Emergency Medical Technical Training

Team members visit Scotland for Medical Training

Sam reflects on her long journey to gain the EMT qualification.

At the end of last year, Jim and I left the West Country to travel 560 miles to the Cairngorms in Scotland for a week long Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT) course, delivered by the British Association of Ski Patrollers (BASP).  We are both full team members and qualified Casualty Carers.

We had started preparing for this course almost twelve months previously with intensive reading and studying of our anatomy and physiology books.  We also used the paramedic Emergency Care book frequently throughout.  As volunteers within Mountain Rescue, we are used to on-going training but this was definitely a big challenge for us both!

We joined 16 other people from Mountain Rescue teams spanning from Exmoor to Dundonell in Scotland.  We were taught by three principle instructors from BASP.  In addition there was a helicopter paramedic, a consultant anaesthetist and an educational technician who taught the intravenous cannulation.  They all work in the mountain or ski rescue, so knew our environment well.

As qualified Casualty Carers we are already expected to have a good level of knowledge in diagnosing and treating both medical and trauma conditions.  The EMT course built upon this foundation and the training included detailed lectures followed by practical workshops with plenty of opportunity to practise our new skills.

The days were almost 12 hours long as they included evening outdoor sessions, one of which was a large scale exercise on the Wednesday evening.  We had just returned to base from our first major exercise when the call came in for another one.  We set off immediately to deal with another major scenario, involving two collapsed casualties.

We all practiced intramuscular injections on each other and putting in peripheral cannulation on dummy arms. A couple of people were even brave enough to perform their first “live” cannulation on willing volunteers; this was done under close supervision.

Over the week we made many friends on the course from teams around the country, making us realise that although we might be divided by many miles geographically, we are united by our common cause and desire to support our local communities the best that we can.

The end of the week resulted in an hour and forty-five minute written exam paper, followed by practical examinations.  Not everybody on the course passed, but I’m pleased to report that both Jim and I did.  We can now practice as EMT's for the next two years before we go back for re-qualification in Autumn 2013.

Sam Bryant-Jones & Jim Whatley
Casualty Carers and Emergency Medical Technicians