Build Your Expert-approved First Aid Kit for High-risk Travel

Whether you’re travelling for leisure or business, you might find yourself in a situation where the basics are hard to access. Pharmacies, clean water, or immediate medical care may not be readily available when you need first aid. This is where a well thought-out first aid kit can make the difference.  

Not only can it keep you safer while abroad, but a basic kit can also form part of diagnostics and emergency response, tiding you over while on-the-ground networks are mobilised for more comprehensive support. 

Assist360’s in-house medical expert, Dr Francesca Harper, provides recommendations for building a first aid kit for travel to fragile or high-risk areas. It covers the essentials – and some considerations for personalisation – that can see you through basic first aid. 

A well-stocked and thought-out first aid kit can help keep you safe in emergency situations.

First aid kit equipment 

A broad set of tools can help you assess your physical condition and keep you safe while waiting for help. For example, simply having a torch in low-light conditions can prevent injuries, while a foil blanket can help regulate low body temperatures. 

 Essential equipment to include 

• Disposable surgical gloves (mind latex allergies) 
• Foil blanket to regulate body temperature or provide shelter 
• A torch and spare batteries 
• Safety pins 
• Scissors 
• Tweezers 
• A digital thermometer 
• Water purification additives (look for ingredients like sodium dichloroisocyanurate, sodium troclosene, or chlorine dioxide) for remote locations, multiday hikes or expeditions 

First aid kit injury treatment materials 

While you can’t prepare for every possible injury you might sustain while travelling, especially in a high-risk environment, a broad and flexible stock of dressings and bandages can help manage injuries and prevent them from getting worse.  

 Essential materials to include 

• Sterile gauze 
• Burn shield dressings 
• Adhesive bandages in multiple sizes 
• Adhesive medical tape 
• Crepe roller bandages (for minor support) 
• Elasticated bandages (for compression and stronger support) 
• Instant-activation cold pack 
• Assorted plasters for shallow cuts and blisters 

Surgical or medical tape can help fasten bandages or support sprains.

First aid kit sanitisers 

Using the appropriate antibacterial and antimicrobial surface preparations can help prevent infection and disease transmission. In hotter and microbial-rich environments, applying topical antibiotics to minor wounds can also go a long way in preventing infections, especially if you don’t have access to immediate care. 

Essential sanitising preparations and agents to include

• Antiseptic preparations to clean injuries and prevent infection 
• Topical antibiotic ointments 
• Hand sanitiser 

First aid kit medicine 

When travelling to new environments, any number of factors can disrupt your system – from climate and food, to altitude and physical activity, to dust and regional pathogens your immune system isn’t used to. By including a broad range of medicines to deal with various possibilities, you’ll be covered in case of a sudden injury or illness. 

Essential medicines to include 

• Pain relief medication 
• Anti-inflammatories 
• Antihistamines for treating allergies 
• Anti-nausea medication 
• Anti-diarrhoea medication 
• Laxatives 
• Antacids 
• Aloe gel for sunburn 
• Oral rehydration solutions (sachets) 
• Calamine lotion for treating itching caused by insect bites, plants, or sunburn 

It’s a good idea to consult your healthcare provider for context-specific medication, whether for altitude-related symptoms or antifungals in tropical areas. 

Consider the environment and context you’ll be travelling in to choose the appropriate medicine for your first aid kit.

Travelling with chronic medication  

If you are travelling with chronic or prescription medication, make sure to plan ahead. Before you travel, check whether the medicines are permitted in both layover locations and your destination country, and ask your doctor for alternatives if necessary. Take note of volume limits for medicines, so that you can take a prescription with you if you need to. Remember to always travel with the necessary medical certificates for large quantities of medicine, as well as the original prescription. 

Managing and maintaining your first aid kit 

How you organise and manage your kit is as important as what you put in it. Keep medicines in original packaging as much as possible, alongside their original inserts. Note that the same brands may not be available in your destination country, or items may be known by different names.  

Adding a written inventory guide with names, descriptions, dosages, and expiration dates of everything included in the kit makes mistakes less likely. This also ensures that, if needed, someone else can use the kit and its contents effectively. 

Before you travel, check your kit for expired medicines or treatment materials and low-running supplies, and remember to update your inventory guide. 

Beyond first aid  

It is not a question of if, but when you will need a first aid kit. In that moment, the effort of building and maintaining your kit will pay off. Building a first aid kit is, however, just one part of preparing for travel in fragile and high-risk areas. Before you go, make sure you are covered for medical and emergency care.  

Assist360 provides Duty of Care and medical assistance tailored to companies and travellers working in or visiting high-risk and fragile areas. Get in touch to learn more about our services.