Advanced Wilderness Life Support
“Organizations are charging super high prices for their courses and teach mostly outdoor rescue medicine. Our goal is to change that. We want to offer wilderness medicine training inexpensively to as many as possible, to keep people safe in this beautiful world.” –Wild Med U Founder Richard Ingebretsen
Advanced Wilderness Life Support offers free and CME-based wilderness medicine resources, structured online courses and exams, hands-on in-person training, and targeted certification programs designed for both medical professionals and outdoor enthusiasts who want to confidently handle medical situations in remote environments.
The site at awls.online is hosted by the University of Utah School of Medicine, which offers a comprehensive hub for wilderness medicine education. They provide:
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Free downloadable textbooks covering everything from basic first aid, backpacking medicine, search & rescue, to Advanced Wilderness Life Support (AWLS) and more. Wild Med Adventures+13
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Practice exams with detailed explanations for topics like altitude illness, wound care, dermatology, outdoor sports medicine, and more.AdventureMed
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CME‑approved online study modules for certifications such as AWLS, Basic Wilderness Life Support (BWLS), Wilderness First Responder (WFR), Backpacking Medicine, and others.
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Online certification exams, typically 30–70 minutes long depending on the course, with requirements of ≥70% to pass, and a timed, one‑attempt format.
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In-person and hybrid courses, including AWLS, WFR, backpacking medicine, bike medicine, search & rescue, and speciality programs like Wilderness Medicine in the Alps.AdventureMed+1
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Target audience: healthcare professionals (MDs, NPs, PAs, RNs, EMTs, paramedics, dentists, vets, etc.) and non-medical outdoor enthusiasts.
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Affordable pricing: examples include $140 for physician AWLS exams, $80 for other medical professionals, $60 for residents, $30 for students; WFR starts at $90 online.Wilderness Medicine+..
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Supplemental resources: podcasts, PowerPoint lectures, practical skills videos, merch, and resident-focused rotations