Wemcast

In this episode Consultant Occupational Medicine Physician Dr Kent Haworth joins WEM host Dr Will Duffin to discuss assessing medical fitness for extreme environments. Occupational Health is concerned with the impact of health on work and vice versa.  We discuss the key approaches and broad principles in matching an individuals medical background with the environment and making sensible decisions about whether they should participate with a focus on diving, military deployments, offshore oil and gas and expeditions. We cover: Why preparation is the key to success! Mapping the individual and their condition to the environment. The key components of the ‘dive medical’, the role of respiratory and ENT problems The unique challenges of a remote maritime environment. A patient with a history of anaphylaxis to peanuts – can they be safely deployed to a remote oil rig that is over a days travel from definitive care? Doing a risk assessment - who is at risk and why - what can you do about it? Proactive and r

Dr Sush Prusty is the director of EMS at Steward St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center and assistant professor of emergency medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts. He also serves as the medical director for Boston College EMS as well as local EMS agencies. Dr Prusty earned his medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine and completed his residency at Boston Medical Center. He is board certified in Emergency Medicine and is currently an emergency department attending at Steward St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center. In addition, he is an FAA Flight instructor, holds a commercial pilot certificate, and, has over ten years of service in the U.S. Army as a Flight surgeon. Having a special interest in aviation safety, he has taught widely in the areas of crew resource management, human factors, and debriefing techniques. Today’s topic started with a case; an 18-year-old college student found in a snowbank with severe hypothermia. Stephen and Dr Prusty review the definition of hypo

In this session, we interview Gaynor Prince. Gaynor is an emergency physician based in New Zealand and has developed a subspecialty interest in ultrasound in ED. We take a look at point of care ultrasound, its utility and its limitations. We will be especially focussing on the EFAST and how it has been adaptive and progressive in point of care treatment in the past 5 years.  We also take a look at ultrasound probes and the positive and negative interaction with tissue. Gaynor unpacks some of the fundamental advantages and disadvantages of POCUS and how it has been adapted, been made portable and democratised amongst clinicians in recent years.    We unpack the principles of EFAST, what we are looking for, when to look and where. We examine the difference image representations of fluid, blood, ascites, urine, intestinal contents, lungs, air.  Gaynor them looks at the anatomical variations and how to optimise the view, interplay with clinical questioning, repetition of scans and preferential windows to see th

Host Stephen Wood is joined by, Stefano Tricanico a polar explorer, spelunker, engineer and medic. He was born and raised in South Africa, which is what lit the spark for his interest in adventure. He has been exploring the earth’s wild places for over 20 years and documenting his travels using photography as a tool to share his experiences. Stefano has led an adventurous and nomadic life dominated by mountaineering and exploratory expeditions in the Himalayas and Patagonian Andes. He has guided over 200 alpine caving trips and volunteered for the British Columbia and Alberta Cave Rescue Team. He spent three winters instructing dog sledding and winter survival to the British Armed Forces on the frozen lakes of the Canadian Rockies. His deep appreciation for the natural world led him to spend considerable time volunteering at sea for Sea Shepherd marine conservation society as a Bridge Officer, 3rd Engineer, Ship Medic, Zodiac chase boat driver and drone pilot to help preserve and protect our ocean environmen

This was a joint podcast with our friends & colleagues at PHEMcast – to hear more from them, have a look at their podcasts, blog and resources. In this episode doctors, Sean Hudson, Matthew Boulter and paramedic Eoin Walker discuss their experiences from the jungle, common medical issues, self-care, common diseases and the challenges of decision making and evacuation.  

From Afghanistan to Uganda, Haiti to Somalia, Yvette Gonzalez has over two decades’ experience with capacity-building and community stabilization in kinetic war zones, natural disasters, and impoverished areas. In this episode, she shares her experiences and lessons learned from her experiences building resilience in disaster zones with host, Dr Shawna Pandya - including where to find some downtime in rural DR Congo (it’s definitely not what you’d expect), and a  close encounter in a conflict zone with a restless population, armed rebels and ...dynamite (don’t worry, she’s okay!). Whether community building in rural Latin America, working on hurricane relief in the Bahamas, or dealing with armed conflict in Afghanistan, Yvette shares common themes for building trust, and developing situational awareness: Keep your head on a swivel. Ask questions. Seek to learn. Defer to the experience of the locals. When trying to strike a sense of balance between capacity building and not burning out, Yvette suggests askin

Will Mackin is a 23-year veteran of the US Navy. He has served in Iraq and Afghanistan, first as a navigator aboard a carrier-based jet, then as a joint terminal attack controller attached to a SEAL team. His first book, Bring Out the Dog (Random House, 2018), won the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize for Debut Short Story Collection. During his fellowship, Mackin is working on “Animals,” a collection of short stories based on his experiences as a special operations soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan. Mackin’s writing has appeared in the Atlantic, GQ, the New York Times Magazine, the New Yorker, and Tin House. His short story “Kattekoppen” was included in The Best American Short Stories 2014 (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014), and his essay about being an extra on Breaking Bad, published in GQ, was nominated for an American Society of Magazine Editors Ellie Award. His military decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, the Joint Service Commendation Medal (with valor), the Combat Action Ribbon, and five Strike/Flight

