This Tuesday marked the beginning of the winter semester's final skill, wilderness first aid training. All first years were scheduled to meet at 8:00 at Wesley United Church which is a few doors down from the college. The courses instructors are Jill, Laura, Ben, Greg, Shannon and Geoff.
We began with an introduction given by Jill. Here she provided us with an overview of what to expect over the next two day. She also revealed to us another hidden course fee. The thin paper textbooks for this course are forty dollars. This came as unpleasant news to me considering my house just got robbed.
After the brief overview we separated into three groups. Each group was to spend roughly 60 minutes at three stations. The first station was with Jill. Here we were given the hypothetical scenario of finding an alone unresponsive victim. Jill asked us to try our best to go through the scenario as if it were real life. We had to approach the victim and ensure that our surroundings were safe, and then we had to attempt to diagnose what is wrong with the victim and move them into a safe position. The scenario was concluded by us developing an evacuation plan. In this case we chose to airlift our victim out.
The next station was with Greg and Ben. Here we discussed the three vital systems. The Circulatory, Respiratory and Neurological. The circulatory is you heart, veins, arteries and capillaries. The respiratory is your lungs and the oxygen exchange that takes place in the aveoili. The final system is your brain and nerve system that transports signals throughout your entire body. We used the analogy of a three legged stool, without one system the others are as good as dead.
At the next station we discussed the importance of learning the details in patients history. These details are critical in properly diagnosing the victims problem. Sample is a slogan that helps first aiders remember the details. It stands for symptoms, allergies, medications, past history, last in/ out and Events. If a first aider fails to address these details they will not truly understand the depth of the task at hand.
The stations after lunch were dedicated to doing scene surveys. A scene survey is the entire investigation of the incident at hand. Soap notes are tools used by first aiders help remind them of all the issues that need to be address. It begins with a scene survey; in a scene survey rescuers check that state their group and themselves are in. They must ensure that the location will not cause any harm to themselves or their group. Next they try to diagnose the mechanism of injury. Did the environment cause the victims injury or is it an underlying medical condition? They must also establish a number of victims and rule out the possibility of a spinal.
After the scene survey has been completed rescuers must complete the primary survey. In doing so rescuers check the patients level of awareness, airway, breathing, circulation, look for deadly bleeds and check environment / exposure.
The secondary survey requires rescuers to observe the victims vital signs. These include LOA, pulse, respiration, ski condition, blood pressure, temperature and pupil condition.
Next to be addressed is the patients medical history. To do so the SAMPLE method is used. This stands for symptoms, allergies medications, PMHX, Last in/ out, and events. Once this is completed the scene investigation ends with a physical assessment and action plan.
This lesson was completed around four o'clock. For the remaining thirty minutes we discussed the legal implications of giving a victim first aid. We talked about when the rescuer can be held responsible and when not.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Biking
At last spring is here, this morning I woke up to birds chirping and yesterday I stepped on a few wasps that were walking on the side walk. The sun has been out constantly and temperatures have lingered above ten degrees for the last two days. The snow has been melting up a storm and grass is beginning to show itself.
My favorite activity is cycling. I can't think of anything more pleasant then riding a bike on a warm and sunny day. Unfortunately those not so warm days can be quite miserable on a bike. This week was luckily both arm and sunny and provided me with an opportune moment to break out my bike for the first time this year.
The one major plan with spring riding is the roads are often covered in street salts and water from the snow melt. This concoction can prove to be quite detrimental to the drive train of a bike. But with careful maintenance any damage from street salts can be reversed.
By last Sunday I couldn't wait any longer to go out and ride. So as soon as I finished work I went straight home, grabbed my bike, and went out for a rip. Dylan was also quite antsy to get out and I met um with him at the PMC arena.
We set out just to have a fun ride, mess around, and try to do some tricks. This is exactly what we accomplished also. We rode down to the East end mall stopping every where some feature caught our eyes. Tall curbs, banks ledges, jumps and other obstacles were what we were looking for. We found a fair number of features in the mall's parking lot and as a result we spent a decent amount of time there.
Once we got tired of riding there we headed down to the high school. In front of this school there is an excellent wall ride that I wanted to spend a bit of time on. After finishing up here we headed down to river side park and down town. Now it was around seven so traffic was not to much of an issue. We could ride features that crossed the streets without much worries.
Our first ride of the year came to an end as the sun sunk into the horizon. And I am quite satisfied with the way it went. The following days were also warm which gave me a few more chances to go out and ride. Now I can only hope that the nice weather is here to stay, and that it will keep on getting nicer.
