First Aid/CPR

[Sly]

Duct tape and a bandana.

[TakeABreak]

Well since this thread started I have gone to the local Red Cross and asked about a wilderness first aid type course, i explained to them I have the first aid & cpr training and military training and why I wanted a wilderness first aid class.

They said the Red Cross had discontinued that type of courses a couple years ago and were working to re-institute a wilderness first aid course or asimilar type of course.

I Guess I will have to go where The Old Fhart, mentioned in his comments, to get more advanced training.

[Pencil Pusher]

I was a combat life saver...

Oh the humor potential. Instead I'll just envision guys poking each other with IVs for practice. And while I bite my tongue with a giggle for the rest of the post, that is a good attitude to have.

[dream]

As a Combat Medic besides tons of training exercises in woods , deserts and mtn's I have been deployed in haiti, bosnia and am currently wrapping up my year in Iraq. I say this from working experience in woods , ditches, alleys , roofs , aircraft, and boats . and plenty of miles on the trail. CPR certification would MOST LIKELY be useless in a hiking situation , more of a survivor benefit ("I did CPR even though I knew it would be too late because I just couldn't sit there") If you've ever done CPR, good CPR , you know how tough and exhausting physically it can be. I am in great shape and I know that my compressions will get sloppy after 15 min if I don't concentrate. on the trail it could be hrs maybe days before a wilderness rescue crew arrives. I am NOT saying CPR will never do you any good on the trail. the only thing I can guarantee is that if you NEVER learn it will NEVER help you. Plus the medics law of bad luck says that after enough time you will run into every exception , every contraindication given enough time.

So no CPR/first aid is definitely not enough medical training to go happily skipping down the trail thinking "hey I got everything covered and can handle everything that comes my way"

What kinds of classes are good? Any kind of wilderness medical classes that take into account the environment that you will be in. If you are going HIGH make sure that the classes you take go deep into HACE /HAPE and other high altitude disorders and treatments. If you're a climber a good Idea would be a Rope specific course , or high angle rescue or something like that. Regular hiking I would make sure that the course was pretty broad and didn't spend too much time on high altitude which is my biggest complaint about ever seminar I have taken regarding outdoors medicine. Also make sure that it's focused HEAVILY with practical exercises on the rescue aspect. the getting the bleeding stopped /ankle splinted is pretty easy most of the time. It's getting that 200lb monster with the twisted wrenched unable to bear weight ankle down trail to the road a mile , 5 , 10, miles away.

I personally don't carry a 1st AID kit hiking , closest I come is a few pepsid AC because Mountain House Spaghetti gives me heart burn but is still my Favorite. I carry nothing because I have enough experience to handle what is handle-able by improvising splints, and know how to make a litter with a blanket or sleeping bag, rope etc.

If you can't take a course then buy a book and read it , thats better than nothing. the good thing about an actual course is the practical hands on exercises , It's free experience ! If you cant then get a book and splint up your girfriend or wife or husband or just to make things difficult your golden retreiver.. One of the most economical ways is to join an outdoors organization that offers first aid classes a couple times a year. or how about volunteering with your local emergency medical department /fire department , you training and experience will be free! and theyre flexible and plus your instructor will actually have experience working in the medical field. Better yet if cose enough join a search and rescue team. They always need people to drive the trucks and help carry. And No , the CPR /first aid class is not gonna NEVER help you, some day you will definitely be the first one to drive by the wreck , or hear your neighbor screaming. Just because it didn't help you on the AT last week doesn't mean it isn't going to be life or death for somebody else.

Me personally I'd rather have a Combat life-saver around when I am tearing t-shirts into strips and getting out the bandannas and breaking sticks than a doctor or RN inexperienced with wilderness medicine. Why Because I know I'll have help when It's time to bend over and pick 'ol dude up and start carrying him. No matter how succesful or unsuccessful you are, you always wind up carrying them.

Hope this helps

[SGT Rock]

Hey Dream, maybe when you get back we can set up a Whiteblaze CLS course. The casualty carry lane will be something to remember.

[restless]

At present, I only have standard first aid/CPR certification. in the past, I have carried Wilderness First Aid certification, and found the training for this course to be of much more value. Under most Red Cross first aid courses the standard line is to first call 911. But in the wilderness, that may not be practical. By taking a wilderness first aid course, I learned about how to deal with real world circumstances and how to deal with injuries in the backcountry with what I had on hand. I highly reccommend a wilderness course to anyone who spends any time in the backcountry.

[dream]

Hey Dream, maybe when you get back we can set up a Whiteblaze CLS course. The casualty carry lane will be something to remember.

