First Aid

What is Wilderness First Aid? Wilderness First Aid expands on basic first aid training with advanced emergency management and assessment techniques. During a Wilderness First Aid course Scouters and youth members over age 14 learn how to assess, treat, and manage emergencies so they can safely take their adventures into areas beyond the reach of rapid emergency response. When is Wilderness First Aid Training Required? At this writing training is only specifically required for programs at BSA high adventure bases, but is highly recommended and encouraged in any situation where Scouts are travelling to areas where emergency response will be delayed....

Wilderness First Aid is highly recommended, but when is it required? In this week’s podcast we’ll do our best to tell you when wilderness first aid training is required (although it’s just good common sense too!) , I’ll also answer questions about uniforms, the effective date a Scout earns a rank, and how Venturing Crews use the patrol method. LINKS Red Cross WFA Pocket GuideRed Cross WFA Reference GuideWebelos Crossover LetterGuide to Awards and InsigniaScout Leader Uniform Inspection SheetScout Uniform Inspection SheetGet text notification for Scoutmaster ChatsThe Big Three Resources every Scouter should read...

I was reminded (thank’s Jeff!) to remind you that Lyme disease season is upon us. The map above shows where Lyme is an issue when camping and hiking in the outdoors. Consult this CDC website for a comprehensive set of resources to better understand Lyme and how to prevent it. This PDF document offers succinct advice for campers and hikers. This FAQ is helpful for getting answers and clarification of common (mis)information....

An article from Wilderness & Environmental Medicine Journal examines the retention of skills for those trained in wilderness first aid and concludes: Without additional training, regular use of the course content, or efforts to refresh thinking on key topics, the ability of WFA students to effectively apply their learning will likely decrease as time from training increases. With respect to these WFA courses, student scores on written tests did not accurately reflect competence in performing practical skills related to a medical scenario....

We camp in the kingdom of the timber rattler and the copperhead so I keep up on current best first aid practices for treating venomous snake bites in the field. Dr. Paul Auerbach, author of Medicine for the Outdoors, recently published an article about venomous snake bites: read the full article here. Dr. Auerbach observes; “Most bites, even by venomous snakes, do not result in medically significant envenomations.” “The most important aspect of therapy is to get the victim to an appropriate medical facility as quickly as possible....

Thin ice and cold water boating accidents result in cold water immersion – a serious danger of winter in the out doors. Dr Gordon Giesbrecht coined the phrase 1-10-1 to describe the three critical phases of cold water immersion: 1 – Cold ShockAn initial deep and sudden Gasp followed by hyperventilation that can be as much as 600-1000% greater than normal breathing. You must keep your airway clear or run the risk of drowning....

Most of our Scouts will leave the relative comfort of an air-conditioned house for a week in the out doors. Keeping cool can be a monumental challenge, or a physical impossibility. We perspire to dissipate heat through evaporation. Increased humidity (more moisture in the air) decreases the rate of evaporation and our ability to keep cool. R. G. Steadman’s 1979 paper titled “The Assessment of Sultriness,” factors 20 different variables to describe how heat feels....

Medicine for the Outdoors Paul S. Auerbach MD There is nothing in this book that you don’t need to know. I don’t think you have to memorize this book but I would encourage you to know what’s in it and how to find it quickly. Our first duty as Scout leaders is the safety and well being of our Scouts at an age when they are poor judges of risk and have a propensity to overestimate their capacities....

A fairly recent development in first aid the emergency bandage combines a sterile dressing, elastic wrap, pressure bar and closure that maintains direct pressure on bleeding wounds. Originally developed by the Israelis for military use it comes highly recommended from military medics and civilian paramedics: I was first introduced to the Israeli emergency bandage several years ago as a medic in Iraq… The Israeli emergency bandage was the first of a new generation of bandages that made a difference when it really counts....

By Jeremy Joslin, M.D. from Medicine for the Outdoors It always happens by accident. You’re using your new, lightweight pack saw to collect downed wood for an evening fire when the saw slips and slices into the back of your left thumb. Blood flows immediately, and you feel a rush of pain up your hand. You’re four days’ hike from civilization and the cut looks like it needs stitches. Let the first aid begin....

Hikers, runners, athletes, backpackers and Scouts all know that one must take care of their feet. Scouts are young enough to bounce back from blisters, strains and twists quickly but not the old Scoutmaster. It is worth knowing how to maintain healthy feet. Perhaps it is a sign of my ever advancing age (I’m fine with getting older, it is better than the alternative) that I have greater concern for sore feet....

Dr. Paul Auerbach discusses blisters at Medicine for the Outdoors: If a blister is caused by pressure (ill-fitting boots), you have a couple of choices. As mentioned above, prior to actual blister formation, you can protect or pad the area. Once a blister forms, the blister site can be padded with moleskin or other adhesive foam, so that rubbing no longer occurs, the blister should be ringed with a doughnut of padding and left intact....

Making realistic wounds for first aid instruction is great fun. Here’s a set of instructions that will give you professional and reusable results. LINK via MAKE Texas Troop 502 has a great page with instructions on how to do first aid moulage – Lectures are boring. Providing a complete picture of an accident scene improves the Scout’s ability to learn First Aid, and by associating the accident to the situation teaches safety and prevention....

The season of the tick has returned – time to review appropriate strategies to prevent Lyme disease and a host of other tick-borne agents. Most everyone in this part of the world knows someone who has had or is battling Lyme disease. Knowledge of how to properly identify, avoid, remove and treat the bites of ticks (despite years and years of educational efforts) is still low. Conflicting advice, old wive’s tails and urban legends still persist....