Wilderness EMT:
Wilderness Emergency
Medical Technician Upgrade (WEMT)
5 Days
(45 hours of Continuing Ed by CECBEMS)
The Wilderness WEMT Upgrade course
(Wilderness and Rescue Medicine) is a five day
course designed for currently certified EMT’s, Paramedics, PA's, RN's
and MD's who want
to enhance their skills for use on search and rescue teams, or in other
remote and challenging environments. The curriculum builds on your EMS
training and experience to meet the special challenges of the wilderness
setting. Like all of our courses, the emphasis is on the understanding
and application of medical principles and concepts, rather than the
memorization of procedures and algorithms.
Because you already have the emergency medical background, most of
your training will be devoted to long-term medical care, search and
rescue operations, and the leadership role in managing wilderness
emergencies. You will be challenged to improvise and adapt, not just
carry your ambulance into the back country. You already know what a
traction splint is, now can you make one out of your backpack and ski
poles? A dislocated shoulder is no problem on a ten-minute ride to the
hospital, but what if your transport time includes a technical lower
followed by a three hour carry-out?
As an expedition or SAR medic, you will be asked to take care of
problems well beyond the scope of street EMS. Skin infections, diarrhea,
belly pain, rashes, and tendonitis are as much a part of wilderness
medicine as acute trauma. The Backcountry Medicine section of this
course offers new and interesting territory for even experienced EMS
providers. You will also be trained and certified in Wilderness
Protocols including; the reduction of dislocations, wound care, spine
evaluation, and the immediate treatment of anaphylaxis and acute asthma.
No course can fully prepare any Wilderness EMT for every medical
emergency, or the extremes of weather and terrain he or she might have
to deal with. And, real experience can be hard to come by; it wouldn’t
be wilderness if there were hundreds of patients for you to practice on.
But, with the WEMT course, we strive to get as close as we can.
Note: This course serves as an EMT refresher in the State of
Colorado. Please check with your state EMS office for reciprocity. State
testing and re-certification is optional at a small additional expense.