Lincoln Academy students Kendra Gladu ’24 and Helen Duffy ’26 assessing LA cross country coach Monique Boutine’s brewing appendicitis and using a sled for an outdoor rescue during a Wilderness First Responder course at Chewonki.

In the first week of January, Chewonki hosted 25 people from all over New England at its Center for Environmental Education in Wiscasset. They were there for two Wilderness First Responder (WFR) courses conducted by Wilderness Medical Associates (www.wildmed.com). Most of the students were outdoor leaders with a wide variety of backgrounds, there were also several outdoor enthusiasts wanting to feel better prepared when far from help, and EMS providers expanding the scope of their training. There was a 5 day class for new students, and a 3 day recertification class for returning ones.

Wilderness Medical Associates (WMA) is a Maine-based company that grew out of the first aid training for instructors at the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School in the early 1980s. Since then WMA has remained a leader in the field of backcountry rescue – conducting intensive, multi-day courses in emergency care that is adapted for remote settings, hostile environments, and limited resources. With over 350 courses being taught around the world each year, the curriculum has now been translated into 8 languages and has been taught on all 7 continents. Chewonki is one of WMA’s longest standing hosts, and has held classes at least twice each year since 1992.

Lincoln Academy was well represented in the 5 day class. LA students Kendra Gladu ‘24 and Helen Duffy ‘26 each enrolled without knowing the other one had also. In the summer, they both work with local outdoor organizations, and each saw this as a chance to develop their skills. A college level course that demands lots of critical thinking, the WFR includes 25 hours of precourse work and 45 hours of onsite experiential learning. As the youngest participants, they both had to show that they could work through dynamic patient care scenarios in a group of adults. So they were glad to see the supportive face of LA running coach Monique Boutin in class on the first day. An outdoor enthusiast who also teaches art with Chewonki’s Maine Coast Semester program, Monique took the course to develop her own skills and confidence in the outdoors. The LA crew got to work together sorting out a wide variety of medical problems together.

Eric Duffy, RN/WEMT who served as the LA Health Center Director from 2016-2022, was the lead instructor on the courses. He first took a WFR in 1996, then a Wilderness EMT in 1998, and became an instructor in 2000. Since then he has accumulated more than 900 teaching days throughout Maine and the northeast. He now balances teaching for WMA with being a nurse at the Urgent Care Center in Boothbay Harbor, and guiding sea kayaking tours on Muscongus Bay in the summer.

“Over the past 40 years, WMA has developed an effective blend of established principles of experiential education with evidence based research in the field of wilderness medicine,” said Duffy. “This includes students spending equal time in the role of patient and the role of rescuer – they learn a lot about good patient care from having been a patient. Our assumption is that definitive care is at least 2 hours away, and it doesn’t take much to be in that kind of setting. That’s why it requires types of critical thinking and resource management not found in other first aid models. WMA’s longevity and success has been based on its exceptional curriculum, the universal applicability of the skills involved, and being able to utilize teaching methods that appeal to all sorts of learners. This course cycle marked my 24th anniversary as an instructor. So, to help support this kind of training in my own community and reconnect with organizations I respect deeply, was a great way to start off the new year.”