Medicine Elective Course Description

Instructor: Hilary Irons, MD

The course is a combination of lectures, hands-on skills training, and simulation scenarios to help students learn treatment of common injuries and illnesses encountered in the wilderness setting.  Topics include those rarely covered in traditional clinical rotations including altitude illness, avalanche, lightning, snake bites, toxic plants, and dive emergencies. Students will learn splinting, emergency patient transport, and life-saving wilderness procedures. We will also discuss wilderness survival skills and differences in triage and treatment in austere environments.  The class will be available to medical students, residents, fellows, and other interested medical professionals.  Medical students are given the priority in class registration. Class will involve daily self-study reading assignments with evening sessions 5-8pm M-Th on University campus and Saturday all-day outdoor session with possible weather-dependent overnight session Friday-Saturday (location TBA).