Our History

WEMSI-International’s History

In 1997 Dr Jel Coward , John Evans and Eric Pirie attended the Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician course in Ireland. This course was provided by a joint project involving the Wilderness Emergency Medical Services Institute (WEMSI) and Joe O’Gorman of the Irish Mountain Rescue Association. Joe has run the courses in Ireland annually since that time.

John, Eric and Jel came away from the course in 1997 completely enthused and verging on the evangelical about what was being achieved. It was then that they resolved to bring the course to mainland UK. In 1999 the first UK course was run at the Aberdyfi Outward Bound centre in North Wales.

The following year, with the support of Eric Pirie, the courses moved to the current home in the SportScotland centre at Glenmore Lodge in the Cairngorm mountains.

The Wilderness EMT and Wilderness Physician courses has been successfully running in the UK and Ireland every year for over 10 years now… with an ever-growing reputation.