The Snowmobile Club is not an emergency medical service and cannot take the place of one. We have a Boggan to help our friends and neighbors and to assist professionals with equipment they do not have.

Tell someone where you are going. Leave a note on the board at the General Store. Get more help coming before you leave. You never have too much help, especially if there is more than one injured person. There are other Boggans at the Ski Area. First; a few words about dealing with an injured person: Go quickly to the scene, but do not take any risk which would prevent you from getting there. At least two people should respond to any emergency. There should also be two snowmobiles. When you leave the scene with the injured person, consider walking to the road with the person in the Boggan. Protect the victim. If the patient complains of back pain or is unconscious, consider waiting for trained professionals before moving the patient. Don’t use a neck collar unless you know how. Your task until help arrives is to keep the patient warm and quiet.

Shock kills. Shock is inadequate circulation to keep tissues well oxygenated. It is caused by blood loss, heat loss or heavy pain. To prevent or treat shock, keep the patient warm or warm the patient. People who are very cold and wet cannot rewarm themselves. In winter, this is a critical factor in patient management. We must actively rewarm them. (Do not rub frostbite. Do not put heat pads directly on skin.)

Do not touch the blood of another person unless it is the person you regularly have sex with. Wear rubber gloves. Bleeding is controlled by direct pressure and elevation. Direct pressure can be applied by using a sanitary napkin and wrapping with wide gauze.

Pain in a joint should be treated by immobilizing the bones above and below the joint. Pain in a bone should be treated by immobilizing the joints above and below the bone. Do not move a painful joint or limb to check an injury. Make the splint fit the patient. Don’t try to make the patient fit the splint. Leave the helmet on.

In the Boggan you should have:

One big used snowmobile suit, boots, helmet and gloves for the EMT or doctor who arrives unprepared for off-road care.
 

4 or 5 Blankets	Sanitary napkins	Gauze rolls (many)	Plastic tarp
Splints	EMT Scissors	Heat pads (many)	Cervical collar
Backboard	Space blankets	Knife	Heavy cord/rope
Flashlights & Batteries	Walking tow bar	Stout cord	Bungees

Notes about supplies:
Blankets - big rugged ones like Navy blankets.
We need lots of heat pads
Bungees - for the tarps and to keep all the gear in.
Knife - good and sharp with a long piece of colored cord tied on so you don’t lose it in the snow.
Sanitary napkins - are great sterile dressings. Get the super size and trim to fit.
 

The Fire Department has radios. The warden service is responsible for investigating snowmobile accidents and they have radios. There are four Ham radio operators in the area. Maybe they can help.

Suggestions:

The gear is rolled up in a piece of tarp so it can be unrolled at the scene.
Anything that can absorb moisture is in zip lock bags. All bags are labelled so you can see what is in them without opening the bag.

You need help to hold a light, support a tarp over you and the victim, keep the tarp from blowing away, get heat pads ready. You are busy and warm. The victim has been there a long time and is hurting and cold. He needs heat.

Every patient has the right to refuse treatment. Explain and negotiate your plan with the patient every step of the way. If you and the patient agree to move him in the Boggan behind a snowmobile, go slowly and stop often. You surely don’t want to lose him because he vomits and you don’t hear it.

Every care provider brings a different level of training and experience to a situation. Every helper is valuable. Think. Use your resources, both human and material.

The last major injury here was 1.3 miles off the road. The next one could be on Moose Mountain, Baskahegan, or at Maple Grove. Many of us go far out all the time. Don’t go on a long rescue until you are ready. Don’t take off for Upper Sysladobsis in street shoes because you are at the General Store when the call comes.

Fireman