Safety Tailgate: First Aid Kits

James Hoiland, MNLA 2nd Vice President

Summer may finally be here for most of us, and our crews are working like crazy to play catch up from all the moisture that has blessed us this season. The extra rain and snow gave me the opportunity to take some time to evaluate what my trucks had and didn’t have for my crews. A very important piece that many of us overlook is the upkeep of safety gear, in the form of first-aid kits, that we keep in our equipment and trucks, as well as around the nursery.

First aid kits don’t need to be over the top expensive, but they are very important and must include certain items to be compliant with OSHA requirements. Let’s face it, things are going to happen out on the jobsite, and we need to be prepared for something like a bad cut or broken bone. Having a simple kit with the essentials onhand is super important for the health and safety of your crew when something happens. These kits can be basic to extensive, but they need to fit that business where they are being used. Firstaid kits may be purchased at hardware stores, large retailers, safety equipment suppliers, or online. I recently had the opportunity to talk to my father, a volunteer fire chief of 30 years. He was a great resource to talk with about additional items to have on hand. Besides the basics of a first-aid kit, he said a larger selection of band-aids, a tourniquet, and pain medication are a must. Other items like disinfectant sprays, ointments, eye drops, and burn creams are very important to have in the kit, as well. He also mentioned many companies are starting to have the new defibrillator boxes on hand. These tools have made huge advancements and have become more compact and affordable.

Hopefully we never have to use any of the major items in our kits, but it’s important that we have them for the one time we may need it. It may also benefit someone that is not part of your team that wasn’t as prepared.

Hope everyone has a safe and productive summer.