My favourite bit of kit would be my cotton pillowcase. As a useful stuff sack for used undies it doubles as a slightly unsavoury but very comfy pillow. It has been used for rounding up unwanted spiders in the tent, as a very cosy hot water bottle cover for the pee filled nalgene bottle and a useful spare sun hat.

From a medical point of view, it is good in dust storms (keeping sand out of hand and feet dressings as a last resort) and, due to its lurid colouring, proved very useful during a casevac in Nepal, when pinned out at the helicopter landing site on the hillside. It's also a useful place to hide the jelly babies from the Expedition Leader!.

Please send in any more suggestions about favourite kit to piers@expeditionmedicine.co.uk and we will put them in the newsletter.