Medicine for Mountaineering and Other Wilderness Activities

I was an EMT until recently and a mountaineer going on 30 years. I was asked to do some research on first aid and wilderness medicine. Of the ten or so books I reviewed this one was the most authoritative and most complete. If you want a primer on the subject consider "Mountaineering First Aid" by the same publisher. However, if you want extraordinary depth and breadth this is certainly the best book for the lay person (or at my level of training)I could find. Well organized, well illustrated, excellent index. Too heavy for a day pack! 367 Pages of fine print.

As always, books from The Mountaineers are chock full of useful, well-described advice. This one is no exception...it is well illustrated and highly conservative in it approach. This is not a wacky, how to survive on a soap-opera 'reality survival' show book; rather, it details how to prevent illness, diagnose it, and deal with most, if not all, serious medical emergencies out in the wild lands.

Excellent source of information for those having to deal with injuries in the wilderness. As a survival instructor I recommend it to all my classes.

Here I am, ordering a replacement. Of all the books on health and first aid, this is the one I look to the most often. I live on a remote island and have used this book to judge the severity of injuries and the need for evacuation, or just the need for time. I am not a mountaineer, but my family does manage to get into scrapes....concussions, chainsaw injuries, broken glass and a recent allergic reaction. This last incident is what made me realize that my ancient copy was gone. This book has been better than any other book as far a raising my kids in a proactive way, especially when it comes to emergency room conversations!

To quote part of the book, this book is not of the attitude "don't do any harm until the docter comes, because in many wilderness setting the docter is not comming." This is not the book for general first aid and first time learners, rather the more advanced outdoor person who would be in situations where medical help is more than a day away. It explanis more advanced treatments, the backgroud anatomy, and how to address the entire patient not just cookbook first aid.