PA Wild Med.com

Martha Barrett, MD, MPH, FACEP, FAWM Candidate​, Course CME Organizer
Martha's outdoor adventures began in the wilderness of upstate and western NY. An environmental science fan from way back, she began her love affair with the outdoors with camping, backpacking and sport freshwater fishing with her parents in the Adirondack region.  Over the years, she has continued to backcountry camp and hike in various environments.  Recently, she's developed a new love of watersports,  and is currently exploring the worlds of ocean and whitewater kayaking, whitewater rafting, canoeing and paddleboarding.  Between adventures, she found time to become an emergency medicine physician and was thrilled to discover a place where she could dovetail her personal and professional interests!  Martha recently became certified as an Advanced Wilderness Expedition Provider and is looking forward to her next explorations! 
(Photo: Rappelling in the shower, trying to be like Bowman)

Peter Baumeister, D.O., CDR MC (FS) USNR, FAWM Candidate, Course Director
Pete is a Emergency Medicine attending at WellSpan in York, PA, a Stanford residency graduate, Graduate of the Naval Aerospace Medical Institute and FAWM candidate. He is a former US Navy Flight Surgeon, SAR Doc, and F-18 Naval Aviator. During that time, he received training in Wilderness, Mountain, Hot & Cold weather, Aerospace, Under Sea, Tactical, Disaster, Humanitarian, and International Medicine. He has deployed around the world and practiced medicine in a variety of environments; from an altitude of +50,000’ to 200’ below sea level.
Pete’s love for medicine and the outdoors started at a young age. He made his first snowboard at the age of 8, first sewed himself up at 9, and built his first ropes course at 13. He has been on over 400 dives, and is an avid spear fisherman. Pete also loves mountain biking, mountaineering, scuba diving, white water rafting and kayaking. Pete has broken the speed of sound more times than he can count, and has an unyielding thirst for adventure, and above all, spending time with his family in the wilderness. (Photo: Mont Blanc - Chamonix, France)

Walt Schrading, MD, FACEP, FAWM Candidate

Walt is an aeromedical trained emergency physician, with over 100 flights during residency. He is a 25-year and founding member of the faculty of the Emergency Medicine Residency Program at York Hospital. He has recently relocated to the University of Alabama, Birmingham where he is an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine. Here he will continue his long-term interest in wilderness medicine and will be starting a Wilderness Medicine section at UAB. He was a white-water raft guide on the Youghiogheny River in southwestern PA for seven years and is an expert in white-water rescue and safety.

He is an athlete and outdoor adventurer. He is an 8-time finisher of the Ironman triathlon - a 140.6-mile single day journey including a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike, and a 26.2-mile marathon run. He hopes to compete in Kona, Hawaii at the world championship one day by his continued participation in this ultimate endurance event. Endurance adventure races including map navigation, mountain biking, canoeing or kayaking, and trail running are also part of his outdoor diet. He continues to compete in other triathlon, running, and adventure races; many of which he participates with his brothers or his wife.  He now is enjoying the heat training in the south!  (Photo: Climbing Mt. Battie in Camden, ME)

Saulius Elertas EMT-P, FP-C, FAWM Candidate
Saul is a flight paramedic with the Penn State Life Lion Critical Care Transport program. He is also a Medical Specialist with Pennsylvania US&R Task Force 1, and is certified in numerous technical rescue disciplines.

As a member of the Wilderness Medical Society, he is working towards achieving a Fellowship in Wilderness Medicine, and enjoys both studying and teaching about wilderness medicine. Outdoor interests include hiking, camping, mountain biking and kayaking.
(Photo: Saulius is sporting some pretty good gear in this photo).

Eric Barr, DO, FAWM Candidate
Eric is the Program Director of the Family Medicine Residency at Memorial Hospital in York and in private family practice in York as well.  He is also licensed by the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission as a ring-side physician for boxing and MMA. He teaches and utilizes Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine daily in his practice and when teaching residents and medical students. He has been a hunter, fisherman and outdoor person all of his life and now enjoys spending any time he can doing nearly anything outside with his family and friends. He is a candidate for the Wilderness Medicine Fellowship and looks forward to many more conferences and experiences like this.  

