Addressing two needs at once, a wilderness first aid class at the University of Alaska Fairbanks taught students how to identify when an injury in the wilderness requires medevac and how to manage those injuries when resources are scarce.
FAIRBANKS, Alaska - Addressing two needs at once, a wilderness first aid class at the University of Alaska Fairbanks taught students how to identify when an injury in the wilderness requires medevac and how to manage those injuries when resources are scarce.
The two-day class was filled with professionals who work in fields that often take them to rural Alaska. This included employees from the Dept. of Fish and Game as well as guides.Unlike a normal first aid class, which generally encourages calling 911 as a first step, Ajango said the wilderness first aid class is “more in-depth.” “There’s delayed contact. So, you need to know better how to assess, how to figure out if they’re really hurt or not and then is there anything you can do?” she said. This involves gaining “a better understanding of the human body, and we really try to get away from as soon as possible hand them off,” she explained. According to Ajango, many people incorrectly assume that medevacs are readily available and that if you “press your EPIRBs or inReach or something like somebody’s going to show up in a nanosecond.” In reality, it is more likely you’ll have to stay with an injured person for hours if you’re in the wilderness in Alaska, she said.The state has a lack of medevac helicopters, according to Ajango, which are also limited in range. That means emergency services must coordinate to prioritize medevacs in the Alaskan wilderness. “Ideally, it’s like if you can figure out how to get out of the field, like, use a snow machine, use a ATV, if you can get your patient out of the field to a clinic or to a a village or something like that, that’s awesome,” Ajango said. She said many injuries in the backcountry can be dealt with in the field with the right training, as 42% of backcountry injuries are cuts and 41% are limb injuries.The class focuses on teaching students how to address these injuries so folks in the field can get themselves to safety. But, students are also being taught how to identify more serious injuries that they cannot address in the field, that need immediate attention from medical professionals.Isabelle Tiller, a subsistence resource specialist for the Dept. of Fish and Game, was one of the students in class. She said her job sometimes takes her “out to these very remote areas where there isn’t always a hospital nearby. There isn’t always access to immediate care.” Tiller had not had any previous first aid training prior to taking the class and said she learned a lot. “Learning how the body actually works, the circulatory system, the nervous system, the respiratory system and then and then how to recognize whenever those those are, are injured and then how to then treat the person. So that’s, I mean that’s the best you can learn,” Tiller said. While she hasn’t been in a situation where she needed these skills before, she said, “I’m glad that I do have this training in case it does .” “I truly think if I remind myself to stay calm and remember... I think I could calmly get through the situation and implement what I’ve learned today,” she said.Pedestrians from above: Midtown office worker is witness to crossing dangers For the second time in April, ‘Hands Off!’ protests against Trump administration stretch across Alaska
Deb Ajango Wilderness Medical Associates
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