Today’s post is going to be a little different in that I’d like to start a discussion centered around medical training. For awhile now I’ve wanted to get some fairly advanced medical training – you know, a notch or three above the standard CPR and First Aid you can get at the Red Cross or your local hospital. 
I’m talking about first responder training, or Wilderness EMT training, or regular EMT training, or something along those lines. It’s one of those things I’ve always wanted to do, but never took the time to accomplish.
These days I have two small kids in the house and one of them is as much a daredevil as I was when I was a kid. Meaning I’ve had numerous stitches, staples, surgeries, broken bones, etc, all because I’m not quite bright enough to stop when I should. My mind seems to whisper things like, “It’s not that far across the gorge. If you run and jump real hard you can make it.” That time cost me a couple of weeks in a knee splint plus I had to rappel down a 100 foot cliff and limp down a mountain after I fell into the damned thing. My knee was about the size of a softball that time. Anyway, you get the idea. He’s my son and I know what’s going through his little mind and it scares me enough to take action.
On to the discussion point. What would you advise for medical training in a similar situation? If you’ve had medical training let me know a few details below and if you think it’s been worthwhile. I know some of the training is pretty intensive, but I’m willing to go through it.
I’ve read books like, “Where There Is No Doctor,” and it’s some pretty scary stuff if you really sit down and think about it. What if there’s a huge societal crash and you can’t get to a doctor? It seems to me that medical training would have a threefold benefit: 1) You could take care of your own family’s medical needs, 2) You could always barter your skills for goods and services – knowledge like that is always valuable, and 3) It could give you good ranking and status in your post-collapse community. If you could open a small clinic and treat people for an hour a day or something like that would make people quite fond of you.
Shout out your own experiences, questions, or comments below.
-Jarhead Survivor
Beyond CPR and First Aid, probably the *easiest* thing to do that wouldn’t demand going to college for an associates degree is EMT training. The courses are a few months, but they will also have clinical trials that I’m not sure if they would require you to do or not. But as someone who works in medicine (but outside the emergency care aspect of it) an important thing to remember about any advanced medical training is just that – it’s training. Nurses, Doctors, Paramedics, Respiratory Therapists, ect, all have continuing education they’re responsible for, as well as regular tests to ensure that their skills are up to par. As with any skill, if you don’t use it regularly, you will loose it. Just a friendly thought!
As a side note, if you are truly interested in advanced medical training, I would consider a career in Nursing. It would be excellent knowledge and training for an SHTF, and would make an excellent (albeit tough) career in the meanwhile. The knowledge and skills a Bachelors degree education would prepare you for would be invaluable, and the advanced training you would get in clinical, as well as an emergency hospital setting, would give you further invaluable skills for an emergency situation.
the upside: you become “essential personnel”.
the downside: during the colapse you remain “essential personnel”
I agree about the field of nursing, ;) When the economy is down you usually have a well paying job, when SHTF your skills are going to help you, your family, and your situation.
my mother, an RN, now 88 years old, finally allowed her license to lapse a few years ago. she was constantly getting telephone calls from recruiters trying to offer her nursing jobs.
EMT training would be a good start. The course of study covers quite a large body of info. One should realize that you are being trained in pre-hospital treatment, not definitive care. I’ve been an EMT for over 12 years in a small rural community and while we don’t have the volume of calls our city brethern have, we run the gamat from childbirth to CVA ,heart attack, gunshot,bleeding,sick person,etc. During ongoing training, I’ve often asked about what if there is no medical back-up and we are it. The answer has usually been a blank stare or “that’s not in our scope of practice.” Wilderness EMT training hasn’t ever been available in my area but that level should raise your skill level quite a bit. On my own, I’ve studied many of the military medical manuals and received some hands on from a former combat medic. This has made me feel more able to act if we go into a grid down SHTF situation. One should realize that there will be many you will not be able to help during SHTF. Getting the EMT training is good and actually working with a squad will get you used to thinking and acting in a medical emergency.