My favorite activity is cycling. I can't think of anything more pleasant then riding a bike on a warm and sunny day. Unfortunately those not so warm days can be quite miserable on a bike. This week was luckily both arm and sunny and provided me with an opportune moment to break out my bike for the first time this year.
The one major plan with spring riding is the roads are often covered in street salts and water from the snow melt. This concoction can prove to be quite detrimental to the drive train of a bike. But with careful maintenance any damage from street salts can be reversed.
By last Sunday I couldn't wait any longer to go out and ride. So as soon as I finished work I went straight home, grabbed my bike, and went out for a rip. Dylan was also quite antsy to get out and I met um with him at the PMC arena.
We set out just to have a fun ride, mess around, and try to do some tricks. This is exactly what we accomplished also. We rode down to the East end mall stopping every where some feature caught our eyes. Tall curbs, banks ledges, jumps and other obstacles were what we were looking for. We found a fair number of features in the mall's parking lot and as a result we spent a decent amount of time there.
Once we got tired of riding there we headed down to the high school. In front of this school there is an excellent wall ride that I wanted to spend a bit of time on. After finishing up here we headed down to river side park and down town. Now it was around seven so traffic was not to much of an issue. We could ride features that crossed the streets without much worries.
Our first ride of the year came to an end as the sun sunk into the horizon. And I am quite satisfied with the way it went. The following days were also warm which gave me a few more chances to go out and ride. Now I can only hope that the nice weather is here to stay, and that it will keep on getting nicer.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Winter Ex
The last three days marked the end of the winter portion of outdoor skills. After finishing skiing last week we were left with the final task of winter expedition. Winter Ex requires students to hike, camp, and live outside for three days in the winter. If your anything like me this sounds like a daunting task. Don't get me wrong I enjoy being outside in the winter, but not for three days straight. On an ideal winter day I enjoy taking a few warm up breaks and at the end of the day going home to my warm bed. The preparation involved in living outside in the winter is simply something I would not do on my own time.
That being said winter ex is a mandatory portion of the winter semester and I had to suck up my distaste for it and make the best of it. So i packed my bags up and at 7:00 Monday morning set out by bus to wilderness tours' property. Upon arrival students broke off into their three groups, mine was led by Greg. The next task of the day was getting our cookware, whisper lite burners, and snow shoes. This is where myself and my partner Piers made our most regrettable mistake. After seeing how much snow had melted over the course of the weekend we made the decision to not bring snowshoes. We quickly found out that the snow in the woods was more then knee deep and the hiking portion of our trip quickly shaped out to be quite miserable. Every step we took we wasted energy by trying to propel ourselves forward and only sinking deeper in the snow. It was frustrating, slow, and incredibly tiring. Especially when the fifty pound pack on your back is pushing you deeper into the snow. The only good thing to come from forgetting snow shoes was how quickly I fell asleep each night.
The first day of the trip started at wilderness tours and brought us to a bay around 7 km up the Ottawa river. To get there we crossed many ponds, valley's, hills and even rivers. We arrived at camp around three and set up in a spot that situated directly within morning sunshine. I set up my sleeping system in a spot where the trees sheltered me from the wind. The set up I chose to use was a bivy bag over my sleeping bag. It wasn't supposed to be very cold, so I decided to just bring my bivy because it is compact and light weight. For dinner Piers and I made chili. After cleaning up I went for a warm up walk and went to bed shortly after night fall.
The second day was the hardest one by far. The entire day traversed hills through the dense forest which unfortunately had exceptionally deep snow. Occasionally I found myself sinking to my waist. When I tried to push out with my hand the combined force of the pressure I was exerting and my heavy bag would push my arms down also. It was really no fun. The last stretch before camp was by far the worst. Every single step I took sent me deeper then my knees in the snow. I was sweating as if it were a hot summer day. Luckily it was proceeded by camp and time to rest.
On this night we made side kicks for dinner, they turned out quite nicely and made plenty of food. After dinner I found myself in quite the predicament. My boots were completely water lodged and I was soaked. I had the chills and was quite tired. This combination was utterly miserable, and I was hating every second of it. To make it matters worse I began to rain making things even cooler and wetter. Luckily I had carried a tarp and set it up to cover myself while I slept the night. I went for a short hike before bed which warmed me up nicely. Once I was in my bivy I put on some dry clothes and was at last quite comfortable. I turned on some music and slept soundly until the next morning.
The third and final day was by far the most pleasant of the three. It began with about 4km of roads which were easy for myself and Piers to walk on. We modified our root so that we hit take out midway. This allowed us to drop our packs there and head into the bush alot lighter. This was amazing. For the first time in the trip I was able to enjoy the sights because I wasn't concentrating on my steps. I did sink in the snow but not nearly as deep and I had little trouble pushing myself out. This paired with the spectacular sight of the Ottawa river's rapids made for a great day.
