John Meyer

CEs: 0.75h Operations

Description: John Meyer and his REMS team were involved in a…controversial rope rescue during the 2023 season. This call made its way through several lessons learned and was even featured on the Hotshot Wakeup Podcast. Listen to John explain what really happened on scene and share his risk management decision making. 

Spinal Injuries & Updates:

Dr. Brian Clothier, MD

CEs: 0.75h Trauma

Description: Spinal cord injuries and management are always a hot topic in prehospital medicine. Review the pathophysiology and assessment pearls behind common presentation and discus best ways to manage these injuries in the field. Listen to the newest updates on long backboards, short backboards, and other ways to protect the spine and prevent further injury.

Heat, Hazmat, and Other Rope Rescue Complications for the Fireline

Room: 221

Marcel Rodriguez

CEs: 0.75h Ops

Description: The fireline presents a host of challenges for the rope rescuer – hot spots, ash, and all sorts of hazardous risks exist. Learn about the best textiles to choose to make your systems safe. Discuss hazards associated with tree anchors in a potentially compromised environment.

Point of Care Ultrasound Basics:

Room 222

Matt Spicer, FPC

CEs: 1h Trauma

Description: Learn about POCUS basics with Flight Medic, Matt Spicer. Matt will demonstrate how to use a portable ultrasound to perform eFAST and RUSH exams, ocular nerve sheath measurements for complications with TBI and HACE, and how to identify and manage foreign objects. Attend this breakout session and then convince your manager you NEED one! 

REMS Panel:

Matt Adams, Marcel Rodriguez, Mark Rickbeil, Bryan Howell. Moderator: John Meyer

Main Hall

CEs: 1h Operations

Description: Calling all rope nerds… The REMS panel places rope rescue and industry experts at the center of the conversation. Listen to their opinions and experiences around popular debates. Does single rope technique have a place in rescue? What does “redundant” truly mean? How safe is too safe and what is safe “enough”? And so much more! The conversation will be moderated by REMS Lead and Rope Instructor, John Meyer. Please bring your questions and curiosity!

UTV Maintenance:

TBD

CEs: 1h Operations

Description: Practice basic UTV maintenance with an experienced instructor. Learn how to change a belt, change a tire, and keep your machine running all season long!

Vendor Walk:

Atrium

Description: Visit with vendors in our main atrium!

Medical Skills: Improvised Splints 

Instructor: Bryan Fleischman

CEs: 1.3h TBD

Description: Your days of relying on vacuum splints, fentanyl, and 10min ambulance transport have been left in the dust 10 drop points ago! Join Bryan Fleischman to learn about how to build a bombproof splint using equipment easily found on the fireline. We’ll touch on sam splint basics but quickly progress to building improvised splints with all sorts of tools to facilitate safe and comfortable transport across all manner of dozer lines.

Medical Skills B: Improvised Litters and Patient Packaging/Movement

Instructor: John Meyer

CEs: 1.3 h TBD

Description: What do you do when you need to move a patient across rugged terrain and you DON’T have a REMS team available? Learn how to use the equipment you and your crews commonly carry to build improvised litters that provide warmth, padding, and protection to keep your patients safe during a prolonged packout.

Medical Skills C: Tourniquet Conversion, Bleeding Control, and Backcountry Wound Care

Instructor: Dr. Woody Peeples

CEs: 1.3h TBD

Description: If it’s wet and not yours…you’re probably gonna have to touch it. Improve your comfort and skills with backcountry wound management under the supervision of Dr. Woody Peeples. Practice bleeding control, tourniquet assessment, and know when and how to safely remove a tourniquet in the field. You might get a little dirty with this one!

**Interested in rescue? Spots limited. Sign up at registration to secure you spot!

Packaging the Injured Patient:

Instructor: Marcel Rodriguez

CEs: 1.3h Ops/Trauma

Description: Learn the best ways to package the injured patient for transport in the vertical environment. Different injuries require different considerations and skills. Learn how to take the patient’s injuries into consideration - while including terrain and safety factors into your litter rigging plan.

