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Wilderness First Responder Recertification
Dates
- 2024: November 14-15 | November 23-24
- 2025: April 5-6 | April 14-15
Our Hybrid Wilderness First Responder (WFR) includes an online component in addition to the traditional scenarios and skills. The Wilderness First Responder course is essential if you work or recreate in the outdoors or in other austere environments where access to medical care is delayed or communication is unreliable. It is the industry standard for professional guides, trip leaders, search and rescue team members, outdoor enthusiasts, and international travelers. Upon completion, you will be able to conduct a thorough physical exam, obtain a patient history, assess vital signs, provide emergency care in the wilderness, and make crucial evacuation decisions. NOLS Wilderness Medicine’s nationally recognized curriculum encompasses a wide range of topics including long-term patient care, wound management, selective spine immobilization, reducing dislocations, litter packaging, and epinephrine administration.
WFR recertification curriculum includes:
- 1 day of online review and an online test which you will complete on your own time. Must be completed prior to class start.
- 2 days of in-person classroom and scenario work.
This two-day scenario-based course is designed as a review and practice of evacuation and decision-making guidelines. It also provides wilderness medicine practitioners with current updates in the wilderness medicine field. Pre-work allows you to review the curriculum at your own pace, and focus on the hands-on element during your two days on course. Once on course, the scenario-based approach to recertification provides you with the opportunity to test your skills against realistic situations. You’ll practice and relearn wilderness medicine protocols, review evacuation and decision-making guidelines, and receive the latest updates in wilderness medicine over two days.
Students must complete the online modules before arriving at the course. Students will then demonstrate their practical skills during scenarios throughout the in-person portion of the course. Students must complete both components to pass the course and obtain recertification from NOLS Wilderness Medicine.
Upon successful course completion, you will earn the following NOLS Wilderness Medicine certifications:
- Wilderness First Responder/Wilderness EMT (dependent on your current certification)
- Adult and Child CPR & Airway Management
- Epinephrine Auto-injector
This course cannot be used to recertify a WFA (Wilderness First Aid). Most WFR certifications are current for two years from the date the WFR card is issued.
Location
This course is held at the Bernasconi Adventure Center in Big Pine. Lodging is not available onsite. We recommend you stay at a hotel in Big Pine. Camping or sleeping in vehicles on the property is not permitted. Dogs are also not permitted onsite.
Instructors
This course is sponsored by Sierra Mountain Center. Instructors and curriculum is provided by The Wilderness Medicine Institute of NOLS. WMI’s goal is to provide the highest quality education and information for the recognition, treatment, and prevention of wilderness emergencies. WMI’s teaching philosophy is to emphasize treatment principles and decision-making, not the memorization of lists. Their philosophy centers around the physical and psychological well-being of their students and staff. They value the entire experience of a WMI program rather than simply the learning of medicine. Their staff are professional educators who understand the importance of fun and experience as invaluable learning tools. They feel strongly that a student’s ability to feel confident about themselves and their ability to make decisions is of greater value than text-book medical skills. They emphasize decision-making and employ scenario-based teaching as a complement to lecture-style instruction. They believe that this is why their students learn so well and feel confident in employing their newly acquired judgment and skills.
Class Format
Check-in is at 7:30 a.m. on the first day of the course. Course days run from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with an additional evening class on the first day for students needing CPR recertification. Attendance is required at all scheduled classes. Scenarios and practice sessions will take place both inside and outside.
Bring outdoor clothing appropriate for lying on the potentially wet, muddy, snowy, or cold ground playing the role of both rescuer and patient. Frequently stage (moulage) blood and make-up are used to enhance the realism of a scenario. You may want to bring a camp chair or foam pad for outdoor classroom time.
Reviews
Kaz, Winter Mountaineering Skills
“The four-day winter mountaineering course was everything I hoped it would be and more. I nabbed a spot just a week before the trip and Emma, the office manager, was super helpful in coordinating logistics and rental gear for me on short notice. Our first day was spent rock climbing in mountain boots; the second day was spent ice climbing; and the third and fourth days were spent backcountry camping and making a successful winter ascent of Crystal Crag. There were so many memorable moments throughout those four days that is hard to lick just a few to share but I’ll never forget snowshoeing across a frozen lake and climbing 4th class terrain in wind and snow. Our guides—Paloma, Dakota, and Tyler—were incredible throughout the trip and I’d gladly follow any one of them up a mountain again. They provided us with quality instruction in the field and good times back at camp. The guide team also did a great job adjusting the course to suit people of various ages, skill levels, and interests. In short, I had a lot of fun, learned a lot along the way, and believe the course was worth every penny. Thanks, SMC!”
More Reviews
Michael, AIARE II
“Hey all! I recently took AIARE 2 with SP Parker and I have to admit it was fantastic! He showed so much passion for his craft and “patience” with us. It truly showed in the 3 days we spent together that he cares about what he does. He is so knowledgeable about snow science and in particular Eastern Sierra snow that I highly recommend participating in his course if you’re a frequenter of this magical mountain range. Can’t thank you enough and will most surely use the lessons learned in this course to be a more safe and conscious backcountry traveler.”
Jason, Palisade Traverse
“What a fantastic trip put together for us by the Sierra Mountain Center. From the start Emma was fantastic and professional in the coordination efforts for our Palisade Traverse trip. My son and I had a 1:1 guide ratio and the guides, Dave Stimson and Tyler Logan, were exceptional. Exceptional in their knowledge of the route, their efficiency with rope craft and their trailside manner – despite the exhausting climb we had such a fun time. We are already planning next year’s outing with SMC.”
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