universities throughout the world, as well as medical guidebooks such as Medicine for The Outdoors.