(Photo: taking a break on Kilimanjaro with his wife, Heather)

Bryan Wexler, MD, MPH, FAAEM


Bryan is the Medical Director of Disaster Preparedness and Response at WellSpan Health.  In addition to being a dual board-certified Emergency Medicine and EMS Medicine physician, he also completed his fellowship in Disaster Medicine and Emergency Management and holds numerous certifications in business continuity and healthcare response.


Bryan’s interests in addition to disaster medicine and psychological preparedness include system development and resource management.  He is an avid tennis player, a practitioner of martial combatives along with classical and historical fencing.

DOUGLAS SWARD, MD, FAAEM, FAWM
Doug is board certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine. He is currently an Emergency Physician at the University of Maryland - Upper Chesapeake Medical Center in Bel Air, Maryland. He also practices Hyperbaric and Dive Medicine at the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center - Department of Hyperbaric Medicine. He is a DMAC Medical Examiner of Divers and the Faculty Advisor for the Wilderness Medicine Student Interest Group at University of Maryland School of Medicine. Since 2010, he has been the Medical Advisor for Maryland Search and Rescue, which is a team within the Appalachian Search and Rescue Conference. In 2010, he also completed the Wilderness Medical Society Fellow of the Academy of Wilderness Medicine program.
Wilderness medicine interests include dive medicine, altitude medicine, frostbite, hypothermia, hyperthermia, ultrasound and all manner of improvised wilderness care. Personal interests include rock and ice climbing, skiing, diving, mountain biking, kayaking, triathlons and any opportunity to get off the grid. He also has prior experience as a paramedic and firefighter at the Wheaton Volunteer Rescue Squad. He will be leading a pre-conference SAREX (Search & Rescue Exercise) at the 9th annual Wilderness Medicine and Survival Skills Seminar.  (Photo - nothing beats being a “Powder Hound” skiing out West)

John Rollhauser, EMT-B, OEC

John has been a professional ski patroller at Sugarloaf Mountain Resort in Maine, the former Pro Patrol Director at Liberty Mountain Resort in Pa. John is a member of Franklin Search and Rescue (FSAR) in Franklin County, ME. He is a member of the FSAR board of directors, and on the FSAR Technical Rope Rescue Team. He is an fire fighter, EMT & rescue technician with the Kingfield Fire Department. John is also an instructor for: Outdoor Emergency Care, lift evacuation, off-trail & rope rescue and climbing. He is an avid rock climber, hiker, backpacker, mountaineer, mountain biker, kayaker, skier and caver.  He believes one of the best sounds in the world is rain on his tent at night.

(Photos: Top: Standing on the summit cairns of Burn Mountain in Maine, another day at work. Burn Mountain is the centerpiece of the side country of Sugarloaf Ski Resort. Bottom: Summiting Mt. Katahdin, the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail after his thru hike in 2001).

Eric Bowman, MD, FACEP, FAWM, Course Host and Co-Organizer
He is the previous Director of the Wilderness Medicine Section within the Department of Emergency Medicine at WellSpan York Hospital's Emergency Medicine Residency, York, Pa. Fellow of the Academy of Wilderness Medicine; Wilderness Medical Society member; certified in Advanced Wilderness Life Support (AWLS), Wilderness Advanced Life Support (WALS) and Outdoor Emergency Care; active member of the National Ski Patrol.
Outdoor interests include downhill skiing, camping, backpacking, white water rafting, cross country skiing, snowshoeing and survival skills.  SCUBA certifications (PADI) include Open Water Diver, Advanced Open Water Diver, Rescue Diver, Peak Performance Buoyancy, Enriched Air (Nitrox) Diver, Equipment Specialist, Underwater Naturalist, Underwater Navigator and Master SCUBA Diver.
(Photo is of Machu Picchu after hiking the classic Inca Trail. Also in the photo is his wife, Katherine (“Kat”), the tireless behind-the-scenes champion of the Wilderness Medicine Conference)

Faculty: This page is currently being updated.