BOOK REVIEW: St. John Ambulance Australia REMOTE AREA FIRST AID – FIELD GUIDE

Press on Regardless History of Sydney Uni Bushwalkers

 

This handy little reference book is 60 pages long, and made of plastic, with a plastic spiral binding so it can be taken into the field and used in the worst conditions. It can be easily stuck in your pack without adding much weight, so it is available should you have the misfortune to need it when out bushwalking, canoeing, caving, cycling, canyoning, skiing etc in remote wilderness areas.

For a long time there has been a gap in our first aid training resource materials. Now this has been rectified with the publication of "St. John Ambulance REMOTE AREA FIRST AID –FIELD GUIDE", ISBN: 0949569410, approx. $10.00. Our very own Dave Shephard was able to contribute his extensive knowledge to the content of this book. As noted in the introduction, though, it is intended as a ready reference rather than a textbook, and therefore should be backed up by attendance at a Remote Area First Aid course.

The book covers such topics as: Emergency Services contacts, Basic casualty management, Resuscitation, Bleeding, Head injuries, Suspected spinal injury, Chest pain/discomfort, Asthma, Broken bones, Sprains, Shock, Bites and stings, Severe allergic reaction, Burns, Casualty affected by Cold, Casualty affected by Heat, Wounds in the field, Blistered feet, Casualty with Gastro, Poisoning, Minor illnesses, Pain relief, Lifting and moving the casualty, Safe conduct of outdoor activities in remote areas, What to do if lost or separated from a group, Personal first aid kit, Safety during a rescue, Records to be kept, Incident report, Observation chart and a space for extra notes.

All notes are brief, relevant and concise. Much is covered in a small volume. Despite a few typos and any mention of securing the tents etc under a hovering helicopter in the section on Rescue by Helicopter I would recommend it as forming an essential part of any outdoor adventurer’s kit.

Thaïs Turner

Bankstown Bushwalking Club, Inc.

 

 

 

Press on Regardless
50 Years of Bushwalking with Sydney University Bushwalkers
Review by Colin Gibson
To commemorate their clubs 50th anniversary the Sydney University Bushwalkers have produced a special limited edition of Press on Regardless. In short, this is an exceptional publication, some three years in the making, engineered by SUBW diehard Dave Noble. Essentially it is a summary of one of Sydney’s great outdoor associations from it’s pre-history in the 1930’s, its foundation in 1946 through to almost the present day.
The many and varied reminiscences from club members past and present make absorbing reading: many of the founding members describe a bushwalking of a very different age, that of hobnail boots, steel-framed rucksacks and wide horizons when Paddy Pallin was Guru of the post war bushwalking "boom".
Some of the more recent club members also take a retrospective look at their walking exploits, notably bushwalker Dave Noble, who provides a potted personal account in "The Golden Years". And there are plenty of golden years in press on regardless.
Many interesting features are taken straight from the pages of the clubs logbooks, which were only "rediscovered" during the course of this publication project. These accounts bring to life the almost forgotten achievements of a whole generation of club members: perhaps the most remarkable among these was Col Oloman who, in a relatively brief career, left a legacy that would not only transform the club but, to an extent, the activity of bushwalking itself. The accounts by Col and his companions of the first trip down Thunder Gorge in October 1960 – truly a defining undertaking in canyoning history – are just some of the highlights in Press on Regardless.
Other highlights for mine include Fred Doutch’s telling of the epic Hunter Range traverse of 1947, a truly pioneering achievement in an area that is little known even today. The map’s compiler Geoff Ford provides a fascinating account of the origins of the Gundungyra Map with an insight into the controversy that surrounds it. Carol Mills wit a humor makes the reading of her "Turossian Saga" a real delight, whilsts Chris Cosgrove’s "A Royal Thrash" through the hardest of the hardest scrub in South West Tasmania I found compelling from go to woe. A solid depiction of a remote and challenging corner of the world.
There are no glossy pages and no ads. But there are 140 pages of pure bushwalking to be savored. Only 200 copies were printed and fewer that half remain. Be quick. Copies can be obtained from
SUBW
Home Building
University of Sydney 2006
Cost $20 plus $2 postage within NSW