Small Diameter Considerations:

Instructor: Matt Adams 

CEs: 1.3h Ops

Description: Fast and Light is the hottest trend these days. Learn how to rig rope systems with 3, 4, 5, and 6mm ropes and the equipment available to interface with these small diameter systems. 

Single Rope Techniques :

Instructor: Mark Rickbeil 

CEs: 1.3h Ops

Description: Learn how, when, and why to set up single rope systems and how to safely pass knots, change direction, and use your equipment to maximize efficiency during a rescue. 

Event attendees gather for a morning debriefing on the days activities.

Dr. Michelle Curry

CEs: 1h Operations

Description: An overview of EMS in fire history, current state and future dreams

Brent Ruby, Director, Montana Center for Work Physiology and Exercise Metabolism

Comprehensive Physiology of the Wildland Firefighter: A 30 Year Assignment

Dr. Brent Ruby

CEs: 1.5h Medical (TBD)

Description: [The unique pathophysiology behind wildland firefighters and how to care for them before, during, and after the season.]

Critical Care without Boundaries: The Convergence of Flight and Fireline Medicine

Matt Spicer, FPC

CEs: 1h Medical

Description: Critical care medicine is the application of critical thinking to medicine – this can happen in a helicopter with the highest end equipment, or on the side of the fireline with a trauma pack and your two hands. Matt Spicer breaks down hot topics such as: 

• Patient assessment without a cardiac monitor

• Burn care and crush injury management made simple

• Managing battery consumption, limited communications, and other challenges in the wild

Vehicle Anchors: Myths and Facts

Andy Bebeau

CEs: 0.5h Operations

Description: Explore load cell testing on a variety of common vehicle anchors. Does chocking matter? How does road surface effect anchor integrity? Can I safely use a UTV as an anchor??

Training Beyond the Classroom: Managing Risk and Reward in Decision Making

Matt Adams

CEs: 0.5h Operations

Description: You’ve taken your class…now what? How to continue to train to progress as a rope rescuer on and off the line. Discuss risk management and decision making for rope rescue in the field.

Too Hot to Handle: Heat Illness in Remote Environments:

Bryan Fleischman, PA-C

CEs: 1h Medical

Description: Heat-related emergencies in remote environments escalate fast—and without rapid recognition and aggressive intervention, they can be fatal. This session delivers a practical, field-ready approach to managing heat illness when distance, terrain, weather, and limited equipment challenge standard EMS care. Participants will learn to differentiate early heat exhaustion from life-threatening exertional heat stroke, implement effective cooling strategies using both conventional and improvised methods, and manage patients when evacuation is delayed or resources are minimal. 

The session also highlights two critical complications frequently missed in the field: heat-associated rhabdomyolysis, a dangerous result of muscle breakdown during exertion and dehydration, and heat-related sodium abnormalities, including exertional hyponatremia and hypernatremia—conditions that can mimic heat illness but require completely different treatment strategies. Practical decision tools will guide learners in identifying red flags, initiating on-scene treatment, and determining when evacuation is essential for patient survival. 

Designed for EMTs, paramedics, SAR personnel, wilderness responders, and anyone operating in extreme environments, this session equips participants with the knowledge and real-world strategies needed to manage heat emergencies confidently and safely—even when help is hours away.

Situational Awareness for Wildland REMS: Decision Making:

Mark Rickbeil, EMT-B, Tech Rescue Instructor

CEs: 1h Operations

Description:

Situational Awareness-Decision making for wildland fire rescues -determining the most appropriate approach to rapid extraction in the ever changing fire environment.

