Wilderness First Aid *Selected Areas
- Description
- Who Should Take This Course?
- Course Content
- Required Student Materials
- Course Format and Exam
- Course Completion Card
Description Wilderness first aid is a course for anyone planning to visit, who works, or spends time in remote environments. This course is designed for scouts and scout leaders, however outdoor enthusiasts ranging from lay responders to medical professionals would also benefit from this course. It focuses on prevention, assessment, and treatment for an ill or injured person in a remote environment, where definitive care by a physician and/or rapid transport is not readily available. This is defined as being an hour or more away from advanced care. In this WFA class, course participants will learn how to assess, treat, and when possible, prevent medical and traumatic emergencies within the scope of their training.
Who Should Take This Course? Youth (14 years old and up) and adult Scout leaders are encouraged to take this 16-hour first-aid course, which offers a management dimension that most curriculums fail to address.
Course Content Core Modules
- Patient assessment—initial and focused
- Chest injuries
- Shock
- Head (brain) and spinal injuries
- Bone and joint injuries
- Wounds and wound infection
- Burns
- Medical illnesses
- Allergies and anaphylaxis
- Scenarios
Course Content Elective Modules
- Abdominal problems
- Hypothermia
- Heat-related emergencies
- Lightning
- Altitude illnesses
- Submersion
- Wilderness first-aid kits
Required Student Materials Citywide CPR provides required materials as part of the Wilderness First Aid Class package.
Wilderness and Remote First Aid Reference Guide
Wilderness and Remote First Aid Pocket Guide
Course Format and Exam Course length: 16 hours
Course Completion Card A participant who successfully completes a 16-hour WFA course based on BSA curriculum will be certified as a WFA provider. This certification is valid for two years through the Emergency Care and Safety Institute.
