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-   -   Great EMT course (http://www.professionalsoldiers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20138)

ReconRover 10-17-2008 13:40

Great EMT course
 
Took the Wildnerness EMT course at the NOLS HQ in Lander WY. The absolute best course I have ever taken...that includes all tactical classes. The portion of the course is on the Wilderness Medical Insititute curriculum.

Challenging...hell yeah. Head out in -28 weather to head up a mock rescue that runs into the wee hours, get em stabilized, transported...all in waist deep snow, back to the class room...then a 100 question test when your mind is numb.

Each task taught is then immediately practiced outdoors. Rotation at the local hospital ER really brings home the training.

It's a 30 day course, but you walk away with your Wyoming State EMT-B, National EMT registration, and Wilderness Medicine certification. Courses are taught all over the world, and my other team medic went to one in Australia...taught in a cave.

I know there are a lot of courses out there, and that the 18D's rule the roost with their skills, and real world knowledge...but for all others, I'd challenge you to take this course.

Because it's an outdoors based education facility, you do get the "liberal outdoorsy types"...but honestly, getting away from my fellow knuckle draggers was pretty refreshing....and yes, some quiet types teach, and attend the courses.

http://www.nols.edu

one-zero 10-18-2008 09:57

Just finished up a WEMT myself. Just for the hell of it since I don't have 18D's around all the time to keep me straight, some 18Ds came to the course for the improvisational wilderness value along w/ some RN/PA/MDs (last week of course).
Your right about the granola factor - didn't reveal my background until about a week into it. Now have 1 potential 18Xrayer and a good portion of "former" OBAMA voters going for McCain now. They just thought I was some Ol' outdoor guy who was really well rounded and started to come to depend on my insights into certain situations as they were all usually stressed out.
I was 15-20 yrs older than most and in better shape, backed up everything w/actions vice talk during the course...really crushed their preconceived notions on many fronts, so I feel like I got alot more than my WEMT training. Not all koolaid drinkers are beyond help.

hardest part for me was staying w/in legal scope of practice as many QPs (apart from 18Ds) have also received TCCC training (and applied it) so needle decompressions, IVs, and some meds admin was a no-no....
The instructors (even the more granola types) expressed immense respect for 18Ds and enjoy having them attend.
Definitely recommend the course.

ReconRover 10-19-2008 14:09

WEMT
 
Glad someone else on the board has attended. Yeah....I got into some shit at the ER for just taking over a couple of times....Robin that fat nurse with the bad attitude got all over my case...but hey, when your used to going full bore, it's hard to throttle back. Training with 18D's has you in a different mindset. One instructor told me to put away my trauma pack and just use what was in the classroom.

I took the Wilderness First Responder just two weeks before in Oregon...and since they knew what I did, I didn't really disguise it...though I tried for about a week. The WFR was hardcore granola, but still no one gave me an attitude. WEMT was a good mix, one MD, a lot of pre med, some NOLS instructors, and even a few ex army guys. On the night rescues...I had my PVS 14's out, self heating hypothermia kit for the patient, strobe, and gore tex bivvy sack...yeah, they figured me out pretty quickly.

Did you take the WEMT at Lander, or another locale? I'm still very impressed with the quality, and high energy of the course. Being out of college for many years, the studying and tests really threw me for a loop.

Next step...PA school.

Have a good one, and glad you took the course!!!

hoot72 10-29-2008 05:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by ReconRover (Post 229967)
Took the Wildnerness EMT course at the NOLS HQ in Lander WY. The absolute best course I have ever taken...that includes all tactical classes. The portion of the course is on the Wilderness Medical Insititute curriculum.

Challenging...hell yeah. Head out in -28 weather to head up a mock rescue that runs into the wee hours, get em stabilized, transported...all in waist deep snow, back to the class room...then a 100 question test when your mind is numb.

Each task taught is then immediately practiced outdoors. Rotation at the local hospital ER really brings home the training.

It's a 30 day course, but you walk away with your Wyoming State EMT-B, National EMT registration, and Wilderness Medicine certification. Courses are taught all over the world, and my other team medic went to one in Australia...taught in a cave.

I know there are a lot of courses out there, and that the 18D's rule the roost with their skills, and real world knowledge...but for all others, I'd challenge you to take this course.

Because it's an outdoors based education facility, you do get the "liberal outdoorsy types"...but honestly, getting away from my fellow knuckle draggers was pretty refreshing....and yes, some quiet types teach, and attend the courses.

http://www.nols.edu

Did a similar course on pulau ubin in singapore a couple of year's back; program was run by former naval officers of the singapore navy and it was very professionally organized and conducted. Only thing was a lot squeezed into 5 days and it was on the go from 8am till 9pm with an hour for lunch, a 30 minute break for snacks at 4pm and dinner at 7.

Intensive but we didn't touch on IV insertions but well worth doing if one is into the outdoors or needs a refresher on basic first aid and situational awarness on how to deal with trauma cases in the bush.

My certs up for renewal early 09 so will have to go through the program again.

I would imagine the program in the states would be more intensive but we had the similar tests; search and rescue scenarios, ABC checks, spinal injuries, puncture wounds, broken/fractured bones, CPR situations with an evac at night over a mile and a half and then a sea evac back to Singapore as part of the scenario.

318tuv 10-29-2008 15:56

I took the NOLS WEMT course in California two years ago. It was an excellent course. I started with no medical background and I learned a tremendous amount. I took the course to see how I liked medicine and to get my feet wet. It's a very hands-on course and that helps a lot. It's one thing to read about it and listen to a lecture, and another thing to get out there and do it.
There are usually several minor scenarios everyday. They get out the moulage and other classmates act injured/sick. Over the course we had two major scenarios. The best part of the scenarios is seeing how you perform under a little stress. I'm glad I took the course.
To really get the most from the course you have to put a little time into it outside the classroom. The way the NREMT questions are worded is difficult, we studied practice NREMT tests to understand how they make their questions. I don't remember any specific examples but sometimes the NREMT tests were the obstacles. To cram what is usually a semester course into 4 weeks takes a lot of work. The wilderness part of the training sometimes got put off so we could adequately cover the NREMT material.
The ER shifts and ambulance ride along were great. In the California you do your ER rotations at the Fresno hospital, which is the 2nd highest trauma unit in California. There's lots of gang violence and almost every group before mine got some gun shot wounds and stab wounds. All we had was a guy come in who almost cut his hand off with a skill saw.
There were mostly granola types there in California. The course was actually held at a hostel about 30minutes from Yosemite so that didn't help. There were two contractors in the course and everyone else were hippies. I recommend the course to anyone looking to get their EMT-B.


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