After drinking in the view for a while we headed back to take out and had a brief reflection on the past three days. Looking back I can say that it wasn't all bad. I did have fun and saw many interesting things. On the first day we saw wolves running across the river. I slept well and also ate well. The real problem was that my boots were not waterproof (although they way they are) and that I did not have snow shoes. If I were to go on this trip again I would do a few things differently. Obviously I would take snowshoes but I would also bring more pairs of socks. Keeping warm dry feet is critical, which is also why I would bring more plastic bags, they can be be worn as boot liners. They can also be used to keep bags, clothing and food dry. The one other thing that I would do is I would de-layer more effectively. The second You feel perspiration you should take off layers in order to prevent yourself from getting the chills later.
This has been a great learning experience that has taught me many things which I will take with me into the future. These are things that I also passed on the friends in the second group. I would say they are pretty lucky.
That being said winter ex is a mandatory portion of the winter semester and I had to suck up my distaste for it and make the best of it. So i packed my bags up and at 7:00 Monday morning set out by bus to wilderness tours' property. Upon arrival students broke off into their three groups, mine was led by Greg. The next task of the day was getting our cookware, whisper lite burners, and snow shoes. This is where myself and my partner Piers made our most regrettable mistake. After seeing how much snow had melted over the course of the weekend we made the decision to not bring snowshoes. We quickly found out that the snow in the woods was more then knee deep and the hiking portion of our trip quickly shaped out to be quite miserable. Every step we took we wasted energy by trying to propel ourselves forward and only sinking deeper in the snow. It was frustrating, slow, and incredibly tiring. Especially when the fifty pound pack on your back is pushing you deeper into the snow. The only good thing to come from forgetting snow shoes was how quickly I fell asleep each night.
The first day of the trip started at wilderness tours and brought us to a bay around 7 km up the Ottawa river. To get there we crossed many ponds, valley's, hills and even rivers. We arrived at camp around three and set up in a spot that situated directly within morning sunshine. I set up my sleeping system in a spot where the trees sheltered me from the wind. The set up I chose to use was a bivy bag over my sleeping bag. It wasn't supposed to be very cold, so I decided to just bring my bivy because it is compact and light weight. For dinner Piers and I made chili. After cleaning up I went for a warm up walk and went to bed shortly after night fall.
The second day was the hardest one by far. The entire day traversed hills through the dense forest which unfortunately had exceptionally deep snow. Occasionally I found myself sinking to my waist. When I tried to push out with my hand the combined force of the pressure I was exerting and my heavy bag would push my arms down also. It was really no fun. The last stretch before camp was by far the worst. Every single step I took sent me deeper then my knees in the snow. I was sweating as if it were a hot summer day. Luckily it was proceeded by camp and time to rest.
On this night we made side kicks for dinner, they turned out quite nicely and made plenty of food. After dinner I found myself in quite the predicament. My boots were completely water lodged and I was soaked. I had the chills and was quite tired. This combination was utterly miserable, and I was hating every second of it. To make it matters worse I began to rain making things even cooler and wetter. Luckily I had carried a tarp and set it up to cover myself while I slept the night. I went for a short hike before bed which warmed me up nicely. Once I was in my bivy I put on some dry clothes and was at last quite comfortable. I turned on some music and slept soundly until the next morning.
The third and final day was by far the most pleasant of the three. It began with about 4km of roads which were easy for myself and Piers to walk on. We modified our root so that we hit take out midway. This allowed us to drop our packs there and head into the bush alot lighter. This was amazing. For the first time in the trip I was able to enjoy the sights because I wasn't concentrating on my steps. I did sink in the snow but not nearly as deep and I had little trouble pushing myself out. This paired with the spectacular sight of the Ottawa river's rapids made for a great day.
After drinking in the view for a while we headed back to take out and had a brief reflection on the past three days. Looking back I can say that it wasn't all bad. I did have fun and saw many interesting things. On the first day we saw wolves running across the river. I slept well and also ate well. The real problem was that my boots were not waterproof (although they way they are) and that I did not have snow shoes. If I were to go on this trip again I would do a few things differently. Obviously I would take snowshoes but I would also bring more pairs of socks. Keeping warm dry feet is critical, which is also why I would bring more plastic bags, they can be be worn as boot liners. They can also be used to keep bags, clothing and food dry. The one other thing that I would do is I would de-layer more effectively. The second You feel perspiration you should take off layers in order to prevent yourself from getting the chills later.
This has been a great learning experience that has taught me many things which I will take with me into the future. These are things that I also passed on the friends in the second group. I would say they are pretty lucky.
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