Wilderness First Aid (WFA) is a great option for those seeking a short but thorough introduction to recognizing emergencies and practicing lifesaving skills for someone sick or injured, and who tend to have short visits to resource-limited environments where definitive care (i.e., an ambulance, clinic or hospital) is less than a day away.
Specific topics include:
- Critical body systems
- System for assessing a patient
- Recognizing emergencies and calling for help
- Stopping a bleed, CPR
- Moving a patient
- Musculoskeletal and spine injuries and splinting
- Wound management
- Recognizing and treating anaphylaxis
- Environmental topics such as lightening, cold and heat-related injuries, water immersion and toxins
Certification is through Wilderness Medical Associates Internation. Certification is valid for 3 years and includes Adult CPR following AHA/ILCOR standards. To re-certify consider upgrading to a Wilderness Advanced First Aid (WAFA) or Wilderness First Responder (WFR), or take another WFA course before your cert expires.