Rock climbers' self-perceptions of first aid, safety, and rescue skills.
OBJECTIVE
Rock climbing is a challenging and demanding sport that requires specialized equipment and training. One significant area of training involves being familiar with first aid and rescue skills. This study reports climbers' self-perceptions of their first aid, safety, and rescue skill competencies. Actual technical skills were not measured.


METHODS
Data were collected through a World Wide Web (WWW)-based questionnaire administered over a 15-month period. The questionnaire requested information on respondents' climbing history, first aid training, personal safety practices, and partner and self-rescue skills.


RESULTS
Two hundred forty-one climbers completed the Web-based survey. Findings showed that the majority of climbers reported receiving some form of first aid training, were attentive to personal safety practices, and perceived themselves to be confident in partner and self-rescue techniques.


CONCLUSIONS
On the basis of the results obtained in this study, it appears that training and specialized skills are considered by rock climbers to be important components of managing risk.
Attarian
Aram
A
Department of Parks, Recreation, & Tourism Management, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-8004, USA. aram_attarian@ncsu.edu
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*; D001290:Attitude; D005260:Female; D005392:First Aid; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009051:Mountaineering; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires