5-Day WFR Cert

Hybrid Course

Our hybrid Wilderness First Responder (WFR) combines self-paced online learning and hands-on in-person instruction. This WFR course provides essential training in wilderness medicine, leadership, and critical thinking for professionals, leaders, and outdoor adventurers in the backcountry, low-resource, and remote environments.

This class requires 30+ hours of e-learning followed by 45+ hours of in-person education over five days. The online classroom contains interactive educational modules with videos, readings, self-practice assignments, quizzes, and case studies. For the in-person portion of this course, be prepared to be outdoors for most of the day on all five days.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

• The general principles of wilderness and rescue medicine with an emphasis on identifying medical emergencies, critical thinking, and risk management

• Patient assessment and emergency care, including CPR and AED use, basic life support skills, the patient assessment system, patient reporting, and calling for help

• Environmental medicine, including illness and injuries related to altitude, temperature, lightning, submersion, and environmental toxins

• Backcountry medicine, including the assessment and treatment of common medical problems

• Treatment of injuries from traumatic mechanisms and the treatment of musculoskeletal problems such as overuse syndromes and dislocations

• Non-technical lifting, moving, and extrication of patients with an emphasis on spinal motion restriction when applicable

• Practical Skills including bleeding control, wound management, bandaging, splinting, spine stable patient packaging, hypothermia management, medical kit preparation 

• WMA International wilderness protocols, including treatment of anaphylaxis, wound management, CPR in a remote setting, spine injury assessment, reduction of simple dislocations, and treatment for severe asthma

Course Details