Rosehip Medic Collective is prepared to offer an array of low-cost and/or free trainings and workshops to groups and individuals. We operate independently, training our own content from a queer and trans perspective, with trainers who come from a mix of healthcare, education, and other backgrounds. We can offer the below trainings as-is, modified, or occasionally with whole new content when requested. We do not confer certifications, but our trainings are recognized and respected in national street medic and other communities.
If you are interested in attending or scheduling a training with Rosehips, please email us at rosehipmedics@gmail.com. We cannot commit to show up everywhere we are asked, but attempt to do so–especially with adequate notice. Although we are all volunteers, we appreciate participants investing in their learning through monetary or alternate payment, which supports work within our collective and community. We turn no one away for lack of ability to pay.
Upcoming trainings
At this time of the COVID pandemic we have no trainings scheduled. We are unlikely to attempt trainings until we can safely gather in groups and safely interact with people at close distances and safely touch other people, as a medical training needs to be a hands-on experience in order for the skills to be learned.
We do not have plans for internet trainings during this time, as again a street medic training would require hands-on experiences.
We, and other street medic groups across the country, are looking into producing videos that would help people prepare for safety at a protest and learn how to take care of themselves and their friends- not how to street medic, but how to stay Safe and Healthy in the Streets (a workshop we have been putting on regularly for 12 years now).
We will widely announce and post here if/when shareable videos are made.
TRAININGS WE OFFER
Safe and Healthy in the Streets (2-3 hours)
One of our most popular workshops, here we discuss ways to prepare yourself for the next demonstration, occupation, or whatever else may be on the horizon. We cover everything from the importance of buddies & warm layers (no cotton!) to jail support and the proper treatments for pepperspray/chemical weapons. Content and practice time varies with length of time allocated.
Check out these Protest Safety videos with our friends on the East Coast and out of Denver Action Medic Network for online versions.
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Stop the Bleed Workshop (2 hours)
Our version of the popular education designed by the American College of Surgeons, and offered by public and private organizations. This is a hands-on and pandemic-cautious workshop, open and useful to people with and without other medical training. We cover causes and identification of life-threatening bleeding and penetrating injuries, including gunshot wounds, and how to stop these bleeds, and get injured persons to definitve care. Extensive practice times on props allows participants to develop the muscle memory to respond to a bleeding emergency if needed. When possible, we send participants home with their own personal bleeding control kit or IFAK. While we believe there is no substitute for hands-on training, there are online training modules available, along with links to other STB trainings here.
Street Medic Training (20 hours)
We offer 20 hour street medic trainings several times a year. Our trainings are open to people of any skill level; we encourage EMTs to attend our trainings as strongly as we do people with no first aid background. Our trainings are holistic, focusing on preparation, actions, and aftercare, and our participants leave with useful tools whether they plan on medicking at every major summit protest or if they simply want basic first aid knowledge for their neighborhood. Our trainings are intensive, with one evening session and two long days, and include a lot of hands-on practice and realistic scenarios. We strive to make our trainings accessible, safe and supportive for all people, and will work with you beforehand to make sure your needs are met.
Our trainings include:
- The why’s what’s, how’s and ethics of street medicking
- Action preparedness
- Patient assessment, basic first aid skills, and life-saving techniques
- Red Flags, when to call 911, and how to interact with Emergency Medical Services
- Police violence and chemical weapons
- Use of herbs in the streets and for aftercare
- Packing your first aid kit
- And much more!
To find out about upcoming trainings, please visit our News page or email rosehipmedics@gmail.com to ask questions. If you are part of an organization or are planning an event that you desire a training for please email us, too.
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Street Medic Bridge Training (4-8 hours)
We offer Bridge Trainings for medical professionals and other care workers trained with active/current skills in patient assessment for urgent/emergent needs (eg. Wilderness First Responders, doctors, nurses, EMTs, etc ; NOT CPR/First Aid, CNAs, Lifeguards, or never-used/long-expired certification). These trainings are exclusive by design because they assume the learner is comfortable navigating and treating a variety of patient needs–because assessment and treatment comprise the bulk of content not included. This is TYPICALLY offered in-person only, but Rosehip and other collectives are investigating online and blended-learning approaches in order to train safely and ethically during a pandemic.
