AWEP Certification®

Advanced Wilderness & Expedition Provider

February 10 - 14, 2024

Big Sky Ski Resort, MT

We've finished AWEP at our 2023 Winter Conference!
Register for AWEP at Big Sky Resort, July 29 - August 2, 2023 (Registration open), Santa Fe, NM, May 31 - June 4, 2023 (Registration open), or Big Sky Ski Resort, Feb. 10-14, 2024.
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Receive advanced level intensive and hands-on training taught by leaders in Wilderness Medicine including, Howard Donner, MD, Sheryl Olson, RN/BSN, Eric Weiss, MD, and Larry Moore, MD.

Students will learn practical techniques and practice them in mock scenarios. Successful completion of course leads to AWEP Certification®.

AWEP Schedule At A Glance

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Saturday, February 25, 20237:30 am to 3:45 pm
Sunday, February 26, 202312:15 pm to 3:45 pm
Monday, February 27, 202312:15 pm to 3:45 pm
Tuesday, February 28, 202312:15 pm to 3:45 pm
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Note: The AWEP schedule is designed to dovetail with the schedule of the main conference presentations.

AWEP Detailed Schedule

Wilderness Medicine Advanced Wilderness Expedition Provider Certification

Course tuition: $545

Includes: 15.5 additional AMA PRA Category 1 Credits® all supplies, syllabus, breakfast, patch, and certificate

The AWEP Certification® Course is scheduled so that students will be able to attend all plenary sessions at the National Conference on Wilderness Medicine. 

The AWEP Certification® Course is valid for 4 years and is the highest wilderness medicine certification we offer. AWEP is scheduled so that students will be able to attend all plenary sessions at the National Conference on Wilderness Medicine. 

To register for AWEP, you must be registered for the main conference.

Saturday, February 25, 2023

7:30 am - 8:00 am
Continental Breakfast

8:00 am - 8:15 am
Introductions, Course Overview
Scene safety

  • Initial (primary) patient assessment with wilderness approach to the "A, B, Cs"
  • Triage and prioritizing care
  • Techniques for rolling and moving a victim
  • Single rescuer considerations
  • Scene management and roles of team members
  • Communication & scene management

10:15 am - 10:30 am
Break

10:30 am - 11:30 am
Packaging, Lifting, Moving Patients in the Wilderness or Austere Environment

  • Clearing and protecting the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spin in the wilderness
  • Improvising a cervical collar
  • Assessment of pelvis and hip, diagnosis, and management
  • Long term evacuation considerations

11:30 am - 12:30 pm
Lunch on Own

12:30 pm - 2:00 pm
Rescue in the Backcountry: Improvised Medical Trauma Care (with 15” break)

  • Carries and evacuation techniques
  • Cocoon wrap with litter construction
  • Considerations for packaging and carrying a patient

2:00 pm - 2:15 pm
Break

2:15 pm - 3:45 pm
Improvised femoral traction splints

  • Shoulder reduction and stabilization
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Sunday, February 26, 2023

12:15 pm - 1:15 pm
Improvised Trauma & Ortho Care

  • Use & application of tourniquets
  • Improvised splinting using malleable aluminum splints

1:15 pm - 2:30 pm
Wilderness Rescue - Ropes & Knots

  • Introduction to ropes & knots for rescue & medical care
  • Making an improvised harness

2:30 pm - 2:45 pm
Break

2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Airway Management & Fluid Resuscitation Skills

  • Airway management considerations
  • Nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal airways
  • Vascular access
  • Intraosseous (IO) needles
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Monday, February 27, 2023

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm
Backcountry Soft Tissue and Wound Management

  • Considerations for cleaning wounds in the back country
  • Wound closure techniques for those that suture and for those that don’t
  • Blister Management
  • Equipment and supplies for a wound care kit

12:45 pm - 2:30 pm
Intro to Commercial Rescue Systems with Practice Stations

  • Demonstration of a vacuum litter for evacuation
  • Active bleeding station
  • Ortho station (shoulder, pelvis, femur, C-spine collar
  • Airway station
  • Cocoon wrap with litter construction station

2:30 pm - 2:45 pm
Break

2:45 pm - 3:45 pm
Care of Traumatic Injuries in the Wilderness

  • Assessment of a victim with head trauma
  • Concussion management in the wilderness
  • Management of chest injuries including pneumothorax
  • Abdominal assessment and evacuation considerations
Patient Assessment Wilderness Medicine CME Course

Tuesday, February 28, 2023

12:15 pm - 1:30 pm
Scenario Dress Rehearsal - Dry Run

  • Command incident and scene management
  • Division and use of equipment
  • Communication and prioritizing evacuation of victims
  • Debrief dry run scenarios with Q & A

1:30 pm - 2:00 pm
Aeromedical

  • Landing zones
  • Safety when working around a helicopter in wilderness environments
  • Preparing a patient for helicopter evacuation

2:00 pm - 2:15 pm
Break

2:15 pm - 3:30 pm
Scenarios

  • Participants will be responsible for assessing, stabilizing, and managing multiple victims with simulated injuries or illnesses using commonly available backcountry equipment

3:30 pm - 3:45 pm
Summation and Exam Instructions

  • Instructions for online test
  • Distribution of AWEP patches and farewell
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UPCOMING CME DESTINATIONS BY DATE