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US Forest Service and NWMT Member
As written by Pam Wood (Dan Wood's wife)
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Dan Wood is a paramedic living in Prineville, Oregon. He is a
volunteer at the Prineville Fire Department and is employed full time
with the U.S. Forest Service in Central Oregon, where he is a staff
supervisor. Dan graduated with a Forestry degree from Oregon State
University and later attended graduate school at the University of
Washington. Dan received his EMT training at Central Oregon Community
College. He has been an EMT since 1993 and a paramedic for the past
three years. Dan has used his EMT training, as a key to provide
opportunities for adventure and travel that would have not otherwise
been available.
As a certified EMT, Dan was initially able to volunteer at Saint
Charles Medical Center in Bend, the Prineville Fire Department, and
Deschutes County Victim's Assistance Program, as well as teach first
aid and CPR. Pursuing these opportunities allowed him to see that there
would be even more opportunities as a paramedic.
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After acquiring his paramedic certification he continued to serve
primarily with the Prineville Fire Department. But in addition, he was
able to work with a medical team that travels to wildfires throughout
the northwest and participate as a paramedic with Northwest Medical
Teams, International (NWMT). This exposure in international travel due
to medical training also helped Dan secure a recent trip to interior
Borneo, Indonesia to advise the Indonesian government on wildfire
management. This was associated with his job with the US Forest Service.
While he did not go to Indonesia as a medic, medical training did come
in handy on the trip in the third world country.
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Working as a medic on wildfires keeps him busy both on the fire line
while crews are working and the fire camp while they are resting. Being
the medic on wildfires is very different than what people expect and
certainly different than working on an ambulance. The hours of work
are long and continuous and the precious little sleep allowed is found
on the ground in a tent. While there are often medical emergencies on a
wildfire (such as exciting helicopter evacuations and treating wounds
from fire tools buried in various body parts) most of a fire medic's
time is consumed with more minor and numerous medical tasks such as
treating damaged feet, colds and the dreaded "camp crud" that shows up
in most fire camps. Being the medic on wildfires has provided him with
many exciting stories told at home around the holidays and Dan claims
some are actually true.
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Dan is also a volunteer with Northwest Medical Teams (NWMT). Working
with NWMT allows Dan the opportunity for international travel without
incurring the cost. The NWMT pays for all the travel, accommodations
and meals. Dan has traveled with a medical team to very remote flood and
earthquake stricken areas of southern Mexico.
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Once in Southern Mexico, the team traveled by dug-out canoe with
Indian guides to even more remote and isolated areas. The people found
there had not been able to set foot on dry land for weeks and were
found living on tables and the few roof tops that could support the
weight. The team treated the flood victims while standing in badly
contaminated water and doing the best they could with the few supplies
they could carry.
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Later in the same trip the team hiked from village to village in the
southern Sierra Madre Mountains. (Recent earthquakes ruined the few
roads in the area). These areas were so remote that the people there
did not speak Spanish but rather their own Indian languages and
dialects. The team decided on an arrangement where the MD handled the
many children's cases, the Nurse handled women's problems, the EMT-B
became the pharmacist and Dan was left to deal with some medical and
trauma cases. One case involved a badly damaged finger that Dan was
asked to amputate using some pretty crude instruments. Fortunately, an
alternative plan was adopted. Dan remains a volunteer with Northwest
Medical Teams and is looking forward to more disaster relief work in
the future. With retirement from the US Forest Service looming within
the next few years, he is considering pursuing a nursing degree, which
he hopes, will afford him even more opportunity for travel and adventure.
Dan Wood, EMT-P
US Forest Service
NW Medical Teams
Crooked County RFPD #1
Oregon certified since October 1993
For more information or questions on these new applications of EMS
training, feel free to contact Dan at "danwood@fs.fed.us"
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