• Vendor Walk (atrium)

• SKEDCO Demo with Marcel Rodriguez (Room 221)

• MED-L Panel with Mandi Childers, Jeff Childers, Rick Gobel, and Joel Simonson (Main lecture hall)

• UTV Maintenance (outside)

Up the Hill: Crew Communication Strategies

Adam Thomas, NRP

CEs: 1h Operations

Description: Adam Thomas, paramedic and former Hotshot, discusses the best ways to navigate the relationship between medical personnel and wildland firefighters. He focuses on the best ways to integrate and communicate with crews, highlighting way to be proactive and bridge operational gaps.

Ace the Airway: Intubation in the Field

Jeff Simons, FP-C

CEs: 1h Airway

Room 221

Learn techniques and tactics to control an airway in the most challenging of austere, backcountry environments with flight medic and clinical educator, Jeff Simons.

Case Reviews with Dr. Peeples (starting at 1830)

Dr. Woody Peeples, MD

CEs: 2h

Description: Dr. Woody Peeples is back for another night of case reviews! He’ll explore challenging and interesting real-life cases from the last wildland season and offer his feedback, interpretation, and key teaching moments to elevate your care. Learn what happens after the patient arrives at the hospital and how you can set them up for their best outcome in the field. 

Rescue 3 Rope Rescue Technician ProQual:
Location:
Time: 0900-1700
Instructor: John Meyer, Matt Adams, Marcel Rodriguez
Cost: $275
Description: We all know that completing a class is not enough to maintain professional mastery of a skill. So how do we measure competency in rescue professionals? The ProQual! The RRT Professional Qualification Assessment evaluates the individual’s mastery at the Rope Rescue Technician level. It is a test of your problem-solving and discipline specific skills. Many companies are moving towards requiring proof of a ProQual prior to hire. You will be tested for mastery, proficiency, and inadequacy in the skills required of a Rope Rescue Technician. If you are successful, you will leave with an internationally recognized Rescue 3 ProQual RRT certification. 

Requirements: Current Rope Rescue Technician certification taken at least three weeks prior to the ProQual. PPE minimums include helmet, harness, and gloves. Candidates may bring their own, but they will be inspected by instructors prior to leaving the ground.

Advanced Airway Management
Location:
Time: 0900-1200
Instructor: Dr. Brian Clothier, Kelly Williams
Cost: $145
Description: Join us for a 3hr Advanced Airway Management course! We will cover principles of RSI and DSI, video and direct laryngoscopy, and surgical cricothyrotomies. Wet lab will be provided with animal tissue. Practice and perfect techniques and discuss the pathophysiology and pharmacology involved with airway management with Dr. Brian Clothier and Paramedic Kelly Williams.  

Ventilator Management
Location:
Time: 1300-1600
Instructor: Matt Spicer
Cost: $145
Description: Perfect your ventilator management techniques with Flight Medic, Matt Spicer! Matt will give you hands on practice with ventilators and review essential topics of respiratory pathophysiology. Topics include: 

• Basic ventilator parameters and settings

• Review of oxygenation and ventilation, ETCO2 and why it matters

• Ideal body weight calculation. 

• Oxygen consumption chart/ calculation (i.e. how long with 1500 psi of oxygen last me at 60% FiO2?)

• The vent won’t stop alarming! What do I do?

• I elected to RSI; now how do I keep the patient safe and comfortable?

RT-130 & Pack Test
Location:
Time:
Instructor: Rick Gobel
Cost: $65
Description: Join us 1 day before the symposium to refresh your “Red Card” for the 2026 season. The RT130 will include required classroom education PLUS the Arduous pack test and Shelter Deployment! Head to the Registration page to sign up for the RT130 independent of the full symposium registration.

ACLS/BLS
Location:
Time:
Instructor:
Cost: BLS: $75; ACLS: $200; ACLS + BLS $235
Description:  Need a recert for your ACLS or BLS? Join us for a quick and painless hybrid style refresher. Online course materials must be completed prior to arrival and proof of completion must be presented to the instructor. 

Need a refresher and a new card for your BLS/CPR? Head to the Registration page to sign up.

