The Boy Scouts of America - The Scouting Guide to Wilderness First Aid

This book is dedicated to Ashlie, Bennett, and Eva.

I look forward to sharing a lifetime of adventures with you.

Copyright 2019 by Wildside Medical Education, LLC

Illustrations by Willie Azali and Rod Walinchus.

All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

Printed under license from the Boy Scouts of America to Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. For more information on the Boy Scouts of America program, visit www.scouting.org.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available on file.

Cover design by Brian Peterson

Print ISBN: 978-1-5107-3971-0

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-5107-3973-4

Printed in China

DISCLAIMER

It is the responsibility of the reader to take a wilderness first aid or equivalent training course, as the information contained in this book is not intended as a substitution for a course or practical experience. To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Author nor the Publisher assumes any liability for any injury, disability, death, and/or damage to persons or property resulting from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

An in-depth knowledge of wilderness first aid can come in handy.

INTRODUCTION

Five years ago I published the Wilderness First Aid Handbook. That book was the culmination of several years of discussions with students, instructors, and educators while serving as Medical Advisor for Stanford Outdoor Education. I had wanted to provide protocols that could deliver logical and useful guidance for first responders whose depth of medical knowledge was a sixteen-hour wilderness first aid (WFA) course. I attempted to stay within the bounds of the curriculum and course that have been adopted and taught throughout the United States. In preparation for this Scouting edition, I revisited the doctrine and the evidence that forms the backbone of wilderness first aid, and remembered the lessons (delivered and received) over the years from my emergency medicine residents and wilderness medicine fellows in the Stanford Department of Emergency Medicine. I decided to expand the scope of this edition to reflect both the WFA core curriculum as well as complex concepts and skills, as often readers have a thirst for advanced knowledge.

Before going on a trip in the wilderness, consider taking a first-aid course. Credit: Grant Lipman

Wilderness first aid skills may come in handy in areas affected by natural disasters.

Wilderness first aid is the assessment and treatment of an ill or injured person in an environment where definitive medical care by a professional or rapid transport to definitive care is unavailable. People who work, live, travel, and recreate in the outdoors have specialized medical needs not adequately fulfilled by traditional first aid. Wilderness first aid fills this gap. Remote locations, arduous conditions, paucity of diagnostic and therapeutic equipment, and a need to make critical decisions, often without outside communication define wilderness medicine as a specialty. These conditions may be found in remote wilderness, the developing world, or even in wealthy urban areas beset by natural disasters. This book is to be used as a guide to augment the skills and training learned in a typical wilderness first aid course. The intention is to assist the lay public, outdoor professionals, and instructors as well as members of wilderness first aid classes with useful and practical information that complements their training. Some elective skills are included, which the individual can decide to include depending on his or her comfort level and specific training.

Wilderness first aid courses can prepare you for when youre the first person on the scene. Credit: Grant Lipman

Wilderness first aid courses can teach you how to assess an ill or injured individual. Credit: Grant Lipman

You can purchase most of the medicines in this book over the counter.

Consult with a doctor about any medicines you carry or prescriptions you may need. Credit: Grant Lipman

This book is written for those who have basic first aid knowledge, not necessarily those with advanced degrees in medicine or pre-hospital care. The American Heart Association has limited components of its resuscitation curriculum, recognizing that some tasks may be difficult for laypersons to competently perform. Similarly, this book acknowledges that certain knowledge and procedures are outside the scope of the average wilderness first aid providers knowledge, and thus strives to limit the use of technical terms or advanced techniques that may be unfamiliar to some readers or impractical based on the wilderness setting. This book provides easy-to-follow protocols and instructions to assist those encountering most wilderness emergencies.

Depending on where you are in the wilderness during an emergency, medical personnel may need a boat or helicopter to reach you. Credit: Grant Lipman

While the contents of this book are meant to assist in managing a medical emergency in a remote environment, the information is applicable to any setting where the reader is first on the scene. The protocols contained in this book are to be used as guidelines and are by no means a substitution for common sense or definitive medical care. A rescuer is liable for his or her own actions and should never undertake a medical procedure he or she feels uncomfortable with or which is not absolutely necessary unless the rescuer believes the victim may lose their life or limb without intervention.