Sarah Spelsberg is an Emergency medicine Physicians Assistant and Fellow of Extreme and Wilderness Medicine (FEWM), who has spent the last 4 years working in a remote outpost in the Aleutian Islands - sandwiched between the Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea - a truly rugged place, where ‘The Deadliest Catch’ was filmed! Sarah's desire to challenge herself and her clinical skills has enabled her to push boundaries in remote medicine delivering exceptional medical care under extreme circumstances. In this episode, host Dr Will Duffin and Sarah discuss remote and rural healthcare and Sarah’s experience of dealing with some very unconventional scenarios including: Delivering a baby outside in the rain in her pyjamas and flip flops no gloves Prolonged field care during a “cyclone bomb” aka “arctic hurricane” where no medivac was possible for a patient who was compromised from a massive pleural effusion. Sarah performed a makeshift thoracentesis with a spinal needle and empty IV bag  in a patient with a massive ple

From the Thai-Burmese border conducting important work on men’s health to the most isolated oil rigs to COVID-19 response to biosensor technology development for prehospital care, Dr Johannes Svensoy has hit nearly square on the extreme medicine Bingo card! In this episode, he and WEMCast host Dr Shawna Pandya discuss his experiences in tropical, disaster, aerospace medicine and more, lessons learned from the world of extreme sports...and the next stop on his extreme medicine journey. Austere environments abound - and getting involved is part acknowledging enthusiasm early on, part keeping an eye out for opportunity...and part going for it! Whether talking about tropical medicine, maritime medicine, disaster medicine, or even COVID-19 response, some lessons are universal. Anticipate medical issues early on. Prepare and prevent when possible. Practice closed-loop communication in crisis situations and build team dynamics from the outset. Skills from other equally operational environments, whether mountainee

Join new addition to the podcasting team, USA-based Emergency Nurse Practitioner Steve Wood as he discusses bringing Emergency Medicine to low resource communities.  Aimee Tang is an emergency medicine physician and MPH with years of clinical experience in a busy urban hospital in New York City. She also has an interest in public health and bringing training in emergency medicine to underserved and low-resourced providers and communities. She has worked in both Haiti and India to develop emergency medicine and residency training programs to these areas. Aimee's mission is to make her job obsolete, that is, she realises the importance of engaging community resources, establishing local buy-in and training future on-the-ground trainers. Aimee emphasizes the importance of engaging the community and respecting local customs to develop robust healthcare systems in these settings. As an assistant professor of emergency medicine, she has counselled many trainees on the role of provider-educator, including self-car

In this conversation, we talk with Carl Betts reflecting on practice as a paramedic. Carl is a Paramedic and quality improvement fellow based in Sheffield working for the ambulance service. He has been a Paramedic for 9 years and has a 10-year extensive history of expeditions featuring multiple trips to Everest base camp, K2, Mongolia, South Africa, Swaziland, Kangchenjunga, Toubkal, Aconcagua, Pakistan, Oman and many more. He has recently written two pieces of reflection that have been published in the College of Paramedics INSIGHT magazine. These are ‘Normal or numb’ and ‘The second victim and me’. In this episode, we examine these articles, Carl’s motivations for writing them, and pull out some of the salient learning points for both pieces in this interview. In the interview, we explore; Carls journey into paramedicine in 2012 & navigating 9 years on the frontline of paramedic practice. We then explore why Carl decided to write the first piece ‘Normal or Numb’ and Carls perspectives the salient point

In this episode, Dr Jen Sherman is joined by Anna-Marie Watson. Anna-Marie was an officer in the British Army for 9 years and completed three operational tours. An experienced Expedition Leader, she is no stranger to extreme and hostile environments. Anna-Marie has two passions, ultramarathons and coaching. Prior to Covid, Anna-Marie regularly achieved podium positions in the Ultra-marathon world tour series and Marathon des Sables. When not running, Anna-Marie is also a successful coach to both business leaders and athletes. Her area of specialism is coaching outdoors and in 2020 she co-authored a chapter on ‘Eco-coaching’ for the ‘Coaches Handbook’. In this episode Jen and Anna-Marie discuss: Her journey into competing in Ultramarathons The physical, mental and emotional facets of preparing and completing an Ultramarathon Her identity as an athlete and how this has been impacted by the pandemic Fear of failure The dark side of being passionate and driven-at what point does it become harmful to our we

In this episode, we speak with Stian Mohrsen about the basics of critical care. Stian is a retrieval practitioner working in Scotland with particular clinical interests in pre-hospital emergency and critical care, major and complex trauma, resuscitation, paediatrics and human factors. He is also a part-time lecturer at Sterling university on the paramedic science degree program.   In the episode he speaks with Eoin Walker (WEM pre-hospital lead) about why this topic is important and how the basics can sometimes be overlooked in the trauma and medical patient. Stian also goes on to discuss the fundamentals of patient assessment in the critical care patient together with the airway, breathing and circulation aspects that should be attended to. Stian goes on to bring out the non-technical aspects of critical care that are important to exhibit. He also mentions the attention to detail that is required and how small well informed decisions can aggregate and contribute to performance and outcome. Stian finishes by

