Christmas Gift Ideas for the Remote Medic
Looking for an alternative to a box of Ferrero Roche or a Lynx Africa gift set for the Remote Medic in your life? Here are some ideas from stocking fillers to the more extravagant for the Remote Medics in your life.
£4 S Carabiners
They won’t yet know why they want them, or if they want them but they will want them. These are super handy for organising kit, hanging gloves from your belt, IV fluid bags from things, fixing kit to kit bags. They’re not expensive or sexy but they’re super useful.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Carabiner-Keyring-Aluminum-Keychain-Opening/dp/B0946Q6B9K
£5 Ski Pass Holder
Not just for ski passes. These are invaluable for keeping your shears always by your side - or other valuables that you don’t want to lose. An extra long one (at least 65cm) means you can keep your coveted Leatherman Raptors of TrueShears always within hand’s reach, use them and just let go. No need to re-sheathe them or worry about whether you put them away after your last job.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/LEILIANG-Pieces-Retractable-Extendable-Keychain/dp/B08L7PHV2L
£9 Smidge Insect Repellant
I’ve used this stuff from the wilds of Scotland to Africa and the Middle East and I have not find anything better.
Old Skool die-hards will tell you that you can’t beat Avon Skin So Soft because US Marines used it in Vietnam, in fact it is still proposed that it is the insect repellant of choice for the Royal Marines. Sorry to tell you but the recipe changed; originally the product contained Citronella which is a reasonable insect repellant in its own right but that ingredient was replaced in the ‘90s by Jojoba oil. Here is a study comparing the efficacy of Avon Skin So Soft to DEET and other insect repents from 1991 and here is one from 2015 with the new recipe.
Sorry to be a party pooper.
Smidge is the shizzle.
https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/15895000/smidge-midge-repellent-75ml-spray-15895000
£4 - £11 Storacell battery Holders
These little bundles of joy keep your spare batteries from rolling around in your glove box or getting lost in the bottom of your kit bag.
Available for AAA, AA, C, D and CR123 and in red, yellow, black or glow-in-the-dark.
https://heinnie.com/lighting/?productListFiltersCustom=brand%3AStoracell&productListPgNoCustom=1
£9 - £12 Aloksaks
Alokskas are heavy-weight, waterproof resealable zip-lock bags are great for storage of important items.
The 4” x 7” is perfect for a mobile phone and passport while the 9” x 6” holds A4 documents folded, passports and boarding passes. I use these all the time when travelling. We also use the 9” x 7” for our modular first aid kits.
£15 Sharpie Twin Tip
Who doesn’t like a Sharpie? No one. Sharpies are great but limited if you need to complete a document or make notes on an aide memoir. The Twin Tip features the standard Sharpie tip as well as a fine point.
Satisfying.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-SHARPIE-Permanent-Marker-Ultra/dp/B00PHLBDC6
£17 Casio watch
This is one of our favourites; it is no Breitling but it sometimes pays to have a cheap functional watch that you won’t cry about if it gets lost, stolen or broken. The Illuminator version of the F-91W favoured by service men and women around the world and has a battery life of around
2,000 years.
£10-£20 Pulse Oximeter
They probably have one. But they are so small and cheap, why not have two pulse oximeters. These are usually the first things to be lost or stolen so it pays to have contingency. There are a bunch available on the market from £10 to £100 but all of the fingertip pulse oximeters are the same so I never pay more than £20.00
Some feature the waveform and others don’t but this is rarely explined in the listing so you’ll need to look at the image of the item for sale to see if it has one, for bonus points.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Oximeter-Fingertip-Saturation-Batteries-Included/dp/B0872W8HHY
£35-£50 Petzl Gloves
The Petzl K52 Cordex lightweight gloves are a superb work glove. Not tactile enough for high dexterity jobs but a hardwearing, lightweight, functional and comfortable work glove for working in rope access, law enforcement, Search and Rescue or the garden.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=petzl+k52+cordex&crid=2YSJLVFH0W3BJ&sprefix=petzl+k52+cordex
£60 Rechargeable Batteries & Charger
More battery-related stuff for the torch fetishist. A good quality charger and decent rechargeable batteries will be a joy for them. Rechargable batteries have come a long way from the original NiCad batteries from the 90’s and a recent Which? review scored the cheap Amazon Basics as some of the best batteries compared to many branded varient.
