Mountainman mentioned the CF field dressing. Great item to have but expensive. When I was in the army, I was in the company stores office one day and saw one of the inventory lists with costs. The field dressing costs the military $35.00 each. I don't know where they get them but I'd imagine that they're signifigantly more expensive for us. When I went to Afghanistan in 2006 we were told not to bother bringing our field dressings. When we got over there, we were issued the Israeli field dressings and taught how to use them. IMHO they're better than the Canadian ones. I managed to "acquire" a couple of extras which now reside in 5 of my first aid kits here at home.
To be honest, I don't even remember what all I have in my kits. We have a nurse in our group and she helped put them together. We went through them at the time but I haven't looked in them for a few months now. That reminds me that it's just about time to renew my first aid certificate.

A good source for Battle Dressings is Vancouver tactical. They carry the British type http://www.vancouvertacticalsupplies.com/medical/field_dressing.php as well as the Israeli Bandagehttp://www.vancouvertacticalsupplies.com/medical/bandage_id.php.
Prices are reasonable and service is excellent. They also carry Combat tournequets, shears and clotting agents.
Great people.

JAB

JAB, you didn't notice my posting the Vancouver Tactical link as well? :p Well there people, if we are both posting it it must be good...lol And the Israeli Bandage is pretty cheap as well compared to the CF field dressing. The combat tournequets are a great piece of kit also.
As far as clotting agents are concerned, be careful. They are very dangerous to use if you are not trained on them. Shit they're even dangerous if you are trained on them. Once they touch moisture, the chemical in them cauterizes whatever they are touching ie. steak, open cuts, eye balls. There are great videos out there that show how well they work. But like I said, BE CAREFUL!!!!

this is a good video on the Israeli bandage....if you carry it you should know how to use it.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9cJXsjVRHc

I just finished making a similar assortment of First Aid Kits for our family. My favorite place to get most items is www.firstaidzone.ca they sell bulk items and have exceptional customer service. And they are a Canadian company! Anything that I was unable to obtain from them I managed to get from them I got from www.chinookmed.com. They specialize in tactical medicine, but IMHO are able to provide a good starting point for any First Aid Kit. Take a look at their Emergency Preparedness Medical Kits. I basically used their idea of a kit and was able to scale it up or down based on the size of kit I needed. A few things that I didn't see mentioned here are:

- Emergency Dental Kits - I have one for my Home Kit and one for our Camping Kit. You can fix pretty much anything that could go wrong in your mouth with an extra pair of hands. Nothing ruins a great trip like Dental pain...
- Halo Seals - Seals a sucking chest wound or any other serious penetrating wound. I put one in my husbands hunting pack.
- Burn Jel/Cool Jel - Great initial treatment for minor to moderate burns, the Burn Jel has 2% Lidocaine to relieve pain and is bacteriostatic - which keeps bacteria out of the burn.
- Tea Tree Oil - A fantastic antiseptic.
- Also a really good first aid book.

I find that the Tackle Utility Binders are a great way to organize a small kit. I got mine from Cabelas. Good luck with the kits!

tagged for interest

just a note on occlusive dressings or "halo seals" (bandages for sucking chest wounds). the idea behind them isnt to seal the wound completley, making it air tight... you have to leave one side of it unsealed to allow for air and liquid to escape. this type of injury is common to a gunshot or puncture wound to the chest or back. the definition of a sucking chest wound is literally a breathing wound... so when you breath in, it sucks air inwards... when you breath out, air goes out the wound... this happens when a lung has been punctured

a simple occlusive dressing can be made from a ziploc bag or latex glove and some duct/medical tape. cut a square section of the bag or glove to serve as the bandage, then tape the top and the two sides of it, leaving the bottom unsealed. this creates a one way valve so that when the person breathes inthe plastic or latex bandage is sucked against the wound keeping the air from entering... but then on exhalation any trapped air or liquid can still escape out of the bandage.

(fyi... the "bottom" of the bandage is in regards to the lowest point. so if a person has been shot in the chest and they are being transported or positioned on their back, then the side of the bandage closest to the ground is the bottom. gravity is your friend)

One Item in which may seem strange in a first aid kit ...is HONEY. Its a great anti bacterial, seals the wound, doesn't have a best before date, and has been in use for the past 3 millennia.

I have to admit my first aid kit is just one I bought from Costco, I then added to it.
It's already seen a motorcycle accident, and many other little emergencies. So far it has served me well. It lives in my SUV so wherever I am, whether I'm at home or away it's handy

I have a number of First Aid Kits, and over a year ago rebuilt my Advanced (larger) Kit, updating expired contents, e.g. medications, gloves, etc.
Here are a number of references which I think are useful:

http://www.sja.ca/Manitoba/Training/Pages/FirstAIdKits.aspx
Being a former SJA instructor, I like this page for its basics and giving people an idea of basic costs of kits, even if people can do better on costs by making their own kits.

http://www.redcross.org/prepare/location/home-family/get-kit/anatomy
The Red Cross just doesn't go far enough, but ... at least they provide a basic list.

http://firstaid.about.com/od/emergencypreparation/qt/1staidkit.htm
What I like about this page is not just the additional contents it recommends beyond a basic First Aid kit contents, but also one of the most important items that belong in a kit, i.e. in this case a spare cell phone. Now, if cellular service is down, well you're SOL. But having a fall-back cell phone, even one not on contract anymore that can be used for 9-1-1, is a very good idea as the writer of that page points out, "If you can't access emergency medical services, your car or boat first aid kit is not complete." In the past, having a means of communicating to EMS meant keeping loose change in a First Aid kit so someone could go call from a payphone if necessary. For us preppers, maybe this also means having a spare GMRS/FRS radio in a camping First Aid kit.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_aid_kit
Lastly, I include this reference as it explains a more advanced list of kit contents. But as pointed out here (and elsewhere), placing advanced tools / medications into a First Aid kit when not suitably trained in their application / use can be controversial.
It is also interesting to note that there is a link at the bottom of this page to Bug-Out Bag.

NOTE: I recommend always taking increasing levels of training in First Aid, and possibly even becoming a First Aid volunteer at either work or with St. John Ambulance. It is possible you might be able to receive Advanced training courtesy of your employer or if volunteering with St. John Ambulance.

Don't forget the SEAL team special, non scented Kotex and Tampex, for those very nasty wounds.

Forgot to add the other day that you can buy very inexpensive First Aid supplies at most Dollar stores, e.g. instant hot / cold packs, compression bandages, dressings, etc.