The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Crescent City Times.com By Jeff McCaddon – December 12, 2025 Medical emergencies happen quickly and unexpectedly. Accidents in the home, on the road, in the workplace and during leisure activities can occur at any time. If the response time is prompt enough for care to be rendered, then the outcome is good. If the response is too late, then the result can be tragic. Cardiac and airway emergencies can lead to a swift death if those at the scene do not render aid. Likewise, excessive bleeding can lead to death in a matter of minutes. Is it wise to rely entirely on 911 and emergency medical services to care for you and your family during a crisis? Under normal conditions, most people do not have any alternatives available. They might have taken a first aid class and have a store-bought first aid kit on hand. However, these classes and kits may not be enough. Without adequate preparation, losing a loved one before help arrives could be the result. This is especially true for those living in remote areas where emergency response times are long. Abnormal conditions can compound your plight during a medical emergency. A local or generalized mass casualty event because of an earthquake, tsunami, fire, flood or other natural disaster could lengthen response times to days or even weeks. This is especially true if roads are affected, or medical services are overwhelmed. Man-made disasters like wars, civil wars, public unrest or terrorist attacks can also compound your situation. Denial of service attacks on phone or cellular systems could eliminate your ability to make a 911 call entirely. We learned during the COVID-19 pandemic how vulnerable our supply lines are to unexpected medical emergencies. Foreign manufacturers supplied most of our medical supplies, personal protective equipment, and pharmaceutical medications. This led to the cost of medical gloves and N95 masks to skyrocket as panicked people paid any amount asked for meager supplies on hand. The situation today is little better. Medical tubing for oxygen and blood are still very expensive. Although the USA now manufactures pharmaceutical medications, it still sources the precursor chemicals outside of the United States. We have been conditioned to rely on a system that may ultimately fail us. Ultimately, it is our own responsibility to make adequate preparations to care for ourselves and our families. The following recommendations will provide you and your loved ones with the ability to save lives, or not. In the end, life and death decisions are in the realm of God. However, we can be instruments of God if we choose to do so. Emergency Medical Preparations Best Book: The Survival Medicine Handbook: The Essential Guide for When Help is NOT on the Way 4th Edition. Best for extended emergency preparation. Contains both conventional pharmaceutical and natural medicine advice. Reasonably priced and thorough. 2nd Choice: Emergency Care and Transportation of the Sick and Injured. This is the textbook for professional EMT Level 1 candidates. The bible for emergency medical technicians regarding ambulance or fire rescue medical assistance. Over a thousand pages of information geared toward medical professionals with lots of expensive high-technology equipment and pharmaceutical medications. This book is extremely expensive (over $100), thick and heavy. Recommended Medical Supplies: An advanced emergency medical bag will save you from improvising during a life and death emergency. “First Aid Kits” commonly available in stores are fine for minor issues, but are insufficient for a catastrophic injury. Band-aids and a roll of gauze will be of little use for a sliced artery or traumatic amputation. You will want to have emergency medical bags available at home, on the road, and at your worksite. Your medical bag is useless if it is not handy. The least expensive way to purchase your medical gear is in bulk. Stock all of your emergency medical bags at once to save substantially on overall costs. If you want to be ready to assist at a traffic accident or mass casualty event, stock up on a bunch of military field dressings (compress bandages). These are ready-made and quick to apply bandages for large wounds common to a battlefield or any catastrophic event. Also, have lots of roller gauze and absorbent pads handy to pack gaping wounds. Hemostats can clamp gushing arteries; however, you might need to fish for the artery as it retracts into muscle when severed. Note that a properly applied tourniquet hurts more than the wound. Amputation will most often result if a vascular surgeon is not available to repair the veins and arteries. You can find fully stocked EMT crash bags online. These are the quickest ways to start and will give you and your family the basics. Unfortunately, not all the equipment from many manufacturers are top of the line. To meet the largest variety of emergency events, you will need the following equipment along with a large bag with lots of easily accessed compartments to organize your gear: Personal Protective Gear: Protective Gloves / N95 Protective Masks Cardiovascular: CPR Mask – Infant, Child, Adult / Bag Valve Mask (BVM) Airway: CPR Mask- Infant, Child, Adult / Bag Valve Mask (BVM) /Oropharyngeal airway kit / Nasopharyngeal airway kit / Pneumothorax decompression needle / Vented chest seals Bleeding: Trauma Shears & Bandage Scissors / Hemostats / Roller Gauze (Stretch & Cling) / Absorbent Pads / Adhesive medical Tape/ Field Dressings- Either Swiss or Israeli / Tourniquets (CAT Gen 7) / Vented chest seals / Emergency wound closure strips / Assortment of self-adhesive bandages Cervical Stabilization: Extrication Collars / Adult and child sized Shock: Emergency Blankets / 10 liter 95% oxygen canisters Diagnostic: Aneroid Sphygmomanometer (Blood Pressure Cuff) / Stethoscope- Sprague-Rappaport / Pulse Oximeter / Penlight & Rechargeable Headlight / Ophthalmoscope or otoscope with light / Tongue Depressors, non-contact Thermometer Poison Control: Activated Charcoal / Snakebite & Sting kit Sprains, Dislocations, Broken Bones: Triangular Bandages / Tongue Depressors / Splints / Roller SAM Splints/ Aluminum Splints / Roller Elastic Bandages & Clips / Cold & Heat packs Burns: Assortment of Burn Dressings for severe burns / Normal Saline Wash / Lidocaine or benzocaine for pain Eye Injuries: First Aid Eye Kit (Eye wash, oval pads, adhesive tape) Emergency Dental: Emergency Dental Kit (Lost Fillings & Caps) / Ambesol or clove oil for pain Diabetic Emergencies: Glucose Advanced Medical Gear: These are not necessarily covered by Good Samaritan legal protections Field Surgical Kit Assortment of Sutures Medical Staple kits Medical Oxygen- Need Medical Prescription Leg and arm traction IV drip- needs medical prescription Road Emergency Extrication & Fire Gear: Fire Extinguishers / Fire Blankets / Extrication Gloves (Cut and Fireproof) / Fire Resistant Balaclava / Respirator and fireproof goggles / Nomex or Welding Jacket / Reflective high visibility vest / Window Punch / Seat-belt Cutter / Multi-function demolition tool Recommended Training:: YouTube has several very good free courses geared toward EMT candidates. Attend actual EMT classes if possible. Sources of emergency antibiotics online: The following companies provide cases of prescription medications for aid workers, missionaries, explorers, and visitors to regions where medical facilities and medications are not readily available. Reasonably priced life-saving medications. I have done business with the following two sources. Vacuum pack the medications with oxygen and moisture absorbents, and store them at room temperature in a dry place. DO NOT REFRIGERATE. Jase Medical Contingency Medical