£35 Nitecore UMS4
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nitecore-Universal-4-Port-Charger-Batteries/dp/B07L8LW9NG
£17 AA
https://www.amazon.co.uk/AmazonBasics-AA-Pre-charged-Rechargeable-Batteries-Black/dp/B007B9NV8Q
£8 AAA
https://www.amazon.co.uk/AmazonBasics-Pre-Charged-Rechargeable-Batteries-Packaging-Black/dp/B007B9NXAC
£60 ArcLight Ophthalmoscope - Otoscope
The ArcLight, designed by St Andrews University is a convenient, small, pocket-sized ophthalmoscope and otoscope which is ideal as a primary or reserve tool for managing eye and ear issues in resource-limited environments.
Used on its or or it can be connected to a Camera phone for capturing images and videos. This is a great little tool.
https://arclightprojectshop.co.uk/products/arclight-ophthalmoscope-loupe-otoscope
£63 Alpaka Gear Elements Tech Case
This extremely well-built utility bag is excellent for carrying kit; whether it is your electronics for travel or diagnostic equipment, it has lots of sections for organising kit neatly. It’s stealthy black on the outside and bright orange on the inside making it easy to find everything.
What’s not to like?
£70-90 Engraved Littman Classic III Stethoscope
OK. A battery charger doesn’t scream “I Love You!” So how about an engraved stetheschope?
The Litmann Classic III is a benchmark entry level stethoscope is available in almost every colour you can think of.
Significantly better than any Amazon bargain for £20.00 but you can pay A LOT more for a stethoscope. Unless you are a cardiologist or particularly skilled, most Responders will not benefit from anything more expensive than this.
For an extra £4 Medisave will engrave the stethoscope with your message of love. Or their name. Whatever.
https://www.medisave.co.uk/diagnostics-equipment/littmann-stethoscopes/littmann-classic-iii-stethoscopes.html
£90 Spyderco UK Knife
But nothing really says “I love you” than a sharp knife. As long as it is legal. There are a few knife manufacturers which now make folding knives that satisfy UK knife laws.
£90 Olight Warrior Mini 2
Like a knife, there is no perfect design but this compact torch ticks a lot of boxes.
Small (118mm length), bright (up to 1,750 lumens), variable brightness levels and USB rechargange.
Awesome.
https://www.olightstore.uk/warrior-mini-2-torch.html
£180 Primus OmniStove
You never know when you will need to brew up and the Primus OmniFuel ensures you can get a cup of hot stuff wherever you are. It is not only able to run off almost every type of liquid fuel including petrol, diesel, liquid gas, kerosene it can also run off conventional gas cartridges as well. So no matter wherever you are in the world, you will be able to find a fuel source to ensure your morning caffeine fix.
https://primusequipment.com/en/products/omnifuel-stove-incl-bottle-pouch
£180 Heal Force Prince 180D - 3 Lead ECG
A compact 3-Lead ECG which offers continuous monitoring and basic diagnostic monitoring. If you are looking for a portable 12-Lead ECG you’ll have to scroll a bt further and pay quite a bit more but this device will enable you to spot a STEMI, blocks and all of the other arrhythmias you forgot as soon s you left the ECG class.
https://www.healthcare4all.co.uk/prince-180d-colour-handheld-ecg-monitor-continuous-mode-deluxe
£260 Garmin Inreach Mini 2
Stay connected and be found with the Garmin InReach Mini 2. A tiny satellite tracker / communicator. It does require a subscription but we have used these around the world and can vouch for them.
£1,500 MAsimo EMMA Capnopgraph
Super compact in-line capnography for monitoring ETCO2 as well as resucitation performance. I am not sure why but these only seem to be available in the US and to be sold to EMS agancies.
Luckily there are plenty on Ebay for around £250.
£2,100 iCV200 Cardioview Resting ECG
For those who want a 12 lead ECG and have deep pockets. This is for you.
https://medtree.co.uk/products/icv200-cardioview-resting-ecg
£2,599 Butterfly IQ+
For the gift that really says “I Love You” give the gift of Point of Care Utrasound. There is so much supporting evidence and novel techniques emerging in this field of remote healthcare and the Butterfly IQ+ (and its newer brother the IQ3 at £3,900) are the most affordable POCUS devices available without a painful monthly subscription.