Looking For A Medical Bag

KBA

KBA

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Apr 27, 2014
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We have to carry a medicine for my daughter 24/7. It has to stay below 72 degrees and it cost $4,000+ to replace. Our insurance will only cover one replacement per year.

We have been using a purse to carry it all and I am looking for a better system. My budget is tight right now but would love to know what is out there.

Here is what I at least have to carry:

http://s1379.photobucket.com/user/kbas2mail/slideshow/Bag

I carry the med in a tempature gauged bag that holds only 1 ice pack. In the purse we include documents showing our daughters condition, instructions on how to administer the medicine in the event I and mom are unable (think we get knocked out or worse in a car accident), and a few 1st aid items. I would love to add blood clotting agents, chargers, flashlight, other edc type gear. The hard part is adding re-freezable ice packs. I have found a single pack will last around 4 hours in the summer. We have had to carry a soft portable cooler in the summer so we can pack more ice. Most importantly, the med has to stay below 72 degrees.

Let me know what details I am forgetting or if you have any questions.

Thank you for the info and suggestions.
 
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Some diaper bags have small compartments for keeping bottles of milk/formula cold for fairly long periods of time. I have one that is a backpack and actually pretty nicely organized. I'm not sure if you could fit the medication and ice pack(s) in the cooler compartment, but it might be something to look into. Good luck!
 
Have you tried storing the meds in a large thermos jar, like the food jars? they are far better insulated than any soft pouch would be, and give you the advantage of impact resistance. Some large bright labels would make it easy to find. Zojirushi makes some really awesome insulated lunch jars and travel mugs. Its a simple matter to pre-freeze the jar overnight, and doing a two or three stage insulation will also help. Obviously the kit will get bulkier, but you will also have the advantage of controling where the condensation ends up, as in, if you use a soft cold pack inside, everything else will stay drier, or for really hot days, the whole thing can go into a hardside cooler with ice, and the meds are in a watertight container.
 
Sorry to hear about your kid, and not a lot out there i guess to do what you need, but.

I find it odd that in todays world there isnt a small battery powered portable cooler or refridgeration bag or box.

Do3snt seem like it would be that hard to do, lm not an AC guy but a small compressor and a battery powered or rechargable motor even if it comes in at a pound or so.
Could be something diabetics could use too.

Good luck with your search
 
heresthedeal said:
Sorry to hear about your kid, and not a lot out there i guess to do what you need, but.

I find it odd that in todays world there isnt a small battery powered portable cooler or refridgeration bag or box.

Do3snt seem like it would be that hard to do, lm not an AC guy but a small compressor and a battery powered or rechargable motor even if it comes in at a pound or so.
Could be something diabetics could use too.

Good luck with your search
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That was my first thought as well when I realized we have to do this. I do carry a converter for the car to plug in different devices. I wonder how much heat that produce and if it would be a liability.

gadgetgeek said:
Have you tried storing the meds in a large thermos jar, like the food jars? they are far better insulated than any soft pouch would be, and give you the advantage of impact resistance. Some large bright labels would make it easy to find. Zojirushi makes some really awesome insulated lunch jars and travel mugs. Its a simple matter to pre-freeze the jar overnight, and doing a two or three stage insulation will also help. Obviously the kit will get bulkier, but you will also have the advantage of controling where the condensation ends up, as in, if you use a soft cold pack inside, everything else will stay drier, or for really hot days, the whole thing can go into a hardside cooler with ice, and the meds are in a watertight container.
Click to expand...

Another great suggestion, thank you. I hadn't thought of a thermos. I just wonder how that would work carrying it everywhere. We literly carry it everywhere. I'll certainly look into though.

Inazone said:
Some diaper bags have small compartments for keeping bottles of milk/formula cold for fairly long periods of time. I have one that is a backpack and actually pretty nicely organized. I'm not sure if you could fit the medication and ice pack(s) in the cooler compartment, but it might be something to look into. Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thank you for the suggestion. Im not sure a diaper bag would work but it's something to look into.
 
Brett the suggestion above, using a thermos, meshed with my emails. I believe the wide-mouth Stanley will fit in the water bottle holder on the Jumbo.
 
Check out the MarlJohns Stainless King 36 ounce food and beverage jar. It keeps stuff cold for 12 hrs, has a wide mouth, and is vacuum insulated. Put your ice in a Baggie to contain the melt water. They make slings for 2 liter water bottles (mesh bag with a shoulder strap). The gizmo would probably drop right in.
 
tiguy7 said:
Check out the MarlJohns Stainless King 36 ounce food and beverage jar. It keeps stuff cold for 12 hrs, has a wide mouth, and is vacuum insulated. Put your ice in a Baggie to contain the melt water. They make slings for 2 liter water bottles (mesh bag with a shoulder strap). The gizmo would probably drop right in.
Click to expand...

I may have to try that as it has been mentioned a few times. My only concern is the med has parts that will need to be assembled for the med to be properly mixed in order to administer it. I'm not sure my wife would go for the lack of organization in a thermos as they are laid it out steps within the black bag pictured.

I may just have to mod one, but what I was hoping may be our there would be a bug out type bag with 2 major compartments with one of those being an insulated area that could be sealed off. That way the black bag would stay colder longer, especially if I could fit another freezable gel pack. The other major could be dry to hold gear with smaller pockets inside.
 
Check out hydro flask, I carry around a 40oz wide mouth all day everyday and no one bats an eyelash, it holds ice for well over 48 hours, they're tough too I've had mine for years. The yeti bags are sick but may be larger than you like.
 
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If you manage to get it to fit in a thermos you can always go to a vinyl decal place with an instruction sheet you type up and adhere it to the outside of the bottle.
 
Could you pack the meds into a tool roll style of holder? then everything is more of a cylinder shape, but would be laid out in order. When I did sports med, we all tried different ways of keeping a bag of ice on the sideline. No matter how good they claimed to be, soft coolers were all pretty terrible once in the sun. 2-3 hours max. and the black ones were the worst. The more stages of insulation you can get the better, one for the piece of mind, and two for the adaptability.
 
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