No one ever “wants” to have to use a first aid kit, but when you need one, you need one, especially a backpacking, hunting, or hiking first aid kit. If something goes wrong when in the backcountry, it is a pretty helpless feeling if you are not prepared with an adequate first aid kit. In our search to find what we needed for the backcountry, we came across My Medic first aid kits and starting digging into what they offer.
For this review, we had the opportunity to test out the following My Medic First Aid Kits:
- My Medic Sidekick (Standard)
- My Medic Sidekick Pro
- My Medic TFAK
- My Medic MYFAK Large Pro
Each of these dynamic first aid kits fit a certain purpose such as the My Medic Sidekick and Sidekick Pro being excellent hiking first aid kits, the TFAK being specifically designed to treat trauma, and the MYFAK Large Pro being ideal as a top notch first aid kit for your car. That is getting a little ahead of ourselves though.
What Makes Up A Great Hiking First Aid Kit?
There are a lot of things that can make up the perfect backcountry, hunting, or hiking first aid kit, but one of the most important things is to have high quality products that are going to perform when you need them most. A first aid kit is not something you want to skimp on when it comes to quality of the contents, particularly given that the time you need it most could be a life and death situation.
ORGANIZATION – My Medic First Aid Kits
One of the best things about My Medic first aid kits is that they are not only put together with high quality products, but they are organized extremely well. It might seem obvious, but when you are in an emergency situation where time is of the essence, having to fumble through a disorganized first aid kit or not being able to quickly find what you need can have serious consequences. Of course, that is not always the case if you just need a Band-Aid or some ibuprofen, but if you have a serious cut and are losing blood quickly, getting what you need to stop the bleeding fast becomes a much bigger deal.
EASY ACCESS
My Medic first aid kits feature a built in Velcro design that gives you the ability to secure the first aid kit to an easy-to-access place and the Velcro allows it to tear away from the base for quick and easy use. This can be beneficial in some situations, depending on how and where you want to store your first aid kit.
At the same time, I wish that My Medic first aid kits had the option to select a different style of bag/pouch for those times when you are carrying the first aid kit in your backpack. The straps are sewn in to the pouch, so if you do not need them, they just add unnecessary weight and bulk to the kit. This is a small thing but one of my biggest complaints. It can be easily addressed by taking a pair of scissors to the strap, but that modification is permanent and you are out of luck if you ever found yourself wanting to use the buckle/strap down the road.
Do Not Bury It – where To Put Your Hiking First Aid Kit
When loading your backpack, it is easy to throw your first aid kit in the bottom of your pack where it is out of the way. After all, you likely (hopefully) will not need it, so it is natural to toss it in your pack and then put all your other gear on top of it. However, this is the worst possible thing you can do. You want your first aid kit easily accessible at all times, so I always put my backpacking, hunting, and hiking first aid kit in the outside pocket of my pack so it takes just seconds to get to if needed.
I also like to have a second tourniquet attached to my binocular harness where I can grab it quickly without taking off my pack in case of a fall or serious cut. This might be a bit excessive, but it could save your life since there are scenarios where you may not have the ability or time to take the pack off and access a first aid kit buried inside.
Know How To Use Your First Aid Kit
This might sound obvious, and it is certainly something I have been guilty of overlooking in the past, but having an intricate knowledge of what is in your first aid kit and how and when to use each item properly is critical. After all, there is little point in having a high end, expensive first aid kit if you do not know how to use it. It can literally be a matter of life and death in some situations.
Thankfully, My Medic first aid kits come with the option to buy standard or “Pro” versions of the kit, which both include an online first aid class that is a great way to get started and familiarize yourself with using a first aid kit.
Make sure to check out our other gear reviews and the Backwoods Pursuit YouTube Channel to help you decide what gear will help you stay out in the field longer!
As a part of this My Medic first aid kit review, I went through the M.A.R.C.H training course that now comes with the all kits (the course used to be included with the “Pro” kits only). I will say that I am far from an expert when it comes to first aid, and this course provided some excellent information that helped me finalize what I wanted to have in my backcountry first aid kit and eliminate a few items that I might have otherwise thrown in there.
This course is not intended to be comprehensive but absolutely gives you the information to confidently use your new My Medic first aid kit. I would highly recommend taking the time to go through the course unless you have formal first aid training already. If you want to take your training to another level, multiple vendors offer wilderness first aid courses that will do an even better job of preparing you to handle emergencies in the field.
What Do You Need In Your Hunting / Hiking First Aid Kit?
Some things you just have to tough out, but others, if skimped on, can be life-threatening. Our goal here is to to be able to treat life-threatening issues well enough to get back to your vehicle, while also having just enough of the “nice to have” items to keep life manageable in the event of an unfortunate but less serious injury, as well as a few of your daily use medical items. Each person will have different preferences here, and that is totally fine. Let’s dive into what you might want to have in your first aid kit depending on what your activity is.
