Viristar returns to Vietnam this month to provide a Wilderness Advanced First Aid (WAFA) course to outdoor leaders at Outward Bound Vietnam, at OBV’s Quy Nhơn basecamp in Bình Định province.
Veteran wilderness medicine instructor 彭筱琦 Hsiao-Chi Peng will be instructing the course, bringing her expertise as an EMT and background as an Outward Bound instructor in Taiwan to the training.
Chi, who has taught numerous wilderness medicine courses with her Viristar colleague Jeff Baierlein since 2011, will help OBV staff learn essential skills in prevention, assessment, early intervention and treatment of a wide variety of environmental emergencies.
Hsiao-Chi and Jeff, flanked by other wilderness medicine instructors, after a WFR course in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Jeff Baierlein/Viristar
Viristar began teaching WAFA courses with Outward Bound Vietnam in 2018, when the school was in its earliest stages. In addition, a number of OBV staff have completed Viristar’s Risk Management for Outdoor Programs training, providing them with the knowledge and skills to help prevent and mitigate safety incidents of all kinds.
Viristar will be returning to southern Vietnam for the second time in recent months, having taught a Wilderness First Aid course in Ho Chi Minh City last September at International School Ho Chi Minh City.
Viristar a full spectrum of other wilderness rescue and emergency medicine trainings, including Wilderness First Responder (WFR), Wilderness First Aid, WAFA-to-WFR Bridge, Wilderness Advanced First Aid, Wilderness Medicine Workshop, Wilderness EMS Upgrade, WFR Recertification, Travel Medicine First Responder, and Wilderness Advanced Life Support. Course certification is through Wilderness Medical Associates International, with whom Viristar is a licensed training company.
Viristar staff have provided these trainings around the world, including in the Bahamas, Belgium, Belize, Canada, China, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Finland, Hong Kong, Iceland, Indonesia, Malaysia, Peru, Taiwan, Thailand, USA, and Vietnam.
WAFA course taught in Vietnamese at OB Vietnam, Quy Nhơn. Jeff Baierlein/Viristar
The Wilderness Advanced First Aid curriculum covers a wide variety of topics, including:
Emergency medicine principles Wilderness rescue principles Patient assessment Infection control BLS/ALS Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) Circulatory system Nervous system Respiratory system Spinal anatomy Lifting, moving and extrication Spine injury evaluation Musculoskeletal Injuries Splints—extremities Thermoregulation Toxins Lightning Submersion injury Allergies and anaphylaxis Environmental medicine Improvised patient carries Wounds and burns Backcountry medicine Medical-legal issues
In addition to its history with Outward Bound in Vietnam, Viristar has worked with other OB schools and their staff, including Outward Bound schools in Singapore, Taiwan, Croatia, China (Hubei), Taiwan, Hong Kong, Costa Rica, Zimbabwe, and Brunei Darussalam.
Evacuating a patient during a WAFA course with OB Vietnam in Quy Nhơn. Jeff Baierlein/Viristar
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