In this episode, Dr Will Duffin speaks to BBC Chief Medical Officer Claire Fernandes, about breaking the mould in her career, what it’s like transitioning away from the NHS into private sector work. How this broadens your skillsets and horizons. How she developed an interest in occupational health and how this has opened doors for her. We talk about what her role at the BBC is like, the challenges, what it’s like being the only doctor in an organisation of 22,000 employees, working across a huge variety of different platforms and departments and how she’s constantly learning and always needs to come up with creative solutions to novel problems. We talk about her role in covid-mitigation for the filming of BBC productions. What part she has played in enabling the cast of some of our favourite crew to continue filming safely without masks or social distancing on set. We explore the tension between advocating for the health and wellbeing of cast and crew whilst minimising barriers to a production meeting its co

In this episode, Dr Jen Sherman is joined by Bex Band. Bex is an adventurer, public speaker and writer. She is passionate about adventure, widening access to the outdoors and conservation. She is the founder of ‘Love Her Wild’ a global female adventure community with over 25,000 members. Bex has been recognised as one of the UK’s top 30 inspirational entrepreneurs. For her work advocating women in adventure, she has been shortlisted for a National Diversity Award and in 2018 was given ‘Legacy Maker’ status on the San Miguel Alternative Rich List. In this episode Jen and Bex discuss the following: The adventure that kickstarted her journey to becoming an adventurer and entrepreneur How Bex has made a living doing what she loves How adventure helped restore her confidence and self-belief Love Her Wild What inspired her to set up What the community aims to do How she has grown it to have >25,000 members The power of minimalism How her engagement with nature has led to a deep passion for conservation

Lock Down Rock Up - A conversation with climber and Paramedic Jerome Mowat. This week Eoin Walker joins Jerome Mowat for a conversation about the making and narrative of the film 'Lock Down Rock Up'. The film which is directed, produced and shot by Nico Hambleton has been designed to appeal to both health workers and adventure lovers. It showcases the beneficial and healing transition from high-stress work in healthcare to a high focus and committing activity. Lock Down Rock Up, takes audiences through the challenges Jerome faced as a frontline paramedic in London during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and how he used rock climbing to escape. During this session Eoin and Jerome discuss: The beneficial impact of climbing and intense activities on mental health The importance of a separate identity away from your professional life Stress within the team and the need to support each other Optimising strategies for self-care and mental health Jerome Mowat Biography: Jerome Mowat initially traine

If you're fed up with the same old expedition and camp food then this podcast is for you. In this episode, Dr Emma Figures is joined by Captain Sophie Hollingsworth, who discusses her passion for exploring, the environment and adventure cooking. Literally, if Indiana Jones and Martha Stewart had a baby, the result would be Captain Sophie Hollingsworth. In this episode, she shares some of her inspiring stories of ongoing exploration and following your dreams, as well as educating us on the wonders of sustainable, local cooking, over a fire, under the stars. Escape with us in an episode, that will enliven your spirit of adventure and tickle your tastebuds. Sophie is an adventure cooking pro and is the perfect person to help you raise your game while eating ion the wilderness. Sophie is also a world-renowned speaker and highly regarded environmental thought leader having taken the stage to speak to an array of audiences from the United Nations to influential corporates. On a mission to be a force multiplier,

In this second episode of 'Stone Cold Truths', we’re joined by ENP Ben Cooper and Dr Sean Hudson. Alongside WEM Trauma Lead Eoin Walker, Ben and Sean delve deeper into #hypothermia. The trio discuss when hypothermia is actually a benefit to the individual, how alcohol affects hypothermia and some of the misconceptions around how people see hypothermia.  Grab a hat and listen in to this #extreme discussion. 

  In this conversation between Dr Will Duffin and Dr Lizzie Thorne we learn about some of Lizzie’s highlights of working out in Fiji with Bear Grylls and examples of some of the medical care she’s delivered in extreme environments. Lizzie and Will also discuss what the key attributes are of a good expedition medic?, how and why lizzie escaped the London medical career treadmill and her top tips for other medics who want to follow the same path and how lizzie has juggled her overseas trips with her hospital rota. Lizzie is a Junior Doctor, she graduated from St George’s medical school in London in 2017 and is now in her F4 year and has just applied for core surgical training. She has been able to build expedition medicine into her career including an interest in sports, exercise and expedition medicine. She has taken part in many different overseas projects and expeditions including: Ultra Marathon: Sri Lanka - race medic  Ultra Marathon: Jordan - race medic  Adventure Race, Eco Challenge, WEM: FIJI - ra

An interview 35 years in the making    WEM Founder, Mark Hannaford was destined for a life based on the expeditions, but he stumbled across the remarkable book by newly minted photojournalist Nick Danziger; 'Danziger's Travels'.    It was a book that influenced his and many others' lives, and it has taken him 35 years to track Nick down and convince him to be interviewed, his perseverance wasn't wasted.    #thelongesttalk #expeditionmedicine #nickdanziger #photojournalism #humanitarian #conflict #extreme #extrememedicine