Why Should We Prepare?

Natural disasters shake the lives of millions every year.

As of this morning, there were several earthquakes, namely a 5.2 quake in Eastern Sichuan, China, another 5.2 southeast of the Loyalty Islands, and a 5.3 off the coast of Aisen, Chile. (picture of Sichuan earthquake, May 2008 found on the following site: http://www.internationalrivers.org/en/sichuan-earthquake/sichuan-earthquake-may-2008?size=_original)

At the same time, India was struck by a blistering heat wave that left New Delhi suffering from record water and power shortages. Within the last week, a flood tore through Tasmania; while in Europe, the Danube burst over its banks, flooding dozens of homes, and the Czech Republic was devastated by heavy rain fall pouring off the Northern Alps, flooding thousands of buildings and killing 10 people.

Being prepared is not a fanatical notion....

Then again, in all honesty, I'm not here to convince you to be prepared; if you are reading this, then you already know that it is essential to have a plan. Instead, I'm really here to show you what simple things you can do to protect yourself and your family.

The first thing people often ask me is what supplies they should get. Well, the FEMA already has published a perfectly good video on that very subject. So I am not going to re-invent the wheel, instead I'll provide the video.

As for a comprehensive wilderness and disaster medicine kit, I will include a listing of the items that you will need and how to use them in a later posting.

In following postings, I will discuss water disinfection and hydration (dehydration and diarrhea), sanitation, and how to ensure proper indoor air quality in situations of quarantine, nuclear war, and natural disasters.

I will also discuss the possible types of medical problems that could arise in different disasters and how to manage them with what you have around the house or within your disaster kit.

You will find in future posts, I will talk about how to manage traumas and perform basic first aid as per the Wilderness Medical Society and Red Cross guidelines. These posts will include information on skin conditions, wound management, dental and eye injuries, bites and stings, as well as heat and cold injuries. I will also provide a list of books, for those of you whom are interested in learning more in depth information on these subjects.

Next, I will cover preparedness in natural disasters/hazards, man-made hazards, and finally terrorism and pandemics.

All the while, I will provide updates as they come and summaries of new studies in wilderness and disaster medicine.

Thank you for following this blog and for desiring to be prepared.