Safety at AVW

At Ashley Valley Wilderness we acknowledge that risk is inherent in wilderness programs. Awareness of that fact has made the safety and well-being of our students our primary concern and greatest responsibility. We take this responsibility very seriously and due to our strict adherence to policy and our commitment to continued staff training we have a remarkable safety record. We are continuously aware of the possibility of injury and have put the following safeguards in place to assure the continued safety and well-being of our students:

• The staff at AshleyValley have extensive experience in a wilderness setting.
• The clinical department is managed by a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW).
• A certified Wilderness First Responder, CPR and/or Wilderness First Aid trained staff is in the field with the students at all times.
• Staff is trained in medicine administration protocol.
• Ashley Valley has a 1:3 or better staff to student ration at all times.
• The menu at Ashley Valley was created by a certified dietician at Brigham Young University. The menus are reviewed regularly to assure the students receive nourishing and balanced diets.
• Hygiene is performed at regular intervals during all stages of the program. At minimum the students receive two solar showers per week, have their clothing washed weekly, change their undergarments every day, are given hair-cuts as needed, brush and floss their teeth daily, have their feet checked for blisters and fungus daily, and have regular dental and medical check-ups as prescribed.
• At Ashley Valley Wilderness we have access to emergency medical treatment and life flight 24 hours a day. Naturally, our staff is trained to stabilize an injured student until medical personnel arrive.
• We are an outdoor ranching experience and our programs are run on privately owned land. Our program site is gated and posted against trespassing. We have placarded and mapped our wilderness camp sites and this information has been provided to our emergency medical personnel to assure they can locate our wilderness groups without delay.
• Our staff is in constant contact with the office and they have immediate access to emergency medical personnel via satellite phones. In addition, our vehicles are equipped with 6-watt cellular phones to assure we are never out of telephone range.
• Each group is supplied with a specialized medical backpack that is equipped with burn spray, bug repellent, sunscreen, topical antibiotic cream, pain reliever, ace bandages, and other necessary medical supplies.
• In the event of a serious emergency all personnel at Ashley Valley are trained in procedures to deal with severe weather, fire danger, evacuation, and defense techniques.
• We are not located in a remote primitive area and our site has easy access via a regular two-wheel drive vehicle.