The Wilderness Medical Society was created on the 15th of February 1983 by three doctors from California--Dr Paul Auerbach

Paul Auerbach

Paul Stuart Auerbach is an American physician who is a leading voice in the area of wilderness medicine. He is a founder and past president of the Wilderness Medical Society. Auerbach was the editor for the Journal of Wilderness Medicine published by the Wilderness Medical Society from 1990 to 1995...

, Dr Ed Geehr, and Dr Ken Kizer. It provides advice and guidance to medical personnel working in wilderness or backcountry environments. It also publishes Wilderness & Environmental Medicine Journal and Practice Guidelines for Wilderness Emergency Care.

Mission statement

"To advance healthcare, research, and education related to wilderness medicine

Wilderness medicine

Wilderness medicine is defined by difficult patient access, limited equipment, and environmental extremes. Today, wilderness or expedition medicine is practiced by Wilderness First Responders, Wilderness EMTs, Remote/Offshore/Wilderness Paramedics and Physicians on expeditions, in outdoor...

."

Academy of Wilderness Medicine

The academy seeks to provide a system of adult education and certificaton in a modern and standardised way to provide a set level of knowledge and education for practitioners working in the wilderness arena.

The goals of the academy are to:

• Professional designation for achievement in Wilderness Medicine
• Validation for the public, patients, and clients of practitioner education in Wilderness Medicine
• Recognition for completing high quality standards in Wilderness Medicine
• Continuing medical education (CME) credit for acquisition of knowledge and hands-on experiences in Wilderness Medicine
• The advancement of an internationally recognized curriculum of Wilderness Medicine categories, topics, and skills

FAWM Curriculum

The curriculum for participants wishing to gain fellowship is modular and is divided into Electives, Required Topics and Experience:

Required/Core Topics are divided into twelve sub-headings:

• Diving
  Diving medicine
  Diving medicine, also called undersea and hyperbaric medicine , is the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of conditions caused by humans entering the undersea environment...
  
   and Hyperbaric Medicine
• Tropical and Travel Medicine
  Travel medicine
  Travel medicine or emporiatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention and management of health problems of international travelers.-Globalization and travel:...
  
  
• High Altitude & Mountaineering
  Mountaineering
  Mountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...
  
   Medicine
• Expedition
  Exploration
  Exploration is the act of searching or traveling around a terrain for the purpose of discovery of resources or information. Exploration occurs in all non-sessile animal species, including humans...
  
   Medicine
• Field Craft and Equipment
• Rescue
  Rescue
  Rescue refers to responsive operations that usually involve the saving of life, or prevention of injury during an incident or dangerous situation....
  
   and Evacuation
• Sports Medicine
  Sports medicine
  Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness, treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise...
  
   and Physiology
• Preventive Medicine
  Preventive medicine
  Preventive medicine or preventive care refers to measures taken to prevent diseases, rather than curing them or treating their symptoms...
  
  , Field Sanitation
  Sanitation
  Sanitation is the hygienic means of promoting health through prevention of human contact with the hazards of wastes. Hazards can be either physical, microbiological, biological or chemical agents of disease. Wastes that can cause health problems are human and animal feces, solid wastes, domestic...
  
   & Hygiene
• General Environmental Medicine
  Environmental medicine
  Environmental medicine is a multidisciplinary field involving medicine, environmental science, chemistry and others. It may be viewed as the medical branch of the broader field of environmental health. The scope of this field involves studying the interactions between environment and human health,...
  
  
• Improvised and Alternative Medicine
  Alternative medicine
  Alternative medicine is any healing practice, "that does not fall within the realm of conventional medicine." It is based on historical or cultural traditions, rather than on scientific evidence....
  
  
• Disaster & Humanitarian Assistance
• Wilderness Emergencies and Trauma Management

FAWM credits can be gained in a number of ways such as;

• Attending WMS conferences
• Completing online tests after reading journal articles
• Watching online lectures
• Publishing articles
• Teaching in the area of Wilderness Medicine

Activities

The Wilderness Medical Society organize annual conferences and meetings for members and interested parties.

Notable Fellows

• Dr Paul Auerbach
  Paul Auerbach
  Paul Stuart Auerbach is an American physician who is a leading voice in the area of wilderness medicine. He is a founder and past president of the Wilderness Medical Society. Auerbach was the editor for the Journal of Wilderness Medicine published by the Wilderness Medical Society from 1990 to 1995...
  
  - Founder and past president of the WMS.
• Dr Sean Hudson - One of the first holders of the FAWM in England.

Affiliated Groups

• Expedition and Wilderness Medicine
• Advanced Wilderness Life Support (AWLS)
• Aerie Backcountry Medicine
• Wilderness Medicine Institute of NOLS
• American College of Emergency Physicians - Wilderness Section
• International Hypoxia Symposia
• Everest ER
• Institute for Altitude Medicine
• Wilderness Medical Associates
• EcoMed
• Wilderness Medicine Programs - Roane State Community College
• Mountain & Marine Medicine
• Waves of Health
• Argentine Mountain Medicine Society