With the explosion of adventure travel over the past decade, there has been a concurrent increase in mountaineering expeditions to extreme elevations, including many of the 8000-m peaks. This trend has created an increased demand for qualified expedition doctors to provide specialized medical advice and care to climbers and expedition staff.

Anne Brants (board member Outdoor Medicine) and Tracee Metcalfe have written a review to help physicians prepare for work on such expeditions. Both Anne and Tracee  are experienced expedition doctors who both worked on various expeditions in Nepal (e.g. Everest). In this review they discuss the types of work available on high-altitude expeditions; how to identify a safe and reputable guiding company; personal and medical preparation; priorities in selecting or building an appropriate medical kit; and medical conditions commonly encountered on expeditions. The review concludes by considering ethical dilemmas and other difficult issues unique to this work.

You can read the full article here.

Brants A, Metcalfe T. Practical Tips for Working as an Expedition Doctor on High-Altitude Expeditions. High Alt Med Biol. 2017 Jun 12. doi: 10.1089/ham.2016.0158