I am getting the final items together before our departure from the UK in August '18.
We are off to Canaries and then ARC to St Lucia in November. A winter around the Islands and then maybe Pacific bound or back to work.....

Ive researched med kits online and they range from the sublime to the ridiculous in size, value, contents etc.
I am trained to a reasonably high standard (MCA/STCW '10 Advanced medical Care Aboard ship) but still require doctors advice from ashore.
Does anyone have a sensible medical kit list that has worked for them. Most off the shelf ones seem to have items i don't need and are missing items i do want to carry.
Many thanks in advance.
James
S/Y Gitana
edited by james.fiske on 7/10/2018

I've often heard cruisers ask the question about what to do with expired medications. Having been in the pharma industry for many years, I have often explained that the expiration date is based on the extent of stability testing prior to drug approval. The stability tests are long enough to support required pharmacy shelf life. They do not necessarily test for longevity. A new study conducted on several drugs returned from the Antarctic research station showed that these drugs remained effective despite being exposed to harsh conditions aboard ships. https://www.wemjournal.org/article/S1080-6032(18)30209-6/fulltext

That does not mean that all drugs would remain effective, but it does suggest that many drugs will remain active long past their expiration dates. They may lose some potency. Aspirin for example remains fully effective for at least ten years. The US military tested drugs commonly kept in their stockpile for troops. They found that aside from injectable products, nitroglycerin, insulin and liquid antibiotics, most medications are as long-lasting as the ones tested by the military.
https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/drug-expiration-dates-do-they-mean-anything

Vice Commodore, OCC