(apologies if this ends up being a double post, I don’t see this follow up posted) If you truly want to get into medicine, and get and maintain skills that will be useful in a SHTF, you should consider a career in Nursing. A Bachelors degree education will give you invaluable knowledge and training, and your clinical experience taking care of people, doing emergency room care, ect, will solidify that. And a career that you maintain with continuing education and daily experience will give you (or anyone) an amazing skill set that you can use well into the future. (and if that SHTF doesn’t happen for a few years, you’ll have an excellent, well-paying job in the meantime.)
I was an EMT Basic and later an Advanced Life Support (ALS) provider until my certification lapsed. Probably the best training I’ve ever had. I would highly recommend becoming an EMT-B. It will give you basic information on how to care for traumatic injuries, as well as some basic medical issues. If you aren’t intending to do it as a career or as a volunteer, I don’t see going higher on the EMT scale (to Intermediate or Paramedic).
My EMT training has helped me tremendously since I’ve gotten it. I would also recommend joining a volunteer EMS or Fire Department to help with your skills. If you don’t use them, you will lose them.
I have had a fully stocked EMT bag for over a decade even though I’ve only recently started my other preps. The best thing is that when something does happen, you at least have a baseline of medical knowledge with which to start from, as opposed to just reading a book and hoping you don’t make a mistake. The most important part of being an EMT is that when you’re in the middle of the woods and your kid gets hurt, you know what to do.
If there are wilderness EMT classes (a combat medic would be best though), I’d highly recommend them. Another class I’d recommend would be to take some Search and Rescue (SAR) Technician classes.
My husband is a Fleet Marine Force corpsman (combat medic) in the Navy Reserve, and recently went through a Wilderness EMT course (EMT-B). While the training is awesome (he loved it & hated it to end!), and I’m extremely glad we have a trained medic on hand whether or not TSHTF, nobody in urban areas in the Pacific Northwest seems to be hiring unless you are a paramedic — so don’t think you can make a career out of it, unless you go for that much more intensive (and expensive) training!
Lord Chaos is right about nursing! My best friend is an LPN (licensed practical nurse) currently training to become an RN, and I know she’ll be working as soon as she passes her nursing boards after graduation… whereas my husband may not find work as an EMT unless he gets paramedic training (which we can’t currently afford).
A must for any and all, especially familys and groups, on the cheap I go to youtube, dunno if I’m allowed to say this on here but I use doom and bloom and prepper nurse to glean from, watching their shows over and over, then practicing and purchasing some gear they recommend, I used chicken thighs to practice suturing, not quite as stiff and thick as the pigs feet they use but one gets the idea of stitching flesh, they cover so much, wound cleaning and care, antibiotics and alternative stuff… most nursing stores have scapels and such for sale, feed stores have needles/syringes etc., tho I wouldn’t mention any alternate use for such…used book stores have the EMT and EMT-B (basic) books on the cheap. As said above most voluntary fire departments go through alot of training requirements, takes longer and time investment but it’s all fairly cheap, just thoughts. “C”
Respiratory Therapist here. I went back to school twenty + yrs after my initial degree for several reasons –
A– needed a career change for my own sanity
B– wanted upgraded Medical skills for TSHF, beyond my EMT-B-
C– wanted a job that was portable to any location
Had to take some basic pre-reqs before the core courses; trained and worked several months as a CNA before my clinical year, just for the experience.
If you need a job, and want good medical training, go to a hospital and become a CNA/ Clinical Associate (OJT). You will learn a heck of a lot just being in a medical setting. Pay is around $14.00, not great, but better than broke.
it all depends on the time you have to do it. any of the training would be great. EMT, paramedic is more on emergency care in the prehospital setting. nursing is more on,”" in hospital care”", unless you take classes that consist of emergency care also. I worked on a air service which required the nurses to become emt-basics. and the service also wanted the medic to be in charge of the field runs and the nurses to be in charge of the inter-facility runs. common air services have a pilot, a RN, and a Paramedic on board. i have worked in the field of EMS for 30 years and I love my job. continuing ed every 2 years can be a pain at times and nursing has a big demand now days. nursing gets paid better than EMS. alot of EMS workers have to work 2 jobs to make a living. never the less. any training you could get would be a asset.
