ICAR MEDCOM
Alpine Rescue & Mountain Emergency Medicine

International Diploma in Mountain Medicine (DiMM)


plus Specialty DIMM Courses

  • Wilderness & Expedition Courses
  • Terrestrial Rescue Courses
  • Alpine Helicopter Rescue Courses


Course Details

Information

The Diploma in Mountain Medicine (DiMM) is the only accredited mountain, wilderness, and rescue medicine course in the world. Courses combine didactic and practical education that equips health professionals with the knowledge and skills to adapt their medical practices to the mountains. Students are held to a high standard, and are expected to demonstrate through written and practical examinations both understanding of didactics and competency performing mountaineering skills.
More than 3,500 doctors, nurses and paramedics have been trained in these courses until now. There are 28 different courses for mountain medicine throughout the world.

The medical commissions (Medcom) of UIAA and ICAR, together with the International Society for Mountain Medicine (ISMM) established minimal requirements for these courses in August 1997 (Interlaken, Switzerland). Many course organisers adopted these standards and the resulting Diploma in Mountain Medicine (DiMM) has become a widely respected qualification. The regulations have been updated to reflect developments in mountain medicine, ideas presented at meeting of course organisers in November 2018, and to ensure that the high standard of the DiMM is maintained. The member organisations approved the administrative group to change the regulations at their individual meetings in Katmandu, Nepal (November 2018).

New course organisers are encouraged to discuss with, and invite, members of the UIAA Medcom, ICAR Medcom or ISMM to observe their courses. For new courses, approval is for two years. When a course reapplies for approval, the organiser must provide information on the number of successful and unsuccessful candidates during the previous period and provide an external assessor site visit report. Re-approval is for four years. The names of approved courses, their geographic location, main language and contact email address will be posted on the member organisations’ websites.
The Diploma in Mountain Medicine qualification can only be awarded to Health Care Professionals registered with a national professional regulatory body (Physicians, Paramedics, Nurses, etc.). The Diploma in Mountain Medicine cannot be awarded to basic life support personnel (EMT’s, First Responders, First Aid, etc.). Students in the final part of their course can start the course but must be registered prior to award of the full qualification. The course can be divided into different parts appropriate for the organizing country (e.g. summer, winter; basic, specialty etc.) but must include the foundational course syllabus to award a diploma.

This must have a minimal study time (lectures, workshops and practical work) of 120 hours. Course organisers can determine who can attend the course and the speciality offered. In addition, course organisers may seek University status for the course. All courses should have some form of valid theory assessment and demonstration of practical skill with a fail potential.
Candidates should complete and maintain a logbook to demonstrate continuing professional development.