West Malaysia loop ride

Today I started looking at what I needed to do in case somebody needed medical attention while on the WMLR2011. This becomes very important as we will be riding on some rather remote roads where we may not have a mobile phone signal. Further more, smaller villages in West Malaysia can be separated by very large plantations and getting help may prove to be difficult.

I started off, as usual, by doing my research. I refreshed my memory of the first aid course I took while I was still actively diving…and looked up some additional material off the Internet. Other than getting up-to-speed on some of the procedures that I might be called upon to perform, I also got busy putting together a simple but versatile first aid kit.

I was not looking to assemble the best nor the most complete first aid kit. That kit would be virtually useless to me as I would not be able to take it with me on the bike. Rather, I was looking to assemble the most useful, practical and compact first aid kit that would fit easily on a motorcycle. This would prove to be harder than I though…as usual.

First off, medicines. One of the most common need while traveling is access to simple and commonly available medication. Since no member of my riding team has any drug allergies, nor were any of them on any long term medication, this task was relatively simple. I looked for medicines to treat simple ailments like a fever, an allergy, a diarrhea, an ache, gas and a runny nose. Those are the simplest things to obtain. Having said that, it is very important to ensure that these medicines do not cause drowsiness as we will be riding!

Next, stuff to treat cuts and rash…the kinds of injury that involve blood. I found that one of the most effective tools to have for cuts and rash are gauze pads. So I packed a few different sizes of them. Adhesive tape to secure the pads. Gauze bandages provide another means for covering cuts that the normal pads cannot secure. Elastic bandages for sprains and strains. Various plasters for smaller cuts. Cuts and rash also need to be cleaned. So some saline for cleaning, antiseptic cream for treatment, and water for flushing off dirt and sand in case of a fall are also necessary items.

Next are some simple tools that will come in handy. Some latex gloves to keep dirty hands and fingers away from sensitive wounds. Wet wipes for cleaning. A pair of small scissors for cutting. A pair of tweezers for removal of stings or thorns or other foreign objects embedded in skin or flesh. And just in case anybody gets burnt by an exhaust or something similarly hot, a cream to treat burns was thrown in for good measure.

Obviously, there are many other items that can be included into a first aid kit. However, these would cover a good 80% of the cases that we would encounter on a motorcycle ride. If there is a situation that the available tools cannot handle…well…let’s hope the mobile works!