Published: 14th March 2025.
Last updated: 14th March 2025.
Author: Cara Sherratt.
Contents
Keeping a well-stocked first aid kit is of the utmost importance when it comes to maintaining the health and safety of the people around you. Whether you work on a site with hazardous materials or in an office with risks of trips or falls, thousands of people each year are affected by common workplace injuries that require first aid treatment. When emergencies happen, the correct supplies must be used in the correct way to prevent further injury.
You should replace used items from your first aid kit as soon as they are used to ensure you aren’t missing a crucial piece of equipment if a situation arises where you might need it. Furthermore, when attending to an individual in need of first aid attention, the last thing you want is to reach for equipment that is no longer fit for purpose.
When you first purchase your first aid kits and supplies, we recommend you check the expiry dates and make a note of them in a physical diary, email calendar or mobile phone calendar to alert you when it is time to be replaced.
Why Expired First Aid Supplies Can Be Harmful
Expired supplies can be harmful for a wide range of reasons that mainly stem from a decrease in quality and structure that can happen when supplies are left to deteriorate over time. Some products may become less effective if they are kept beyond their expiry, while other expired supplies may increase risks of cross-contamination.
For example, expired supplies can break down over time, and any product with adhesive components can lose their stickiness and come loose from wounds, opening injuries to unsterile environments, or bacteria.
Supplies such as gloves can dry out, break or have tears in their materials which increases the risk of contamination, spreading of blood-borne pathogens or other infectious material. Sterile wipes and other wound cleaning supplies that have expired can lose their sterility or dry out completely, making them unusable in an emergency.
Other items may become contaminated due to a breakdown of packaging or infiltration of bacteria that occurs over time, altering the composition of some solutions or creams.
What First Aid Items Can Expire?
First aid supplies that have expiry dates include bandages, plasters, sterile wipes, saline solution, eyewash kits, and gloves. All of which could have serious implications if ignored. The last thing anyone wants to do in a high-pressure situation is cause an injured party further harm – especially when it is easily avoided. It takes just a few minutes out of your day to check your first aid kits, so check your supplies today and don’t wait until a situation where time is of the essence.
How to Check the Expiry Dates on Your First Aid Kit Items
Learning how to check the expiry dates on your supplies is simple, look out for the date shown on the diagram below and make a note of this in your preferred reminders platform.
Your First Aid at Work Basic Kit Checklist
Stay in the know and learn about the foundations of a basic first aid kit by getting to know the supplies that assist with common injuries, or save lives. If you’d like to know exactly what you need for your home or workplace, use our handy buying guide.
• Plasters, Gauze and Dressings: Essential for patching up small to large wounds, help to stop bleeding and act as a barrier to harmful bacteria.
• Bandages: Used for sprains, breaks or to support the joints. Bandages also hold dressings in place and can be used to stop swelling and put pressure on wounds.
• Scissors / Tough “Tuff” Cut Scissors: Strong scissors should be included in your kit that are able to cut through clothing to attend to wounds, remove pieces of jewellery on parts of the body that may be swelling, or to cut tape or bandages.
• Face Shields and Disposable Gloves: Your safety comes first, always have gloves in your first aid kit to reduce the risk of infection and keep scenarios where you may be touching injuries or administering rescue breaths as sterile as possible.
• Cleansing Wipes / Alcohol-Free Wipes: In-date cleansing or alcohol-free wipes help to remove dirt, clean wounds and sterilise open injuries.
• Pins, Clips and Adhesive Tape: Necessary to secure dressings in place or hold the loose end of bandages in place.
• Foil / Aluminium Blankets: A supply used to help retain body heat and deter hypothermia in first aid or emergencies.
Additional items found in First Aid Kits include eyewash kits, burns kits, tweezers and Tourni-Key products. To view our full range of first aid supplies, browse the shop online.
When it comes to first aid, you want everything to go as smoothly and effectively as possible. Whether it’s for minor injuries, or major cardiac events, having the right equipment on hand at the right time can be the difference between helping and hindering someone in need of medical assistance. Take the time to check your first aid supplies today and order new kit to replace expired products.
