DAMAGE CONTROL

Well the words gone down the north coast

and it's boy you best take care

Cut yourself with a knife

Find all the salt that's in the air

Bill Morrissey

Just before my most recent cruise I used my hookah dive setup to clean BIANKA's bottom. During these bottom cleaning dives I don't wear fins or booties. After finishing I climbed back into the boat cockpit and found the side of one of my feet covered in blood. Apparently while I was under the boat and kicking with my unprotected feet I made a few gashes on the side of my foot after contacting the prop. This is what it looked like after I did an initial cleanup:

A few years ago I read an interesting but, disturbing book called Parasite Rex: Inside the Bizarre World of Nature's Most Dangerous Creatures. It chronicled how small parasites can kill creatures much larger them themselves including yours truly. So I knew slicing my foot on a fouled prop required some immediate attention. In addition the news had recently mentioned how a fisherman had died in twenty four hours from an infected cut while setting traps brackish waters in Florida. With that news fresh in my mind after an initial rinse in fresh water I went into BIANKA's medical lockers to find items to use on the wound.

BIANKA's medical cabinet is a mish mash of items put together over the years. I even have a Life Raft First Aid Kit
:

I got  it  for free back in the 2005. I happened to be on a freighter traveling along the coast of South America. It was time for the ship to replenish the items in their lifeboat. Items  included getting a new medical kit. The Captain of the ship asked if I might want any of the old items. I jumped at the chance to get the unused Liferaft medical kit. Though I hope to never have to use it.

For the gashes on my foot I choose more commonly available items to cleanse the wound. First I wiped the area with Betadine. It's an iodine solution used in hospitals. You need to be careful with it as it can stain things if you are not careful and just a little bit goes a long way. I then followed the Betadine with a coat of Neosporin Antibiotic Ointment . I then covered the area with two Band-Aid Brand Adhesive  Extra Large Tough Strips:

I think these Tough Strip bandages are the only ones to carry on board. They stick better and are made out of fabric not plastic and have adhesive all around the pad to really seal the wound area. I even went swimming two days after applying them to my injury and they never fell off until I took them off several days later. I have them in several sizes on board. Including the extra large ones which came in handy in this case. It's a good thing to have a good selection of items to deal with even minor injuries as they can become infected with life threatening results if not addressed promptly.