Medical Bags
Our medical bags help you organize first aid and trauma supplies so you can find the right item fast when it counts. The selection covers EMS response bags, military-style medic bags and compact trauma kits for a vehicle, range bag or MOLLE vest.
For EMTs and first responders, there is the EMS Rescue Bag, the EMS Trauma Bag, the EMS Trauma Backpack, the EMT Bag, the EMS Medical Field Pouch and the Medical Rescue Response Bag. These larger bags suit a station, a truck or a volunteer medical team.
Military-pattern options include the Canvas Nato Medic Bag, the G.I. Style Medical Kit Bag and the Platoon Leader 1st Aid Pouch. For personal carry, the MOLLE Tactical Trauma Kit, the Fast Access Tactical Trauma Kit and the Tactical Breakaway First Aid Kit attach to webbing on a pack, vest or belt.
Several products are listed as kit contents:
- Tactical Trauma First Aid Kit Contents
- Tactical First Aid Kit Contents
- Military Trauma Kit Contents
Check each product page for exactly what is included and whether you are buying a bag, a filled kit or a refill.
A bag is only as useful as the supplies inside it and the training of the person using it. Stock it to match your training, check expiration dates, and restock after every use.
A note for service members: the Army issues its own Individual First Aid Kit (IFAK II) and medic sets. Our commercial bags and kits are not issue items and don't replace what your unit issues; use them for personal vehicles, training, ranges and home.
How to Choose Medical Bags
Size the bag to who you're caring for and how far you'll carry it. One person on a range needs a compact trauma kit; a responder covering an event needs a bag that holds supplies for several patients.
Personal Trauma Kits vs. Responder Medical Bags
- Personal kits like the MOLLE Tactical Trauma Kit, Fast Access Tactical Trauma Kit and Tactical Breakaway First Aid Kit mount to MOLLE webbing on a backpack, plate carrier or belt so they stay with you.
- Pouches such as the EMS Medical Field Pouch and Platoon Leader 1st Aid Pouch hold a small team kit.
- Responder bags like the EMS Trauma Bag, EMS Rescue Bag, EMT Bag and Medical Rescue Response Bag carry larger quantities and more categories of supplies.
- Medical backpacks like the EMS Trauma Backpack free your hands when you have to cover distance on foot.
Organization Matters in Medical Bags
Under stress, people grab what they can see. Look for bags with separate compartments, clear labeling and openings that fall wide open. Keep bleeding control supplies where they can be reached first, and pack the same way every time so anyone on your team can find them.
Keeping a Medical Bag Ready
- Inventory the bag on a set schedule, such as the first of every month.
- Replace anything expired, opened or damaged.
- Store it out of direct heat, which shortens the life of adhesives and some supplies.
- Restock immediately after any use, even a small one.
IFAK and TCCC Basics for Medical Bags
What's in an Army IFAK?
IFAK stands for Individual First Aid Kit. When the Army began issuing the IFAK II in 2013, it added a second tourniquet, a Tactical Combat Casualty Care card, a marker, an eye shield, a vented chest seal and a strap cutter to the earlier kit. Combat gauze was left out of the issued kit because of its shelf life. Civilian kits vary widely, so compare contents on each product page rather than assuming a kit matches the issued version.
How TCCC Shapes Kit Layout
Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) is the military's framework for trauma care in combat. It describes three phases: care under fire, tactical field care and tactical evacuation care. Many trainees learn the MARCH sequence: massive hemorrhage, airway, respiration, circulation and head injury/hypothermia. Kit builders often organize bags in that same order so the most urgent items sit on top.
Training Before Gear
This page describes equipment, not medical treatment. Tourniquets, chest seals and other trauma supplies should be used only by people trained to use them. Take a hands-on first aid or bleeding control course, follow your agency's protocols, and call emergency services in any real emergency.
Medical Bags and Military Use
For duty use, follow your unit's issue and load plan; commercial kits don't replace issued medical equipment. For carrying a medical bag in uniform, DA PAM 670-1, paragraph 20-2b, allows carry by hand or on one or both shoulders, not diagonally across the body, and requires a black bag or one matching a color of the authorized camouflage pattern with the ACU and Class B uniforms. Your command may be stricter.