I’ve worked with service dogs in both the military and civilian environment. Great animals to have in a SHTF scenario for obvious reasons far too numerous to mention here. But don’t forget the importance of medical/veterinary care post apocalypse for people. A DMV could easily save your life. Some have better sugical skills than some MD’s I know. Lol. Besides, in a pinch, a lot of domestic animal drugs work very well on humans too. Furthermore, veterinarian offices are scattered throughout large cities and rural settings, unlike the centralized medical staffing in hospitals in urban locations. It seems that putting all your eggs in one basket isn’t such a good idea if TSHTF. Imho.
i’m a veteran(20 years ago), so of course i have battlefield care instruction rolling around in my head.
i never though i’d actually be using some of it after being discharged. i also just put Where There Is No Doctor,” + Dentist on my to buy list.
and 3 months ago, i was solidly skeptical of a collapse; now i’m planning an escape plan from the city(Houston). can’t believe it, but the US is not avoiding a depression IMO, it may have already started.
Unless you plan on a medical career, stick with emt-b ,even then your skills will rust fast .My wife is an NP with 27 years as a floor nurse. She gets her Dr.of nurseing next spring . Shes had to go back to school the whole time we been married (26 years) for what are called CEUs (continuing educational units) they have to have so many CEUs every year to keep a current licence. The only downside to haveing a doc in the house is the government comes with it. The moment you obtain a medical ticket of any kind ,you go on the “list of people to heard up” WTSHTF. Truly ALL the hospitals now have remote auto locks on all doors to keep people from leaving in a national emergancy. Thats right folks if things go realy bad the Dr.s and nurses at your local hospital will be “detained” by FEMA/ARMY guys for however long they want to. So yeh, get your training now , and stockpile those drugs you can, Cause WTSHTF you might be the only doc you see for a long long time. Ray in Ky
Having 7 R.N.’s in my family, it’s my understanding that Obamacare forces all medical workers into one big government Union?
I guess my point is to get the training that you would use for yourself. Having been a Male R.N. since 1973, I can tell you that nursing has a huge down side to it and a high turn over rate.
On the other hand, I’ve been married to a Nurse for 30+ years and her nursing skills made her the great Wife and Mother that she is today.
Emt basic is a great way to go in my opinion. But I am biased as I was a Basic for six years. It teaches many skills, and a few drugs (depending on state). It would be good to volunteer somewhere as well. As a volunteer fireman for over a decade I can tell you the experience is very beneficial. It gives the ability to function under a high stress enviorment, and the skills to do something useful. Also I don’t see a use of higher levels of care unless you have access to the medications and equipment. Brain surgeons are awesome at what they do, but if you in the woods with nothing but rocks and pointy sticks, what good is all that knowledge? Emt Basic courses can handle most traumatic injuries, that can be treated with simple/improvised equipment. Sure you won’t do a chest decompression for a collapsed lung. But in a shtf situation, odds are that a fatal injury anyway. At least without a lot of equipment, and considerable support. My cert may have lapsed, but I still remember how to splint a leg, stop bleeding, and do simple care. Advanced skills are great to know, but without the material to implement them, they are useless skills.
I just moved from active duty to the reserves, but for about 2 1/2 years of shore duty, I had some more free time on my hands and signed up for a 2-nights-a-week-and-Saturdays for about 3 months to get my EMT-B cert. I had no prior experience in medical anything, and I found it very interesting. It’s not too in-depth, but it’s a pretty good primer and opening for general knowledge.
To practice, I ended up volunteering at a local volunteer FD that I didn’t even know was there previously, and had a lot of fun and a lot of good experience there (it helped that most people were more interested in the fire aspect, while I was always willing to go on medical calls).
I’m still trying to find a good course like Wilderness EMT, since traditional EMT classes are from the standpoint of having definitive medical care in short order. In a SHTF-scenario, that’s not going to be realistic — therefore I think to really round out the basics of good basic medical background it’s important to take a course that prepares you for a prolonged period without higher medical intervention.
The big weaknesses I think I’d need to overcome as an EMT-B would be things like suturing cuts, BASIC surgery, basic emergency dental care, understanding fundamentals of setting broken bones…stuff like that.