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Community Medic Training: (20 hours)
This 20 hour training is comparable to our Street Medic Training, but is more focused on the needs of the daily challenges faced by many of us whom are unable or feel unsafe accessing conventional (hospitals, clinics, 9-1-1) health resources. We look at less organized, more independent ways of addressing emergent or ongoing health issues experienced by our friends, family, and fellow community members–and focus on some of the most common health issues experienced by people of all ages.
This training covers:
- How’s, why’s, legalities, and ethics of responding as peers to health emergencies & questions
- Steps we can take to prepare for crises
- Patient assessment, basic first aid skills, and life-saving interventions
- Red flags for when to call 9-1-1 and ideas for how to support/advocate for friends with oppressed identities that are accessing healthcare systems
- Chronic & acute illnesses
- Packing your first aid kit
- Herbs and other complementary modalities
People’s Disaster Readiness Training: (16 hours)
In the Northwest and globally we know there are increasing frequency and severity of disasters like earthquakes, floods, wildfires, drought, and storms. Numerous trainings exist for state, corporate, and survivalist ‘prepper’ groups. The Rosehips have designed this training to prepare individuals to approach disaster preparedness focused on identifying and supporting the most vulnerable in each of our geographic and social communities.
Along with practical skills, we want trainees to leave with more tools to teach and organize with their friends, family, and community groups to take care of one another when things get bad and we are unable to count on state or corporate resources to do so.
This training is more adaptable than our Street and Community medic trainings, designed to last 16 hours, but dividable into modules over several days. It is also designed with a train the trainers concept in mind–so that Rosehips are not required in order to re-offer this training within your own group or space. If you are interested in partnering with us on our ongoing development of this content and approach, please email us at rosehipmedic@gmail.com
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Community Wellness Workshops (1-4 hours)
In addition to the 20-Hour Street Medic Trainings, we are always working to expand our repertoire of wellness-focused workshops. We currently offer four 1-2 hour long workshops that cover a range of topics, from protest preparation to foot fungus. We are always looking for ways to give these workshops, so please get in touch if you are interested in helping us make one happen!
We don’t give these workshops as regularly as the 20-Hour trainings, so be sure to check out the accompanying zines.
Basic First Aid
A customized 1.5-3 hour training on emergency assessment, basic first aid, and how to get help on some of the most common urgent health needs. We frequently involve other partnering groups in deciding what content is most relevant to their needs.
Home Remedies for Common Maladies
Home Remedies focuses on affordable remedies—prevention, herbal medicines, and more —for common illnesses and injuries, as well as identifying Red Flags to help guide you in deciding when to seek more definitive medical care or emergency medical services. Use our training and accompanying zine as a resource for yourself, your family, your house, or your neighborhood; the more care providers we have, the less we all have to depend on corporate medicine!
Traveler Troubles
For some of us it’s always traveling season, and for others of us trips come only once every few years. How ever often you make it out on the road, you will always benefit from knowing more about common traveling troubles. From the potential bugs and bellyaches found in crowded houses and unfamiliar kitchens to the rashes and funguses that appear in transit, the Rosehip Medics Collective hopes to offer DIY remedies to common ailments and rumor-busting red flags to help you decide when to seek medical attention. Scabies! Lice! Pinworms! Athlete’s foot! Yeast infections! Unsanitary food! Learn how to protect yourself when you’re exposed, as well as inexpensive, safer solutions to these common traveler problems.
Alternatives to Emergency Medical Services
In 2012 we completed a project researching, interviewing and analyzing providers of a wide variety of alternative emergency medical services. The report we compiled – an analysis of alternative emergency response systems around the country – focuses on systems built by communities historically underserved by mainstream emergency medicine, and draws lessons from these programs already in existence to envision new, community-based approaches to emergency medical care. Through this workshop, we hope to spark a larger dialogue about the accessibility of emergency care.