Dr Kerryn Phelps, Health Editor, with Tracey Grimshaw, Channel Nine 'Today'

PHELPS: Good morning, Tracey.

GRIMSHAW: I think most houses have probably got a box of bandaids and some panadol.

PHELPS: If they are lucky.

GRIMSHAW: Yeah, what more do we need?

PHELPS: Well, you need a lot more than that. Particularly, if you are going to provide effective first aid, and in some cases, it might even save a life. Having all this gear is important, knowing how to use it is another thing.

GRIMSHAW: Oh, yeah.

PHELPS: So, I think the first message I would drive home here is that at least one adult, preferably two, in a household knows how to use first aid, and knows how to do CPR. The obvious reasons of having two is that if something happens to the person who knows about first aid, there needs to be somebody on hand to help them out.

GRIMSHAW: Wow. We are being much more scientific about first aid in the home now than we ever were, aren't we? What are the differences between these boxes? Is this a domestic first aid kit? Is this generally available?

PHELPS: Yes. That's a household first aid kit, produced by the St John Ambulance Australia, and it contains a range of things that would be very handy in any household, and, of course, it is locked. Bandaids, triangular bandages for being able to…

GRIMSHAW: I've got what looks like little bandages, and scissors, and tweezers…

PHELPS: Stainless steel scissors and tweezers for getting out splinters, bits of glass that sort of thing. There is another smaller kit over here. That's saline, and that is in case you need to wash out a wound, it's sterile, or wash out an eye if you get something in an eye, and obviously an eye bath can be useful for that too. But with those saline squirters it's very handy to be able to wash out an eye or a wound. Triangular bandages, like a sling, basically, if you've got an arm injury, you'll be able to put a sling on. And a range of different bandages, a range of different types of wound dressings, so that you can stop bleeding, so that if you've got an injury that requires blood to be stopped, then you can put the pressure on, and put a bandage around. So, there are a whole range of these kind of dressings important to have in the home, and I don't know too many homes that would actually have that range. This is a smaller kit for the car, for example. Once again, we've got the saline that you can use, different ranges of bandages, triangular bandages, and, of course, I think it's jolly handy to have a manual, so that even in the heat of the moment, you can perhaps have a look and say 'well, what should I be doing if there is a laceration, if there is a snake bite?'

GRIMSHAW: Or if someone's in shock, or something, you need to know what to do with them.

PHELPS: Yes. And a quick refresher to say 'well, I remember doing that in my course, but I just want to double check'.

GRIMSHAW: Things that we should double check, 'cause there was plenty of space left here, so you've got some things on the desk, that perhaps you should have.

PHELPS: I think it's important first of all, who is in the house, and who might be likely to need medication, because you need to bear in mind that some people might have allergies to some medications. So, I think that's important, but having a general range of, and I think that's something you can also talk to your pharmacists and your GP about. But having a range of common medications, so that if you do have somebody that does need pain relief, needs anti-inflammatory treatment, has a cut and you need to use antiseptic, has a cough that needs to be controlled, has insect bites that need to be relieved, these are the sort of things to keep in your medicine cabinets. Like paracetamol, soluble aspirin, decongestant, oral re-hydration solution, in case someone has gastroenteritis, for example. Eye drops in case of eye irritation, antihistamine in the case of allergy.

GRIMSHAW: What about no-nos. For example, we have talked about having things on hand that you need to have, and what you should do in a situation, what shouldn't you do? What are common mistakes that people make?

PHELPS: You shouldn't have out of date medications. I think it's worthwhile regularly, if it's once a month, to go through your medicine cabinet, and that goes for prescription medications also, and take back to the pharmacist for disposal anything that is out of date. Dispose of it wisely. If you have burns, you should not use anything on that burn, other than cold water, run under the tap for ten minutes. I think it's important that you understand first aid, that you have the number of the Poisons Information Centre nearby your phone, so that if there is a poisoning accident in the home, that you are able to know which telephone number you are able to call at that time. And train kids so that if there is an incident in the home, that, for example, if a parent is unconscious, that they know which number to ring, to get emergency services.

GRIMSHAW: Okay, we have to leave it there.

PHELPS: Thanks, Tracey.

Ends