Top Tips from a Former Nanny: What to keep in a first aid kit

**Collaborative post**

As many of you know prior to being a Mum, I was a Nanny for 14 years.

It was a job which I loved and which I was happy to leave the house at 6.20am for and not return home until around 7.30pm most days. I would go in with a smile and leave with an even bigger one, most days.  I truly loved this job – now I know not many can say that.

During those years the children in my care had bumps, scraps and falls just like ALL children do.  They got poorly – chicken pox, fevers, sickness bugs and all the usual childhood illnesses.  This time really prepared me for when my own children got sick, which inevitably they did and continue to do because as much as we try to wrap them in cotton wool children fall over, they get sick and there is nothing we can do about it.

You can however make sure you are fully prepared in preparation for when children get poorly.

Preparation is they key so having a fully stocked first aid cupboard can not only help your child but it will save you the panic of a midnight run to a supermarket for pain relief if they need it.

Here is a full list of essentials I recommend you have in your home ready (ideally all in the same place ready to use: What to keep in a first aid kit:

• Calpol
• Nurofen
• Cough Medicine
• Antihistamine
• Plasters – all sizes
• Paracetamol (for older children)
• Antiseptic cream
• hydrocortisone cream
• Thermometer
• Cooling forehead strips (for helping to reduce a fever)
• Scissors
• Disposable gloves
• Tweezers – for removing splinters
• Streri Strips – for helping to close larger cuts, these are used when the skin needs closing back together. These can be used as a temporary measure if the cut requires stitches too.
• Bandages – triangular and crepe rolled
• safety pins
• Eye Wash and Eye Bath
• Sterile gauze dressings – small, medium and large
• Tape

Many of these items you can find within a decent sized pre-packed first aid kit which you can purchase from places such as Chemist Direct or of course you can purchase them all separately.

Other handy tips:?

What I do is to make a list of all the items which should be in my first aid cupboard along with the quantities so I know what is lurking in the back, I then laminate this – when I use something I put a tick by it and then I am able to see when I am running low on an item.  Also when I use something I place it on the shopping list ready for when I next head to the supermarket.  The last thing you want to have try to dress a big grazed knee only to remember then you’ve used all the plasters up and the last bandage has been used too.

Additional things you may want to keep in stock:

• Ice pack ready in the freezer
• Nit comb and treatment shampoo – we always hope our children won’t catch them but what happens if you get that letter from school and you are checking one evening and find some? You then need to head out to the local chemist for treatment, by having it already in the medicine cabinet or in the bathroom you will be able to treat it immediately
• Calamine lotion
• Cotton wool
• Gel pack in the fridge
• I also keep a dedicated ‘sick’ bowl in the top of my bathroom cupboard with wet wipes and kitchen roll and a couple of carrier bags inside it ready to grab quickly

Being prepared always makes emergencies a little easier.  You can also read about pre-packing over night bags for hospital emergency stays.

More Top Tips from a former Nanny: (click the pictures to read the posts)