Medical emergencies can happen anywhere, and your local bridge club is no exception to the amount of things that might strike.

It could be as simple as a slice or as serious as a stroke: Does your bridge club have adequate first aid to deal with a medical emergency if it happened on your watch? Many workplaces, houses and indeed bridge clubs aren’t nearly as prepared as they should be.

Here’s how to shape up your club’s first aid preparedness.

A Horrifying Example of Varying Emergencies

The term “medical emergency”  is a very vague one that might not describe the scope of things that could happen.

Someone could slip and fall, a light fixture could drop down on this year’s bridge champion, a driver might drive a truck straight into the club’s best bridge team – and that’s not even half of it.

Someone might have an asthma attack, a heart attack, a stroke, a blood clot, a severe burn wound, a dislocated joint or a broken limb.

And sometimes waiting around for emergency services isn’t enough.

Any large congregation of people should be prepared for as much of the scope of “medical emergency” as they can, whether it’s a bridge game or a concert.

Keeping Tabs on Members’ Health

Most bridge clubs should keep a thorough file on each member in the club. Not for stalking purposes, of course, but for health and safety.

Who do you contact as the immediate emergency contact if someone faints during a game? Who in the club has been diagnosed with chronic conditions like Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, diabetes or epilepsy? What’s their preferred hospital if something serious happens?

All of these things are crucial to know, especially if someone is in a condition where they can’t tell you this vital type of information themselves.

Here are a few basic things to know about the members with known health issues:

– Chronic conditions
– Prescription medications
– Food and medication allergies
– Emergency contacts

A Brief List of First Aid Essentials

At their most basic, you can purchase many first aid kits that have already been put together from the internet or your nearest pharmacy. These usually aren’t huge, but they should have the basics like gauze, dressings, painkillers and wound gels that you’d expect for treating the simplest home-related emergencies.

Of course, there are a lot of things these medical kits won’t have and you might have special medical needs from members in your club. (If you don’t know, ask.)

Here’s a basic list of essentials for setting up a first aid kit from the ground up, give or take a few things.

Remember that most items – including gloves – have expiry dates and should be replaced on a regular basis.

• A First Aid Book Not everyone can think straight in an emergency, and surprisingly few people know how to wrap and bandage different types of wounds and injuries. Always keep a first aid reference book with your kit.

• Bandages and Gauze
  For wrapping and temporarily setting (as well as stopping the flow of blood),always have bandages and gauze in various sizes.

• Salt and Sugar Sounds bizarre, but salt is one of the best natural disinfectants there are and it can stop the possibility of an infection right in its tracks where nothing else is available. Together with sugar, it can also be used to stop bleeding

• Tabasco
  Military kits are issued with small special-issue bottles of Tabasco. It’s not just for food; it can also be used to plug up severe wounds, stop bleeding and halt infection from spreading. (Note: It’s guaranteed to hurt more than salt, but could save your life.)
  
• Burn Gel or Spray
  Burn gel or spray works to cool down the site of a serious burn instantly. For small or moderate burns, always keep some of it around.
  
• Generalized Antihistamine
  Antihistamines are generally taken in the event of an allergic reaction. Medical attention is still necessary, but these can slow the onset of symptoms (and sometimes help hay fever).

• Eye Drops
  Eye drops are for more than just dry-eye syndrome. They can also come in handy when trying to flush debris out of an eye (or a wound).

• Paracetamol
  Paracetamol is more than just a painkiller: It’s the most often used treatment for bringing a fever under control. Keep aspirin as an alternative.

• A Thermometer Don’t guess at whether or someone has a fever or not: Have the appropriate tools to check.

• Butterfly Stitches
  Butterfly stitches can be a saving grace when something fleshy has opened up and needs to be closed.
  
• Generalized Inhaler
  Asthma attacks can be deadly – and in most events, they can also be treated. Have at least one type of generalized inhaler as part of your kit. It’s better to have it and not need it…

• Cotton Swabs
  Much like bandages, you can never have enough cotton swabs as part of your kit. It can help to absorb bleeding, especially if there’s a lot.

• Alcohol Pure
  For sterilizing purposes, ensure you have pharmaceutical grade alcohol as part of your kit. Also available as sprays or wipes.

• Water
  Not for drinking, but immensely useful for anything that needs to be flushed or rinsed in an emergency.

• Gloves and Masks
  To avoid any possible contamination, make sure that you always have ample masks and gloves of the sealed, disposable type.
  
• Tweezers
  A lot of medical emergencies can and will require tweezers.
  
• Surgical Scissors
  Surgical scissors can help to cut a lot of things, including packages, bandages and – rarely,  but truly  – wounds.
  
• A Scalpel
  A scalpel is one of those items that you might never need, but you’ll be very glad to have if you ever do.
  
• CPR Mouthpiece or Mask
  For various reasons, it’s dangerous for both ends to perform CPR with no protective barrier in place.  Have a CPR mouthpiece or mask as a standard item in your first aid kit.
  
• Fire Blanket
  Fire blankets are essential: They are used as a shield against fire and can be thrown on most types of fires to extinguish them. Fire blankets can also be useful for protecting someone against either flames or intense cold.

• Chargeable Lighting
  In an emergency, never wonder about lighting. Keep a small, chargeable light in the first aid kit.

• A Small, Cheap Cellphone
  What if you need to call an ambulance and nobody has a device? Keep a small, charge cellphone in the kit- and a list of all emergency numbers for the area.