Medicine for the Outdoors: The Essential Guide to Emergency Medical Procedures and First Aid; Revised and Expanded Edition

Bring DOC along on your next adventure

Rating:

We're kitesurfers, heli-skiers and scuba divers. Stuff is always happening to us or those around us in remote places. We have learned to rely on medical reference books out of necessity. I have several at home (A comprehensive Guide to Marine Medicine, Emergency Medical Treatment, The Pocket Doctor: A Passport to Healthy Travel) and this is by far the most complete, easy to use and useful of the bunch.

Three examples of how I have used the book in the past come to mind. An unexpected storm came in quickly once while we were kitesurfing off shore. Although we headed back when we saw the weather change, by the time we made it on shore lightning was striking less than 50 feet away. Once on shore, I asked if anyone knew what to do if one of us got hit. No one had a clue. When I got home I grabbed my trusted "Medicine for the Outdoors", where I found an entire section on lightning, how to avoid it and what to do in the event someone gets hit.

I have also had occasion to use the book while traveling abroad. When you get sick in a foreign country, especially if you don't speak the language, life becomes pretty miserable quickly. It was wonderful to have a resource to identify what was ailing me and even what could cure me. I took the book to the nearby pharmacist and pointed at the suggested remedies and prescriptions. The pharmacist knew right away what the local name for the pharmaceutical was and relief was just a pill away. The book covers everything from the remote (male genital problems :-)) to the mundane (traveler's diarrhea). It also has a helpful first aid refresher chapter as well as suggested supplies for a first aid kit.

I used the book to create my own first aid kit on board.

This book has and continues to be a great resource for us. It is written clearly and intuitively for both beginners and the more advanced.