BASP EMT course
It’s 10.00am on a damp Monday morning and I’m wondering what on earth I’m doing. Along with 5 others I’ve signed up for the British Association of Ski Patrollers (BASP) Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) course held at Glenmore Lodge, the National Mountaineering Centre in Scotland. Just ninety minutes into the course and we’re all reeling, we’ve done a written exam and a practical which have highlighted gaps in our knowledge, yet we’re not novices. I’m an ex Army medic and member of a Lake District Mountain Rescue Team, others include ski patrollers and members of Police and Civilian MRTs in Scotland, many of us with the MRC cascare certificate. We are heavily outweighed in terms of experience and numbers by the trainers who include members of four MRTs, paramedics, nurses and a senior consultant anaesthetist. Just looking at the sheer amount of kit in the room – medical bags, airway models, high tech resuscitation training devices and more, is enough to make us worry about what comes next.
What comes next is 5 days of impressive tuition, endless scenarios and challenges to our competence and our ability to keep going. Working from early morning until late evening with just the odd sojourn to the Lodge Bar to console each other about our performance in whatever trauma incident we’d just dealt with.
Here’s just a brief idea of what you can expect:
On day one, the aforementioned written and practical tests serve to remind you of the importance of and necessity to use protocols. These are rapidly followed by sessions on Drugs in MR, Basic life Support (BLS) and AED use, all interspersed with scenarios. These are not the gentle exercises some may be used to, but instead what in the Army we used to call ‘trauma clinics’ where as you treat the casualty, things are going wrong, their condition is getting worse and people around you are piling on the pressure. These go on into the evening accompanied by ample review, reflection and discussion.
Day two brings anatomy and physiology, with in-depth review of cardiac rhythms followed by anaphylaxis protocols and treatment, This is followed by helmet removal, useful for those of us faced with MTB and trails riders wearing full face helmets. The afternoon introduces cannulation, including practice on both simulators and live cannulation of each other! The core BASP team and specialist nurse trainers deliver this workshop that is the same as that delivered in hospitals including accreditation and logbooks. Throughout the day we also had more outdoor practical scenarios ranging from treating a diabetic emergency to diagnosing a 25 year old with a sub-arachnoid haemorrhage!
Day three and we’re on to airway management with a range of adjuncts from O/NPAs to LMA and I-Gel, followed by upper and lower airway obstruction, intubation and differences with children. Then onto Chest Injuries and the move to advanced skills including chest examination and needle decompression of tension pneumothorax. Then it’s abdominal trauma and more cannulation practice. Late afternoon brings more outdoor scenarios ranging from a multiple casualty MTB collision in the forest, leading to a carry off and helicopter evacuation, through to an MI which applied the pressure like no previous scenario (to learn more you’ll need to do the course).
Day four was more testing and scenarios, mixed with paediatric anatomy and physiology – some key things here we should all remember, as well as further resus skills and yet more scenarios! The end of the day brings a 90 minute written paper which includes everything from multiple choice to essay type questions, protocols to rhythm strips, and even then we’re not finished! The evening consists of practical scenarios based on the issues raised in the exam. At least the bar was still open when we’d finished so we were able to revive ourselves.
And finally to day five, which included suspension trauma and of course the final individual practical exam that for me was 45 minutes of total pressure with a deteriorating casualty and including not only appropriate diagnosis and treatment but even a good handover to the virtual helicopter winchman.
So that’s the course. Was it worth it? Definitely, even for those with more experience it reinforces existing knowledge, introduces new skills and more importantly for me improves diagnostic ability and builds confidence.
Where does it fit in MR? I’ve done the MRC Cascare course and the Edale MRT Trauma and Acute Medical Emergency Course (which I’ll be repeating this year as it’s also great) and along with the high standard constant training, extra practice and encouragement provided within my team, I find these the only way to maintain skills. I think that all these programmes and methods are great and the BASP EMT course should be seen as the next step for anyone who wants to maintain and enhance everything they’ve learned or experienced so far. We in Mountain Rescue may be volunteers but we’re definitely professionals and courses such as this will help us stay this way. The training team were terrific, sharing their experience and skills professionally and freely. The pressure was certainly on, but even those who didn’t pass (and yes, not everyone got through, it is definitely not a ‘do the course get a certificate’ programme) would agree that the course is valuable, increasing knowledge and making you better as a casualty carer. Give it a try; you won’t regret it – at least not afterwards!
By Steve Johnson
Steve is a member of Duddon and Furness MRT, Mountain Leader and SPA holder and works for Tao Mountain in Cumbria.