I am down for that Top! How Much Pyro should I bring ? you wanna use blanks.....no lets use TRACERS!

who wants to sign up ?

[SGT Rock]

I can get some 7.62 blank and fire it from my rifle. If anyone has a Mini14 we could probably get some 5.56 blank too. All we need is a good moulage kit, a SKED, some IVs, stretchers (collapsible and not) some CLS bags, and a few CLS books. I bet we could get some good AIs like Wacocelt and Mule to help you out.

[Dharma]

I've been an EMT for 8 years and also took WFA (wilderness first aid) some time ago. I thought about WEMT, but I've had enough classes and re-certs for one life.

[dream]

I can get some 7.62 blank and fire it from my rifle. If anyone has a Mini14 we could probably get some 5.56 blank too. All we need is a good moulage kit, a SKED, some IVs, stretchers (collapsible and not) some CLS bags, and a few CLS books. I bet we could get some good AIs like Wacocelt and Mule to help you out.

you know I was kidding right !

[SGT Rock]

you know I was kidding right !

Yes I did, but there weere otheres out there that probably thought we weren't until now

[RenaissanceMan98]

Yes I did, but there weere otheres out there that probably thought we weren't until now

I thought it sounded kinda fun, but then again, I'm former army.

As far as CPR/First Aid goes:
I am a current instructor of both for the American Heart Association. Take a first aid coure. Wilderness F.A. from SOLO or a like group is excellent, but if not available to you, at least take a basic F.A. class from red cross or American Heart.

If you last took CPR more than 5 years ago, YOU DON"T KNOW CPR. CPR protocol changes every 5 years. Ongoing studies teach us more every year, and every 5 updates are placed into effect. Remember, CPR is only about 35 years old, so we are still learning and tweaking the techniques. There is also the fact that if you never use a skill, you lose it.

And, finally, take a CPR course that teaches you how to use an Automated Defibrillator, these things are the greates things to happen to the heart since blood was invented.

[icemanat95]

Just about any critical skill is cyclical. By that I mean, just when you figure you've got all the fine points mastered, you should go back to the fundamentals again and work on honing them and re-honing them, over and over again. It's amazing how muddled up your fundamentals get by the application of advanced techniques.

A master sharpshooter is always going back to sight picture, natural point of aim, breath control and trigger squeeze, whether he (or she) is a Marine sniper reaching out and touching someone at 1000 meters, or an olympic air rifle shooter hitting dime sized marks at 50 yards. Likewise, the lifesaving practitioner who is not constantly going back to practice their basic skills may find themselves screwing up under pressure.

All that said...I'm way past die for re-certifying in Wilderness First Aid.

The comment above that CPR is largely a wasted effort in the backcountry is absolutely true. The practice of CPR is generally built on the assumption that within minutes a team of EMT's or Paramedics is going to arrive with a full defib kit, medications, etc. to restart that heart. CPR's practical use in most cases is to try to keep the blood oxygenated and pumping at some level to preserve the brain until the heart can be re-startd by more advanced methods. But even with ambulance support only minutes away, most cardiac arrests are permanent, and we aren't talking 51% here folks, the figure is closer to 90% if I remember correctly.

All that gloominess said, it's better to try and fail than to give up without trying.

[kwlter]

I teach frist aid and cpr classes several times a year, spent most of my life working (Nurse Practitioner) in the emergency room. Now I'm retired from nursing and changing careers- going into fashion design!!

[Newb]

I took the annual military course. I also took CPR at the YMCA but had to quit when I fell in love with Resuci-Annie. Our love endures...

[justusryans]

I took the annual military course. I also took CPR at the YMCA but had to quit when I fell in love with Resuci-Annie. Our love endures...

You're lucky! We had resuci-Andy!

[CynJ]

First Aid- yes

CPR- informally. I take the class but I don't do the certification. In my field I would legally be required to perform CPR on our clients and I have some objections to that, both moral and safety wise.

[Jaybird]

I have seen a lot of comments and polls on first aid kits, the 10 essentials and the supposed knowledge required to properly utilize them, but very little on the training aspect. Do you take a Basic First Aid/CPR course annually?

have taken an AMERICAN RED CROSS CPR/FIRST AID course several times in the past & plan on taking it again in the future along with getting DISASTER RELIEF Course thru my local (Nashville) Red Cross Chapter.

[SGT Rock]

Just got my CLS re-cert.

[Smile]

The one item I won't remove from my pack regardless of weight issues is my emerg. mouth to mouth breathing mask. Handy!