Northern Territory is one of the most diverse and beautiful places on earth. With its stunning landscapes, rich culture, and welcoming people, it's no wonder that more and more people are choosing to make it their home.
In this interview, we speak with Rick Dalgrin (the owner of FirstAidNT.com.au) about life in Northern Territory and what the best first aid kit would be for those living or travelling there.
Before we jump into the interview, a few things of note:
When it comes to first aid kits, there are a few things you need to take into account. The climate in Northern Territory can be extremely hot, so your first aid kit contents should really includes items like sunscreen, mosquito repellent, and insect bites treatment.
You should also make sure you have plenty of water and snacks, as well as a map of the area.
If you're planning on spending time in remote areas, it's also a good idea to pack a satellite phone or two-way radio, in case of an emergency.
There are other essential items Rick recommends for your first aid kit and a medical emergency, and we'll go through them in the interview below.
Interview with Rick Dalgrin from FirstAidNT.com.au
What is the best first aid kit for Australia?
Q: So what's the best small first aid kit?
Rick: You can get the little car ones, but if there's any major trauma, it's not really counted in there. You need something a little bit more like an Israeli bandage. That's a military style first aid equipment kit.
You also need a snake bite bandage. They've got really good ones which have little squares on them if you've got them in the right position. They're worth the extra dollars. Not that I've treated that many for snake bites.
I spend a lot of time in the bush and I've never treated a snake bite. That's all just a matter of not trying to pick them up and not play with them.
Most of the people that get bitten are snake handlers, would you believe? Or people that are trying to shoo them out of the things and the snakes are just trying to defend themselves.
Most of the times the snakes hear you walking and won't have a go at you. Except I urinated on one of them one day and it got upset with me. It was a python, so I wasn't too worried. And a big one.
The aboriginals had it down pat. If they get bitten, you just tell them to do nothing, and you can dig a small hole and just leave their head out and come back two days later, and if they're alive, they're all good. It's basically what that person's done has slowed down the lymphatic system.
It's the same principle as putting a constrictive bandage, but most people, when they try and put these bandages on, move the leg, move the muscles, which moves the lymphatic system.
The same as your veins. If you don't move on a plane, your feet swell up. Don't move and you don't have that problem with your lymphatic system going to your lymph nodes.
That's the big trick. If a person's just been bitten, tell them to sit down, don't move, stop shaking.
A basic first aid kit for emergencies
Q: What about when it comes to things like the ocean stingers? Jellyfish or blue bottles and all that, you know?
Rick: Well, you've got three options. Cold water, vinegar, or hot water, okay?
My understanding with the vinegar, it destroys the pH of the proteins. Sometimes you don't know what the person's issue or bite is from. They're just in a lot of pain. There's so many different types out there, so you've got three options.
If there's been a puncture, like a stingray will puncture you, a cone fish will puncture you, that requires hot water. You'll know because the person will be telling you chop their leg off. It's that painful.
If you immerse their foot into a bucket of hot water, make sure you put your hand in first, right? And if it's just hot enough to put your hand in, it's perfect, and you'll find that'll relieve the pain. I think it's got a lot to do with breaking down proteins.
Hot water, cold water, or vinegar for anything in the ocean, right?
And sometimes with the acid, you use an alkaline. That's what vinegar is. You've got to understand the pH. It's like snakes, some snakes destroy the clotting of your blood.
Other snakes just travel in the lymph nodes and put poison in. There's a lot of different things and you're not always correct, but there's just some little links there.
Three choices when you're at the beach. The old urinating on people does actually work. It's sterile until it hits the ground, but it's not socially accepted.
In a survival technique the key is to wash a wound. The amazing thing these days everyone's got hand sanitiser. If you get a wound, throw that hand sanitiser on it.
It stings like hell, but it's got alcohol in it. It's going to wash it out and clean it. The majority of problems with wounds or any sort of things that have broken that brilliant system called your skin, is infection.
The sooner you can clean all the dirt out or any infection in there, alcohol does a great thing, that's why your hand sanitiser's a good thing. It will cause pain.
I've actually slithered, as a chef, I've slithered a bit of my skin off on my finger, and I just put pressure on that for 10 minutes, use an alcoholic wipe and then put a bit more pressure on, and it was basically healed that day.
The right first aid kit checklist
So there's a lot of things you can use out there that you carry most of the time. The most important thing in a first aid kit is the person that holds it.
Q: That leads me to ask a question about what might be the best first aid kit to keep in your car? Like in Darwin or further afield Northern Territory areas.
Well, there's no first aid kit that I've found that has a tourniquet, Israeli bandage, and a snake bandage. That's why I'm going to develop a first aid kit and try and keep it around the $60 mark.
The pelican cases that I use is normally kept in your car. If you've got snake or crocodiles, you've got to be close to the water, so you're better of having the waterproof case.
And with the Pelican first aid kit, you open it up and there's all the emergency numbers and necessary items (medical supplies etc) in there, who you can call and whatever.
There's a great program called Emergency Plus, which you can put the app on your phone. They're smart little things, you know?
One of the beautiful things to actually carry in your first aid kit is glad wrap.
The only problem is if it's a burn, you've got to wait until that heat comes out before you put it on, otherwise it will melt.
Put a moist bandage or something like that. For a big part of the body, the glad wrap's fantastic.
Q: Maybe that's why they use it when they do tattoos?
Rick: Yeah, that's the same thing. Another cool thing to carry in your first aid kit is medical superglue, as well.
I've had a group of pig doggers out there asking for sewing up gear so they can sew up their dogs and I just said, "All you're going to do is sew in dirt." Okay?
Having some first aid training can help
You're better off washing it out with alcohol, putting the medical glue down there and then putting glad wrap around it, and that dog will love you for it.
Same thing as humans. People have their pig dogs and they like to have the scars and the stitches and that look.
It's not good for your dog.
One other kit that I've got actually had a small bottle of booze in there.
Yeah, no, that was for a mate who's got a crocodile catching company.
The only other thing I would say is probably people might have apps on their phone today that will help with any medical emergencies. The best one is Emergency Plus.
As long as they can reach wherever they are. When it comes to NT, you're outback a little bit.
So in summary...
Throw that first aid kit into the car when you're on a camping holiday (and even when you're driving around town), and have a basic first aid kit checklist as well!