[Skip navigation]

Jungle Medicine

 

JUNGLE MEDICINE TRAINING COURSE ON THE PACUARE RIVER,COSTA RICA.

14-20 November 2010 - Open for applications


£1425.00 Costa Rica, Pacuare River, November 2010 (£150 deposit to secure a place)

A Jungle and Tropical Medicine course set on the stunning Pacuare River, Costa Rica.As featured in the British Medical Journal and as the Editor's Choice

COURSE LIMITED TO 30 PLACES

A proportion of your course fee goes to support the work of 'Kids Saving the Rainforest'.




Expedition Medicine has developed an exciting and comprehensive course for all those medical professionals responsible for clients, patients or team members in a tropical or jungle environment. The course aims to introduce participants to the practical skills required to be a valuable member of a jungle expeditionary team, and to care for and treat injuries and illnesses likely to occur in this exciting environment.

Email us for an application form  or download a form EML Application form (.PDF) ...(requires Adobe Acrobat) 

Useful information for the course
Course Outline (Jungle course)
Kit list (Jungle course)

Suggested Reading List

Expedition & Wilderness Medicine Book - A 223 page medical field guide to Expedition Medicine - Included as part of the course cost (issued on arrival)





The tutors will develop the skills of the participants through practical sessions and hands on experience, treating snake bites, identifying tropical diseases, heat related illnesses and managing the health of an expedition in the field. The days will be used to experience and develop jungle survival skills, travelling in the jungle on land or by river, setting up camp, river crossing, cooking and lighting fires, managing casualties and evacuating them when needed. And much more. Skills without which a successful medical response is extremely difficult.

If you have ever considered working on a tropical or jungle expedition, a rafting expedition, or simply having the experience of your life time, this is the course for you.

The Jungle Medicine Team has been caring for and instructing jungle skills in the tropics for 20 years. They have a wealth of experience working as medical professionals in Costa Rica, Panama, Belize, Guatamala and Borneo, providing medical cover on expeditions involving rafting, kayaking, trekking and climbing. The Outdoor Instructors draw on the skills developed over years of teaching and being taught by both American and British specialist forces, and working as guides and expedition leaders in jungle environments. Despite being an eclectic mixture they are approachable, friendly and inspirational. They aim to guide you through the course ensuring that the course is both informative and enjoyable. 


Jungle Course - What to expect
This is a highly practical course that will introduce you to the jungle environment and prepare you for expedition medical work in humid and tropical climates. You will experience first hand the challenges and some of the solutions to trekking, living and providing medical support in the jungle. We teach through a combination of small group or classroom work and practical activity, with a significant emphasis on experiential learning. Whilst you do not need to be an elite athlete, an adequate level of physical fitness will ensure you get as much out of the course as possible. As a guide, you should be able to walk at least 20km carrying a 15kg pack without assistance, and repeat this on more than two successive days in one week. The terrain we will encounter is highly variable, and may involve steep climbs, river crossings, trekking in dense jungle and bush clearing using machetes.
We are unable to influence the weather. It is possible that there will be rain for many hours on most days of the course. Familiarising you with a hot and wet climate is one of the principle objectives of this course; students who are able to tolerate a degree of physical discomfort whilst maintaining a sense of humour and enthusiasm will get the most from the week.

Course Feedback

'Combining a superb location along with some of the best instructors in this speciality this course promises to be truly ground breaking'. Mark Hannaford FRGS FRSA, Across the Divide Expeditions.

British Medical Journal Editors Choice: "It's a jungle out there.Before you flip past our leading article because expedition medicine has never appealed, I'd urge you to think again. The authors' excitement for expedition medicine comes across clearly and makes a compelling case for this specialty. However, this course isn't all about saving people from the jaws of jaguars. Rainforest survival skills ought to transfer to any situation where leadership, teamwork, and risk assessment are called for. 

If your preferred way of expanding your management skills has been hitting the books, you might like to consider study leave in the Costa Rican rainforest instead. While it's true that most doctors are more likely to be woken by a bleep rather than a howler monkey, pursuit of tropical topics can expand your grasp of medical management. Like medicine, jungle life can be exciting, unforgiving, and risky.

Orienteering skills ought to be useful too. Like finding a way through the jungle, steering your way through a medical career can feel disorienting and harsh. As the song goes, "If you can make it there, you'll make it anywhere."

The price includes accommodation, meals (unless otherwise stated), course manual, rental of all rafting equipment and all course activities. 

The only additional cost is for your jungle kit (see kit list) , flights, hotel on arrival night, drinks, items of a personal nature and travel insurance.  You can buy your travel insurance from Across the Divide Expeditions.  Once you have purchased your flights please let us know so we can put you in touch with our local training team who can arrange your transfers.

There is the option of staying and arranging further rainforest trekking,rafting and general travel activities, please contact us for further details.


Useful links