My Medic First Aid Kit Options – How They Work
One of the challenges I found when looking for the best first aid kit for hunting, hiking, and outdoor adventures is the huge selection of first aid kits that My Medic offers (over 20 as of this writing). You can go with a pre-built kit or build your own, but either way, I found it a bit challenging to cover all the bases I wanted to in a first aid kit for hiking, hunting, and backpacking. However, with a little diligence, I was able to put together a killer backcountry first aid kit that gave me everything I need to get back to my vehicle in the event of an accident.
All of the My Medic First Aid Kits are made up of what they call “Mods“. If you are like me, you might be asking “what the heck is a Mod?”. Honestly, this initially caused me more confusion than anything, but it did not take long to figure out that it is really a pretty sweet system.
Each “Mod” typically contains a package of the items you will need to treat a given problem, such as the popular Wound Closure Mod. As you might imagine, this Mod contains items to take care of cuts, so it includes some skin glue and wound closure strips. These “Mods” not only keep your first aid kit organized but it make it quicker and easier to locate the items you need when you need them.
Each of the various My Medic First Aid Kits come with various Mods depending on the target purpose of that specific kit. For example, the Wound Closure Kit is going to have a different set of supplies, tools, and Mods than the TFAK (Trauma First Aid Kit).
To make it exceptionally easy for you to pick the right kit, My Medic has put together some great kits for everything from a simple Bandage Kit, to a cycle first aid kit, to a waterproof mini kit, to a full blown Medic First Aid Kit. Here are some of the more unique, as well as my favorite, kits from My Medic:
- Sidekick Pro (my favorite backpacking, hunting and hiking first aid kit)
- MyFAK Pro
- Waterproof First Aid Kit
- MyFAK Large Pro Medical Kit
- Medic Pro
We will go over more of this below, but what ended up working best for me personally as my wilderness first aid kit was the Sidekick Pro kit with a few slight modifications. I ended up adding a few items that I wanted to have in there, but I did not feel the need to jump up to the MyFAK Pro kit as it is much heavier and significantly bulkier. If weight or bulk was not an issue like it is when hunting and backpacking, I would go with the MyFAK Pro kit.
The awesome thing about the My Medic First Aid Kits is that it is extremely simple to modify your kit and make it exactly what you want it to be for your specific activity or use by simply adding or removing any of the Mods or individual items. I found that the kits contained some items I did not feel I needed while backcountry hunting and hiking but were missing other things I wanted, so I just added that Mod or individual item to the kit and it was ready to go.
It is A System – Building the Best First Aid Kit System
When I am putting together my backcountry first aid kit I am keeping a couple things in mind:
- I need to be able to treat potentially catastrophic events well enough to get myself back to my vehicle where my full-blown first aid kit is located.
- With the above in mind, I need to have a robust, full-scale first aid kit at my vehicle to treat an injury well enough to get me to the nearest hospital if needed. This could be hours of driving depending on my location.
- I want my backcountry/hiking first aid kit to be as lightweight as reasonably possible.
While some of these things inherently contradict one another (being lightweight while still having enough to treat a serious injury), some things are simply worth the weight. A quality and well thought-out first aid kit just might mean the difference between making it home to your family or not. Let’s get into a little more detail about what the above system might look like for different adventures.
My Backcountry first Aid Kits
HIKING FIRST AID KIT
If you are heading into the backcountry on a hike, one could argue that some items can be left at home versus when you are out on a hunting trip where you are handling weapons, knives, trudging off-trail through steep, rugged, and unforgiving country in the dark, and potentially hauling loads in excess of 100 pounds down a mountain in the dark.
Sidekick Standard First Aid Kit
Whether you choose to go as light as possible or carry something to soothe the common bee sting, I would recommend taking along, at a minimum, the My Medic Sidekick standard first aid kit on any hike. This will be enough to treat your basic first aid needs like cuts, scrapes, blisters, and burns, but will not include the tools needed to treat more serious injuries. Personally, I prefer the Sidekick Pro first aid kit even for hiking trips, but that is just me.
Falls can happen when hiking. Serious injury can happen when spending nights in the backcountry, and for that reason, I always feel better knowing I have the tools to treat a serious injury, so my hiking first aid kit might be a bit more robust than some but it gives me peace of mind.
BACKCOUNTRY HUNTING FIRST AID KIT
I strive to keep my backcountry hunting first aid kit in the 1 to 1.5 pound range if at all possible. That might sound excessive to some, while to others it might sound like I am skimping, but finding the balance between having enough to safely get you back to the truck (where your full-fledged first aid kit should be) and not carrying so much that you are hauling around excessive first aid gear you hopefully never have to use can be a challenge.
