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Overview:

Outdoor Emergency Care® is the National Ski Patrol’s award-winning training program for patrollers and others in the recreation community who deal with emergency situations. This nationally recognized program is designed to help you manage the toughest emergencies, in all seasons. Developed in the late 1980s for the 26,000 members of the National Ski Patrol, Outdoor Emergency Care is a training program that is tailored to the nonurban rescuer. Today, OEC is considered the standard of training for emergency care in the outdoor environment and is recognized by resorts and recreational facilities in all 50 states.

Bill Person and David Stepner will teach an intensive OEC class at a ski resort near Truckee CA in the two weeks after Thanksgiving, November 29 to December 14, 2008. This course is intended for students who cannot attend an earlier course and who can dedicate these two weeks to the course. It is especially appropriate for paid patrol staff, people moving to Truckee CA and students who may travel long distances to attend the course. 

Our course is designed to serve ski patrols in the Lake Tahoe/Truckee area. Our patrollers work within an hour of definitive care by ground transport and are serviced by helicopter transport for patients with urgent problems. Most high backcountry sites in the Basin have cell coverage and helicopter transport as well. We do not spend class time on any issues which are not important in this winter environment. Candidates expecting to work at remote ski areas or in a summer environment must put extra effort into the relevant textbook and workbook information.

The class meets on the following dates in 2008:

  • Nov 29-30 (8am-4pm)
  • Dec 1-5 (11am-7pm)
  • Dec 6-7 (8am-4pm)
  • Dec 8-12 (11am-7pm)
  • Dec 14 (8am-4pm)

 

Note that weekday class times may vary depending on the choice of venue. There is no class meeting on Saturday, December 13.  The course includes CPR/AED. Free housing will be available. Permission of instructor is required to enroll in this course. If you need information, about Truckee classes, that is not on the web site, please email at oec@billperson.org. Please do not contact us about the status of any other classes. Direct such inquiries to your patrol rep. By October 1, students must have followed the links on the class web site and completed each of the following steps:

  • Registration on the class web site
  • Obtaining textbook and workbook
  • Sending check for class fees

The OEC text, like any medical text, is very difficult reading. All reading for the course must be completed before the first class session. You should plan on spending 100 hours of reading and workbook activities in the eight weeks before the first class session. In previous years, up to 75% of the enrollees failed to complete the reading and had to drop the course. And yes, some of those students were graduates of Stanford and other top tier schools and thought the reading would be "no problem." How wrong they were. Because of the number of students who have failed to complete the reading in this course, we are requiring that each student complete pre-class homework to ensure that the pre-class reading is done. 

The brief lectures in this class DO NOT go over the text book content but rather focus on the information needed to perform on the hill. However, the nationally mandated written final examination tests students on detailed information from the textbook so it is essential that students read and absorb all material in the textbook. The written final examination will be given during the first class session. You must score 75% or higher to successfully complete the course. The needs of students not used to learning from books without lecture support would be better met by another class or by attending an EMT course before undertaking OEC.

Because past students say that the hardest part of this class is reading the text without adequate background, I require completion of a First Responder (or higher level) course before beginning the reading for this course unless the student has some medical background. We will offer Outdoor First Care, the NSP first responder class in late June. Past students also report that the class sessions are very demanding and that if you are trying to hold together a "day job" in your spare time or have ongoing family commitments during the class, this class may be too demanding for you.

The course includes AHA Health Care Provider, a qualifying CPR class. The course will be heavily scenario based. This course will make extensive use of email and of the World Wide Web for communication and instruction especially before the class begins. Accommodation (and an additional reproduction charge) will be made for students without Web or email access.

Registration Procedure

Click Here to register or click the register menu item on the left side of the screen. Please do not register until you are committed to attend a Truckee class. Do not register for this course expecting to transfer your payment to another course. Please consider carefully before you register. Refunds are possible only if another student takes the position you registered for.

Instructors:

The success of this class depends on the help of many experienced patrollers who volunteer to help with the classes. If you are an experienced patroller who would like to help, I would appreciate it if you would Click Here or click the register menu item on the left side of the screen. Register as an Asst. Instructor and I will send you a copy of the instructor CD-ROM.