Expedition First Aid

Advanced First Aid Training for Expedition Leaders and Explorers

These advanced 4 day expedition first aid courses are aimed at training outdoor professionals and travellers who operate overseas in wilderness environments that are far from help.

We have approached this course with our own vast experience of leading overseas expeditions knowing what situations you are likely to face and with what kit you are likely to be carrying. To that end the course is designed for first-aiders, but because you may find yourself in some pretty remote places with few resources readily to hand, with experienced medics and trainers leading this course we go beyond the realms of traditional first aid.  We aim to give delegates on this course the skills and the confidence to face a whole host of situations from managing trauma to the very common problems of an upset stomach.

Not the right course? Try looking at our 2 day Outdoor First Aid courses.

expedition first aid training with Will4Adventure First Aid
Mountain first aid - Toubkal, Morocco

Expedition First Aid (4 days) – course overview

Day 1

Vital Signs 1 – basic information gathering
The accident procedure – primary and secondary surveys
Airway management
CPR – urban / drowning casualties
Choking
Shock management:

  • steristrips
  • haemostatic dressings
  • tourniquets 
Day 2

Head and spine injuries
Chest injuries
Practical sessions:
moving / lifting / straightening an injured casualty
helmet removal
fracture & dislocation management
the broken leg – use of improvised traction device
Pain management considerations
Soft tissue injuries
Casualty monitoring and note taking
Practical outdoor scenarios

Day 3

Diagnosis – how to take a patient history
Practical sessions:
– history taking
– Pain management 
Common medical conditions – diarrhoea and issue of antibiotics
Fever – including malaria
Asthma, diabetes, epilepsy/seizures
heat illness
Anaphylactic shock and use of Epipen/Anapen
abdominal problems (appendicitis, hernias, testicular problems)
snake bites
Rescue & related skills

  • Organising a casualty evacuation
  • Working with helicopters
  • Radios, communications
  • Improvised rescue & stretchers
  • Jungle lost procedures & search & rescue
  • Medical scenario & rescue exercise
Day 4

High and cold environments
• altitude sickness – medication & portable altitude chambers
• Hypothermia, frostbite and immersion
Expedition medical planning

  • Immunisations/antimalarials
  • Pre-existing medical cases – group work
  • Legal issues

Outdoor practical scenarios
Written exam
Debrief

Price: £520

Course fee includes first aid manual and first aid certificate valid for three years.

Package

    • Interactive hands on practical training indoors and out
    • Use of recommended first aid kit
    • Easy to follow individual course booklet
    • An accredited, recognised Advanced Outdoor First Aid certificate valid for 3 years

Location

    • Peak District National Park / Sheffield

Course Leaders

This course will be led by Will Legon and Dr Joe Rowles.

Will has led student expeditions and treks for adults to all corners of the globe from South America to Mongolia and has been teaching Outdoor First Aid since 2010.

Joe is an Emergency Medicine doctor and former Special Forces soldier with an interest in pre-hospital, remote and expedition medicine. He is also hugely passionate about sharing what he knows!

Joe holds a Master’s degree in Austere and Military Trauma Science, Diploma in Immediate Care, is a faculty member for the Diploma in Conflict and Catastrophe Medicine and an Honorary Clinical Research Fellow at the University of Exeter where he is a module lead for the MSc in Extreme Medicine. He co-authored the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh guidelines for medical provision for wilderness medicine and is currently medical director for Survivor USA, the world’s largest reality television show.

Contact us for dates of upcoming courses

Read our booking conditions here

Guidelines for Medical Provision in the Wilderness Setting: This document was published in December 2015 in the Journal of Extreme Physiology and Medicine and is now available free online.

Further Reading
Excellent
Based on 95 reviews
Robin Kilvington
Robin Kilvington
27/07/2023
Just completed my 16 hour outdoor first aid course with Lizzy from Will4Adventure First Aid. Great course, brilliantly delivered. Lots of knowledge shared & scenarios acted out to reinforce the skills gained. Will definitely be using again in 3 years time & recommending to outdoorsy colleagues.
Fiona Clough
Fiona Clough
27/07/2023
I recently completed a 2 day outdoor first aid course with Will4Adventure for my orienteering coaching. What a tremendously informative and fun course. Lizzy was our trainer was brilliant. I now feel far more confident if I am required to deal with casualties. Many thanks.
George Hughes
George Hughes
25/07/2023
Well structured course. Very hands on which was good for learning.
Ptsng
Ptsng
03/07/2023
Very good experience,fully enjoyed the first aid course
Linda Mathers
Linda Mathers
08/06/2023
What a great first aid course!! The course leader (Lizzy) was very approachable, willing to answer any questions ,was encouraging and friendly and delivered the information in a very professional way. There was a combination of indoor information sessions ( with a very information booklet to take away) and outdoor practical sessions which really helped to consolidate the learning. I highly recommend it.
Sophie Piper
Sophie Piper
16/05/2023
Great Outdoor first aid course with Will4adventures, very informative and interactive. I have learnt alot and feel much more confident in delivering first aid now. Thanks!
Tom Wells
Tom Wells
16/05/2023
Great course well delivered, would highly recommend Will4adventure
Gary Scully
Gary Scully
16/05/2023
The 2 day outdoor first aid course was a great two days of learning and improving my knowledge and skills. The course, led by Stuart was very well laid out and delivered. It is obvious Stuart has a lot of knowledge and experience to pass on. The weekend finished with some great outdoor scenarios. The whole weekend was very valuable and great fun. The Pie shop up the road is highly recommended too!
Sophie Bennett
Sophie Bennett
11/05/2023
Comprehensive course, covered all the bases to give folk a good introduction to outdoor first aid. Very well delivered by Will with clear explanations, demonstrations, examples and humour. Will made a clear effort to find examples and solutions to situations specific to the interests and working environments of the group. Would recommend
Georgia Melodie Hole
Georgia Melodie Hole
08/05/2023
I took the two-day outdoor first aid course run by Will4Adventure and found it very instructive and informative, as well as enjoyable! It was hands on with practise of possible real world scenarios, which really helped cement the training. I would recommend the course and will certainly use them again for any refresher courses when needed.