I tend to want to be over-prepared for anything that might happen, so it is all too easy for me to add too much to my backcountry hunting and hiking first aid kit and end up carrying around a 3 pound kit. While that will likely cover most scenarios you might face, it is also a bit overkill if you are trying to keep the weight down and go as light as possible.
When I am out hunting, my first aid kit requirements are a bit more robust as the simple fact that frequently handling knives, broadheads, and guns while hiking primarily through mountains void of any trails increases the likelihood of a more severe injury versus when I am hiking or backpacking on a well-maintained trail. Having the ability to deal with a catastrophic injury from a knife (while field-dressing an animal), gun, or bow and hiking out in the dark is critical.
After much deliberation and searching through the available options for my personal backcountry hunting first aid kit I went with the My Medic Sidekick Pro, plus a few additional items to make sure I am covered for my hunting trips and the inherent dangers that come from handling knives, arrows, firearms, and busting brush off trail in the dark.
My Medic Sidekick Pro
On top of the Sidekick Pro, I added in the following Mods:
- Emergency pressure bandage
- Chest seal (2)
- Nasopharyngeal airway (NPA)
- Extra Tylenol (since I have been known to get headaches)
One other thing that you could consider adding to the kit is some stronger prescription pain medication as long as you have a doctor’s prescription for it. This could come in handy if you happened to break a leg or arm or dislocate something but still need to hike back to your vehicle. Again, consult your doctor before considering this option, but it is something to think about particularly if your hunt or hike solo.
Now, you might say that is a bit overkill, or you might say it is not enough, but given that the Sidekick Pro kit comes with most of what you need for the backcountry, I felt like I only “needed” to add those items. Now, I like having a second tourniquet, so I may end up adding that as well, but some would consider that excessive.
BASE CAMP / VEHICLE FIRST AID KIT
Just as critical as having the backcountry hunting and hiking first aid kit for your adventures is making sure that you have what you need back at your vehicle. The philosophy is pretty simple really: bring what you need when you are out hunting/hiking to safely get you back to your vehicle where you should have a much more substantial first aid kit and can treat yourself well enough to safely get to the hospital if needed.
If the injury is not that serious, with the right first aid kit, you may not even need to get to the hospital. With that in mind, I would recommend keeping the MyFAK Large Pro Medical Kit or, if you can swing it, the Medic Pro First Aid Kit in your vehicle at all times. Having these premium kits living in your vehicle allows you to set up your backcountry first aid kits as described above so you can treat yourself in the field knowing you have a fully-equipped first aid kit back at your vehicle which you can then use to get yourself to the hospital if needed.
One other note on your vehicle first aid kit, and the massive benefit of having a high quality, substantial first aid kit stay in your vehicle, is that it could save your life (or someone else’s) any day of the week. In the event of a car accident or any number of other injuries that could occur during day-to-day life, a quality first aid kit in your vehicle is almost a no-brainer.
What I Liked – My Medic First Aid Kits
These My Medic first aid kits are flat out awesome. Excellent quality, TONS of options, and even the ability to build your own kit if you have the knowledge and expertise to know exactly what you want and need in a first aid kit. Among the things I liked most about these kits are:
- Excellent quality
- Fully-customizable kits
- Pre-built kits for most needs
- Easy individual “Mods” keeps thing organized by category
- M.A.R.C.H training course included in all kits
What I Disliked – My Medic First Aid Kits
While I mostly LOVED the My Medic first aid kits, there were just a couple small things that I thought could be better overall. My biggest complaint is the cases that the Sidekick and Sidekick Pro come in have long straps that cannot be removed other than taking scissors to them. I do not like that the modification is permanent as I feel like it would be easy to make these straps removable to save weight and clutter, but ultimately I just cut them off.
- Unnecessary straps on case
- Takes a little time to familiarize yourself with the “Mod” system
Conclusion – Hunting & Hiking First Aid Kit
At the end of the day, having the right hunting or hiking first aid kit and overall first aid kit “system” is undeniably a potential lifesaver. Now, deciding what all needs to go into your personal kit is a bit more challenging, and different folks will have varying comfort levels that dictate what they feel like they need to bring into the backcountry, particularly if there are unique medical issues, allergies, etc. That being said, I strongly feel like I would rather be prepared for the worst and not have to use a first aid kit than be in a situation where I feel helpless and unable to save a life because I wanted to cut a few ounces.
The “right” hiking first aid kit might look a little different than the “right” hunting first aid kit, and might even look a little different than the “right” backpacking first aid kit, but whatever you decide to take, make sure you know how to use what you have. Spend the time to learn the basics of first aid. Hopefully you will never need to use it, but if you do, I guarantee you will be glad you invested the time.
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