Trained nurses and doctors save lives every day. They use specialized tools to hold emergency supplies, wrap wounds, and even put out fires, but most don’t know about the secret life savers hidden in their own homes. These simple emergency prep and emergency response tricks could save a life, a home, or prevent a trip to the hospital, and they’re all thanks to everyday household products you keep in your kitchen.

Zip Lock Bags

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Zip lock bags have held sandwiches since their invention. They lock in freshness and keep food from going stale. They also prevent your mayonnaise from leaking into your handbag, or the hair from your brush from creeping into your food. These hygienic little bags are good for more than lunches, though. Most patients with asthma must carry an inhaler or nebulizer with them. In many cases, these devices mean the difference between life and death. If left loose in the bottom of a purse or backpack, however, it’s easy for them to become damaged. It’s easy for bags and their half-forgotten goodies to gum up crucial openings. By storing these devices in zip lock bags, however, you ensure they’re always ready for use.

Plastic Wrap

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Did you know plastic wrap is essentially sterile as it comes off the roll? While it isn’t surgery-ready, it is one of the best bandages available to first aid responders. In case of an accident, you can wrap the wound in plastic wrap. It does not stick to the wound, which would cause hospital staff difficulties later on, but it does seal out contaminants and keeps blood from leaving the body. It’s a far more sanitary option than using a towel or clothing to staunch a wound.

Baking Soda

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Small fires are all too common, especially in the kitchen. Keeping a fire extinguisher on hand is always a good idea, but you may or may not store one in your kitchen. You may not have one at all. Many families do not. So, if there’s a small kitchen fire, how do you deal with it? What if it’s between you and the exit? What if it’s small enough to contain and you know you could handle it if you just had something to extinguish it with? Remember, water only makes grease fires worse, because unlike wood, paper, or other flammable materials, grease only spreads under water.

In this scenario, baking soda could save your home and your life. Most households keep some in the kitchen for baking, but in a true emergency, it can help put out a fire. The powder smothers grease fires, and the powder itself is nonflammable. If you tried the same trick with something like flour, you’d only feed the flames. This trick works well for small fires when there isn’t lid available to smother the fire, or if the fire leaps out of a pan and onto the floor or counter top.

The final word on household products

These household products were all designed to fulfill different functions, but they can still save lives. Just because a medical professional is at home doesn’t mean they have left all danger behind. Fortunately, the tools to save lives are waiting in their kitchens.

 

 

Every medical facility uses disposable gloves. They are probably the most important PPE for your employees and staff. They are certainly the most often used, and they have the most uses for all manner of workers. Disposable gloves come in several colors, and while this may seem like an unnecessary fashion statement, the color of your gloves could protect your employees, prevent accidents, and even save a patient’s life.

Color Coding

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Using black and blue disposable gloves can protect your employees and staff. Most disposable gloves are made of latex, and while this durable material is a good choice for most users, some individuals are allergic to it. For this reason, most medical facilities order more than one type of glove. The bulk of gloves may be latex, but at least a few boxes must contain options for employees who discover an allergy. By color coding latex and non-latex gloves, you make it easy for employees to choose the right gloves without being forced to stop and read the box every time they need a new pair. Color coding also works for other purposes. Powdered gloves may be one color, and non-powered another. You can also color code gloves by use.

Identifying Dangerous Substances

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Although disposable gloves are most commonly used as examination gloves, they are standard PPE for many other tasks, as well. These include cleaning, lab work, and even examining mail. Unlike white gloves, black and blue gloves clearly show white powders. Not all harmful substances are white, but many labs use such powders. What’s more, even if a white powder is nothing but crushed medicine in a patient’s room, it’s always better to be safe than sorry. The cleaning personnel may be allergic to the medicine, or it may interact badly with medicine they are taking. Since black and blue gloves show these powders right away, they help prevent employees from transferring the powder to objects they will touch later with bare hands, such as cart handles, loose hair, and their own clothing.

Calming Patients

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White gloves show dark fluids. They highlight blood and other bodily fluids, and the sight of blood on their doctors’ hands will cause any patient undue stress that could complicate their condition. If a trauma patient goes into shock, the chances of saving them drop dramatically. Keeping patients calm is critical to their wellbeing. Fortunately, blue gloves don’t show blood as much as white gloves, and black gloves barely show blood at all. By using dark colored disposable gloves, particularly in trauma centers, emergency rooms, and ambulances, physicians can do their jobs without alarming their patients. It’s a simple change that could save lives.

The color of your gloves may seem like a simple thing, but its ramifications are far reaching. It isn’t always easy to save lives and protect your employees, but by using black or blue gloves you can make it easier for any employee to do their job. This in turn saves lives. It might not be a big change, but it can have a big impact.