The Smokehouse Creek Wildfire was a defining event in wildland emergency response, presenting unique challenges in medical support for firefighters and displaced communities. This case study examines the multidisciplinary response to the wildfire, which consumed over 1 million acres in under five days. The incident’s rapid escalation due to extreme weather conditions, rugged terrain, and resource constraints tested the capabilities of local emergency medical services (EMS) and highlighted critical areas for improvement.

This presentation will explore the deployment and integration of medical resources during the incident, focusing on the collaboration between Austin-Travis County EMS and local, regional, and state agencies. Key points include the establishment of medical staging areas in remote zones, managing injuries, and addressing the logistical hurdles of prolonged field operations with an incident that crossed state lines. A significant component of this case study is the innovative use of Wildland Paramedic Units and portable internet technology for situational awareness and medical supply delivery.

Lessons learned from Smokehouse Creek emphasize the importance of pre-incident training tailored to wildland scenarios, including triage under austere conditions and the ability of responders to treat patients for a prolonged time. Additionally, this case study underscores the necessity of adaptive planning in the face of rapidly changing fire behavior and environmental hazards.

Resilience and Psychological First Aid: Practical ways to avoid burnout while also supporting co-workers and the public. This course is based on the instructor's 20 years of experience with the Bay Area Crisis Response Team, the USFS CISM program, Cal Fire's Employee Support Services, and more than 1,000 crisis intervention responses. It will describe the physical, social, and spiritual sources of stress and renewal, along with basic principles of using Psychological First Aid for individuals and small groups.

2a - Vendor Walk

2b - MedL Round Table, various Med L

2c - REMS Standards, John Meyer

2d - UTV Use and Maintenance

Event attendees gather for a morning debriefing on the days activities.

Brain Injury - From the Sidelines to the Fire line

In this exciting learning session, dual board certified emergency and sports medicine physician Tim Durkin will help you apply the latest concepts in concussion care from division 1 and professional sports and apply them on the fire line. You will learn field appropriate strategies to recognize, risk stratify and manage brain injury at all levels of severity. You will gain understanding of the physiology of concussion, how to help concussed patients recover, review key aspects of care for the critically brain injured patient, and get to apply these concepts in a variety of real world case studies.

Oregon WA Certified Rescue Training Courses Technical Rope Swiftwater

The Firefighter Knee

A strong, stable and functional knee is essential for fire fighter effectiveness, health, safety, mobility and career longevity. In this session, Dr Durkin will draw on his 30+ years of unique clinical experiences in prehospital response, ER work, Power 5 collegiate sports medicine, occupational medicine for fire departments, and outpatient orthopedics to help you optimize care for the injured knee and minimize injury risk for you and your teammates. You’ll learn about appropriate strategies for knee dislocation reduction, how to recognize limb threatening catastrophic injuries, and how initial care in the field can lay the groundwork for rapid recovery or prolonged disability. Additionally, we will apply evidence from high level sports and the limited data on fire fighter injuries to infer how we can program training and conditioning to prevent both acute and overuse knee injuries, and give you resources you can take home to help promote injury prevention in your response community.

1a - Vendor Walk

1b - Blister & Foot Care, Heather Buben

1c - Eye Emergencies, Dr. Woody Peeples

Join us 1 day before the symposium to refresh your “Red Card” for the 2025. The RT130 will include required classroom education PLUS the Arduous pack test and Shelter Deployment! Head to the Registration page to sign up for the RT130 independent of the full symposium registration.

Need a refresher and a new card for your ACLS? Head to the Registration page to sign up for ACLS.

Need a refresher and a new card for your BLS/CPR? Head to the Registration page to sign up.

The purpose of this course is to optimize the knowledge, skills and abilities of experienced Pierce County paramedics in managing the airways, oxygenation and ventilation of EMS patients. Course participants, working in small groups, will practice technical skills and utilize critical decision-making skills in airway management scenarios. Written and practical evaluations will measure performance.