The Vestfjörður Health Institute, in cooperation with the Ísafjarðarbær Fire Department, has asked the Icelandic Ambulance School to hold two courses for field personnel this spring.
Courses will be held at Ísafjörður on the 24th-26th. April and on Patreksfjörður the weekend 1-3. may
Vettvangsliðar is a synonym for first aid teams that are increasingly used to shorten the time until the first response arrives and bridge the gap between first aid and specialized medical transport. In this way, villages that are far from a hospital or are at risk of being closed off can take care of the most urgent health problems that may arise.
The program is 40 hours long and is divided into two parts. The first part is a distance learning course that can be taken at your own pace, while the second part is an in-person session that covers an entire weekend.
The health institution pays the course fees, but there is no payment for attending the course. Field crews are volunteers.
Self-confident people of all ages are welcome to apply. We require that applicants reside in Flateyri, Suðureyri, Súðavík, Bolungarvík, Þingeyri, Tálknafjörður, Bíldudal or Hnífsdal. A limited number of places are available at the time, and prioritized so that applicants are well distributed and that the villages that are most often closed due to lack of access get a place.
"There are many things we learn from the events of the last weeks and months. Among them is the reminder of the need for basic equipment in all villages and for people with basic training to deal with emergencies," says Gylfi Ólafsson, director of the Vestfjörður Health Foundation.
Applications are sent directly to the Medical Transport School (www.ems.is [northern area, southern area]. The deadline to register is March 6, 2020.
Author: GÓ