The term Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician (WEMT) is used to reference an individual certified in a type of emergency medical training that specifically equips licensed healthcare providers to function in remote and wilderness areas and environments. The WEMT will stabilize, assess, treat, and protect patients in rural and remote environments until specified medical care can be accessed.
In spite of the term, WEMT, certification is not just focused on the EMT level of emergency medical personnel; it also encompasses the Paramedic, Pre-Hospital Registered Nurse, Registered Nurse, Physician Assistant, and Medical Doctor. While it will cover much of what these EMS personnel have already been certified in, there are components specific to wilderness back country area.
See “Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician Training – Working in Remote Areas.”
This precise training requires knowledge and comprehension of the pertinent gear, specific skills, and expert aide required to best function in remote areas and wilderness environments. Unlike more conventional emergency medical care training, WEMT places an prominence on stabilization with the possibility of long-term patient care in the backcountry or hard to reach areas where conventional hospital care can be many hours, even days, away to access. Often the first part of the care is reaching the patient, who can be in any of a number of desperate situations; a fall from a cliff, trapped in flooded areas, or injured in a dense forest.
WEMT has its origins dating back to the end of the 19th Century when volunteer organizations instructing in the doctrines and principles of first aid at mining sites and large railway entities. Soon after organizations such as the Boy Scouts (later the Girl Scouts) and the American Red Cross began teaching first aid to their members and lay people. Even teacher organizations and church groups encouraged first aide to provide trained care for injured children. The first Wilderness EMT course was taught in 1976 to help EMTs enhance their skills and knowledge when working with Search and Rescue teams. Over the years, additional organizations and entities joined and they have provided training to thousands of thousands of people, making emergency medical care assistance available until professional care could be attained or arranged.
WEMT training and certification is comparable in range to similar courses of instruction for advanced medical emergency providers such as Wilderness Advanced Life Support (WALS), AWLS (Advanced Wilderness Life Support), RMAP (Remote Medicine for Advanced Providers), WMPP (Wilderness Medicine for Professional Practitioner), and WUMP (Wilderness Upgrade for Medical Professionals).
Some of the main providers of Aerie Backcountry Medicine, Center for Wilderness Safety, Remote Medical International, SOLO, True North Wilderness Survival School, Wilderness EMT training in the United States include Wilderness Medical Associates (WMA), and the Wilderness Medicine Institute at National Outdoor Leadership School.