I thought “Where there is no doctor” was very good, and “When there is no dentist” was even scarier. My daughter is a trauma nurse and is concerned about working effectively if there is no advanced equipment, although she thinks we’ll pull through. We’re really stocking up on medical supplies, antiseptics, FishMox, Sam splints, vitamins and blood clotting meds. If TSTHF, we’re on our own like people used to be and considering the fact we’re in late middle age, I expect we’ll get old and we’ll die, like people used to. I was stunned at all the trauma involved in caring for my parents, who I loved very much. My dad said that when he was young, you tried to spend a lot of time with your grandparents because one day, they just wouldn’t be there. That is kind of what I expected with my parents, but their end was dragged out for years. I was glad to have them, but they suffered terrifically and I think we need to accept that when it’s your time to go, it’s your time to go.
With children, it’s always different, and when you consider all the crippled kids who used to hobble around, you want the best for them, and it may not come. Even if the world doesn’t shut down, Obama-Pelosi care is going to kill off millions. Be strong and prove them wrong. Good luck.
Any advanced knowledge is a good things, but I doubt anyone teaches survival medicine effectively. Learn the most you can from any source and have faith you’re smart enought to put it together.
Thanks for the post…I had briefly read something about FishMox before and meant to investigate further, and then forgot. Now I’ve ordered a bottle and am considering other things I may not have enough of.
Thanks!
I’ve taken regular old First Responder training. It had lots of good information. First Responder, at least when I took it, about what to do in the time frame between when an incident occurs and when help arrives. They did a little training on how to help the medics and such that show up, but mostly it was about how to process the scene, pass along good information to 911, and what to do until help arrived- a basic first aid on steroids really.
I don’t think you’d go wrong with taking Wilderness First Responder and then getting more training if you felt you needed it.
I would recomend becoming a First Responder. Some of the more advanced classes like EMT and Paramedic are great but can require a lot of time and money. Also a lot of those skills depend on having certan equipment or medications that you may not have when you need them. Dont get me wrong if you have the time and money go for it but if not First Responder teaches you a lot of valuable skills.
Where I live in PA, the county offers Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training free of charge to residents. This is a little more advanced than standard first aid and CPR training. You will also get training in emergency preparedness. Something between basic and heavy training. Plus they give you a kit of equipment. Basic, but a start or nice addition.
A couple of years ago, Laura and I spent a weekend at a medical training session called Medical Corps (http://www.medicalcorps.org). It was really good and worthwhile. We learned how to stitch a wound (practicing on chickens parts), how to set a bone and put on a cast (practiced on each other), etc. They also discussed medicines, dentistry, etc. It was worth the price.
Jarhead,
As a fellow Mainer and an RN, I can tell you that Maine does not require CEU’s but your employer might. Nursing is definitely a great profession with great traing that will benefit in a SHTF situation. A 2 year degree will give you the same clinical training as a 4 year degree and cost much less. E-maill me if you would like to know more. Good Luck!
Emergency stabilization of injuries is good to know, but without access to a hospital for continued critical care, YOYO – you’re on your own. You can save a person from the initial injury, only to loose them from infection from improper follow-up. You may have to deal with a bed-ridden patient for weeks — or more. Clean bedding, dressing changes, pain management, pneumonia from inactivity are all considerations. Splinting, pressure bandages, and CPR is not the end-all.
More Civil War soldiers were killed by infection and illness than direct battlefield casualties.
Found this website recently http://www.wildmed.com and it offers a lot of training worldwide. I think a lot of the information offered here would be very useful. I started looking for some kind of training after my son had a bad spill at a local park about 2.5 miles up the trail. I realized that I was very ill equipped for any emergency situation where we couldn’t get immediate medical attention. Luckily a great guy with Army medical training happened by and helped us out. I have two sisters that are nurses and I don’t really think it’s for me, but I realize I do need at least some basic emergency knowledge and short of going to nursing school I think educational groups/agencies like these have their purpose. I’m hoping to take a class through them in October. They are pricey, but I think worth it.