Last Updated on April 21, 2023 by Lisa Vargas
I had no idea what the term “IFAK” meant before I started along my prepping journey. If you’ve been hanging around the prepping community long enough you’ve heard the term.
As a matter of fact, I’m lucky enough to be learning and getting a lot of good survival training from an ex-army helicopter pilot who now works for a company in civilian emergency medical evacuation.
He showed me that everyone needs to have an IFAK with them at all times and sat me down and showed me the contents of his IFAK and the importance of each item.
So let’s take a look inside of Mike’s IFAK bag!
IFAK Meaning
IFAK is short for Individual First Aid Kit and they are issued by the military to soldiers going into battle. The contents of an IFAK will vary due to whatever branch of military someone is in, but the main concept is to stop bleeding of serious injuries.
Think of it this way, if you found yourself isolated with no medical help and got seriously cut, broke your leg, puncture wound, gun shot, etc. could you survive with what you had in your kit? This is the seriousness of the IFAK.
The items in an IFAK are a little different than your typical survival first aid kits simply because you only have one shot at stopping the bleeding of your own wound or else you’re a gonner. That’s why the IFAK pouch is so extremely important to have with you.
The IFAK is not something you carry around to treat minor cuts, take care of a migrane, or use to hold your Neosporin! The IFAK is a serious piece of equipment that is used by all branches of the military.
As a “normal person”, you would have one of these in your car so that you would always be prepared for anything that happens no matter where you are such as accidental hunting accidents or if you are the first one on a scene to a car accident perhaps.
What Should You Have In An IFAK?
As mentioned above, a friend of mine, Mike Morgan, (former owner of Vertex Aviation Group), sat down with me and pulled out all the contents of his IFAK and helped me to understand each piece and why it is important for anyone’s IFAK.
- 2 (pairs) Nitrile gloves
- 1 NPA nasopharyngeal airway
- 1 Pair Trauma sheers
- 4 Tampons – Tampons have been a well-known secret weapon for survivalists and military. They are fantastic for stopping blood flowing from a bullet wound.
- 1 Combat Application Tourniquet (CAT)
- 1 Rapid Action Tourniquet (RAT)
- 1 Israeli Bandage
- 1 open chest seal (Bolin) – these will patch up the hole in your chest so that your lungs don’t collapse.
- 2 Military/field pressure dressings – for blood clotting
- 1 Package Celox flat-fold cotton guaze – for blood clotting
- 1 NAR Gecko tape roll
- 1 Bic Lighter – you can use this to heat up your trauma sheers and then cauterize a wound area.
- 1 Bottle Artificial Tears – to flush out your eyes of chemicals and debris
Best IFAK Kit On The Market
If you didn’t feel comfortable with making your own IFAK or going through the trouble of gathering all of items, you can easily buy one. I’ve listed a few options for you below.
Any of these IFAK would be a great option and you will notice that most of them have similar items, which tells you how important those common items are for your pouch.
Every Ready First Aid Meditac Tactical Trauma IFAK Kit
- CAT Tourniquet: Designed to compress the limb to restrict blood flow and prevent hemorrhaging, which is one of the leading preventable deaths in both tactical and non-tactical situations.
- Emergency Bandage: The best hemorrhage control compression solution for quick and effective bleeding control.
- Celox Hemostatic Granules: A 15g packet of granules is usually sufficient to treat major arterial bleeding.
- Vented Chest Seal: Used when an open chest injury occurs to seal the chest and prevent lung collapse.
- Durable Molle Pouch: The pouch is 9.25″ tall x 5.5″ wide x 3″ deep and fits securely on your MOLLE compatible tactical vest or chest rig, gear bag, belt, or other equipment.
- Rip-Away Velcro for Fast Removal: This kit is created with a strong, secure Velcro fastener on the back for quick removal from belt or backpack. No need to untie or unfasten. Just pull / rip off and you are ready to administer aid.
- Tools and Supplies: The kit also contains an emergency mylar thermal blanket, combine pad, trauma shears, emergency whistle, face shield, mini sharpie, sterile gauze pads, and antiseptic wipes.
EVERLIT Advanced Emergency Trauma Kit
The Everlit Emergency Trauma Kit is a comprehensive and customized first aid kit specifically designed by U.S. military veterans to prepare you for unexpected emergencies during outdoor activities, travel, disasters, and accidents. This kit is perfect for field tactical medics, military, police, combat life savers, first responders, and preppers.
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Hemorrhage and Circulatory Care: This kit contains the most user-friendly, compact, and popular survival and first aid supplies for massive bleeding control available on the market, such as a military combat tourniquet, compressed gauze, and a tactical Israeli pressure dressing.
Bone Fracture Treatment: The Everlit Emergency Trauma Kit includes a 36-inch splint roll, triangle bandage, and elastic bandage to keep bones in position and prevent movement, which are purposely selected for treating any bone fracture of the limbs.
Veteran Owned Company 5-Star Customer Support: Everlit is a veteran-owned company that prides itself on providing the most comprehensive customer service possible. They stand behind the quality of their inventory, ensuring all original Everlit products come with a 1-year satisfaction warranty.
Respiratory and Hypothermia Treatment: One of the most critical aspects of emergency care is sealing an open chest wound, which the chest seals included in the kit are specifically designed for. In addition, the emergency thermal blanket is essential for keeping the body warm to treat hypothermia, which often occurs after massive blood loss.
MediTac IFAK Molle
The MediTac IFAK Molle – Eagle Type Tactical Trauma Kit is a complete bleeding control kit designed to meet all traumatic blood loss situations. Here are some of its features:
CAT Tourniquet: Designed to compress the limb to restrict blood flow and prevent hemorrhaging, which is one of the leading preventable deaths in both tactical and non-tactical situations.
Emergency Bandage: The best hemorrhage control compression solution for quick and effective bleeding control.
Celox Hemostatic Granules: A 15g packet of granules is usually sufficient to treat major arterial bleeding.
Vented Chest Seal: Used when an open chest injury occurs to seal the chest and prevent lung collapse.
Durable Molle Pouch: The pouch is 9.25″ tall x 5.5″ wide x 3″ deep and fits securely on your MOLLE compatible tactical vest or chest rig, gear bag, belt, or other equipment.
Rip-Away Velcro for Fast Removal: This kit is created with a strong, secure Velcro fastener on the back for quick removal from belt or backpack. No need to untie or unfasten. Just pull / rip off and you are ready to administer aid.
Tools and Supplies: The kit also contains an emergency mylar thermal blanket, combine pad, trauma shears, emergency whistle, face shield, mini sharpie, sterile gauze pads, and antiseptic wipes.
Last Minute Thoughts On The IFAK
I’m enjoying learning about first aid and I hope you are too. It’s one of the most important things we can do to help prepare for the day when the ball drops or when the SHTF as us preppers say.
Keep learning and this stuff could save your life one day or someone else’s. Taking a first aid class at the Red Cross or your local community college is a very smart thing to do. I’ll personally add that my “To Do” list as I go down my own prepping journey!