Information on Joining NSP and OEC Class

(Visit http://www.donnerskipatrol.org for more information – OEC Information link)

The Outdoor Emergency Class (OEC) is a required class to that all NSP patrollers have to take to join the National Ski Patrol. It is basically the same class as the EMT class with a few minor changes, but mostly in emphasis of what is taught. The OEC class in Sacramento is an extensive 14 week class that prepares a person to give first aid in an outdoor environment. All patrollers have to complete this class before being qualified to perform first aid on the patrol they join.

This can be done by either completing an OEC class or by challenging the OEC class, IF you are already an EMT , nurse, Paramedic, medical Doctor, etc. To challenge you have to take the OEC written final and score at least a 75% and then pass the practical final (a full assessment which includes bandaging and/or splinting) which includes all illnesses and injuries that are covered in the Outdoor Emergency Manual.

For our OEC class, each student is required to complete the OEC workbook prior to taking the written final. This is not a requirement for someone who is qualified to challenge the OEC class as they have already learned the material in previous training.

We expect OEC students to be at each class. When you cannot be there please let the instructor know in advance if possible. If you have to miss a class, the workbook does a great job of still preparing you for the material you will miss. In fact, you should come to each class prepared. meaning you have already studied the material in the OEC manual and completed the workbook. Those who do this have little trouble passing this course, those who don’t, WILL HAVE DIFFICULTIES.

OEC challengers need to register for the OEC class at the start of the OEC class !!!

Each student is required to bring their own medical supplies to class at the beginning of the 3^rd week of class (this includes challengers). See our webpage for a list of recommended equipment.

Also, all OEC students and challengers must have a current CPR for the Professional Rescuer certificate (or equivalent) that is less than a year old on Oct 31, 2005. We do include this class as part of the OEC class for those who have not taken the class. Most patrols require you to current through the ski season or until June 1^st as our patrol does. NSP requires each patroller to recertify every year!

Cost – See our website for fee break down. Other cost you will encounter your first year besides the class, will be a fanny pack/vest/backpack, etc. to carry your medical supplies. Also, you are required to supply your own jacket and ski pants as well as your skies or snowboard, boots and poles. BEFORE buying any of these extra items, CHECK with your patrol as each patrol has different protocol for their mountain. A plastic Wal-Mart bag works to carry your medical supplies in for the class.

Enrollment fees for OEC – A $100 deposit is required to register and reserve a seat for the OEC class. The balance of the fees are collected at the 1^st class date. $50 will be returned if you decide to not to attend prior to class starting. If you drop after the class starts, we will refund what we can to you. However, if the books have been used and written into, there are yours. The college tuition fees we collect and pay for you, can be refunded IF we have not already paid them to the college. In other words, we do try to give you your money back as best we can. However, we are a non profit organization and we cannot afford to give back money we have already paid out.

Challengers – Although not required to attend the OEC class sessions, we STRONGLY recommend that to do come and practice the assessments and to attend the bandaging and splinting classes. You are used to having an ambulance, fire truck, ER room, etc. at your finger tips. We carry a fanny pack, vest, or backpack !!!! We also don’t have direct communications to a Doctor or hospital. Our transportation device is a toboggan and doesn’t have all the medical conveniences that you have at your immediate disposal. Thus, we do recommend that you come and practice and learn the differences and how NSP does things. If you fail a challenge, NSP requires you to take the entire class. At this time, the OEC class does not qualify as continuing education for EMT recertification. However, we are working on getting this done.

We only offer our class once a year. There are other classes in the San Francisco, Oakland, Reno, Truckee, and Modesto areas. All OEC classes must be registered with the NSP headquarters so you can check the NSP website (http://www.nsp.org) for other classes. Please check here often as the classes are only posted after an instructor notifies NSP about the dates and class info.

At Donner Ski Patrol, it is never too late or early to join. If you are interested, and want to join, first we recommend you ski with us for a day to ensure this is something you want to do. This is a huge commitment of time and training. If your decision is to join our patrol, you can ski and train with us (this assumes you join our patrol after an OEC class has already completed) but cannot provide first aid to customers until you complete the OEC class. If you do join, we expect you to take the next available OEC class in your area. This also applies to Challenger’s. (Although at DSP, we do have an internal OEC challenge class that is for patrollers that join our patrol. A challenger still must take the written and practical final test. We provide the necessary training to prepare you to pass the OEC challenge class.)

All patrollers have to annually refresh our OEC skills and recertify our CPR for the Professional Rescuer. This is normally done on the 2^nd or 3rd Saturday in October. We also have another required training day for On-the-Hill training which is normally the last Saturday in Oct. A person does not have to attend their own patrol’s OEC refresher as they can attend any other patrol’s OEC refresher to complete this requirement. But each patroller MUST attend their hills On-the-Hill training.