ECOR is an intensive 3-day class for serious off-road adventurers and/or group leaders. What do you do when you’re deep in the outback where there’s no cell connectivity, no way to contact 911, and you have an accident, illness or injury? External help is not coming, so members of the group need the skills to assess and treat someone who is in trouble and to prepare them for eventual evacuation.

As Emergency Room doctors and nurses, we see many types of injuries that take place in the wilderness and are prevalent among overlanders, such as bumper-leg-bumper crushing injuries, cable burns, winch pinch, jack crunch, and the simple things like, “grabbed the hot pan, fell into the fire pit, and cut my hand while cleaning the fish,” and the list goes on. Many of these injuries could have been minimized by immediate, on-scene assessment and treatment. And when they happen deep in the wilderness, beyond connectivity, basic first aid is not enough. This class will teach not only essential wilderness first aid techniques, but also new approaches to long-term care and delayed transport.

This seminar is designed to provide the education and skills needed for one to serve as a wilderness first-responder, treating and stabilizing people in need of help. Participants will learn how to read vital signs, make assessments and decisions, and provide immediate emergency treatment. Topics to be covered include primary assessment and secondary survey, shock, dislocations, insect and snake bites, hypothermia, hyperthermia, altitude illness, spinal cord injury management, stabilization, and preparation for eventual evacuation. It covers techniques for patient packaging and movement, as well as the emotional and psychological aspects of emergency care, both for the patient and rescuer.