I could be wrong, but from my vantage point, one of the main medical factors that I will have to be concerned with is dehydration. That is why I want to be certified to administer IV's. A lot of people are telling me that I just need EMT-B and a paramedic friend of mine is saying I just need basic first aide. Will any of this permit me to administer an IV or should I not be worrying about that?
I think you must have misunderstood your Paramedic friend. Depending on your state, IV may not be allowed as EMT-B. Washington State has an IV component that can be added to an EMT-B but many states have it strictly as EMT-I or EMT-P. I don't know of anywhere that will allow a basic first aider to start an IV.
Now, are you talking about your students becoming dehydrated? Seems like teaching proper hydration should be a major priority. I would be more proactive on this rather than attempting to wait and start an IV on something that shouldn't have occurred in a classroom setting.
I would think that in a wilderness setting,one of your biggest concerns is going to be infection. It's dirty out there, and when dealing in wilderness situations, a small blister or minor injury can become life threatening if infection sets in and you are three days out. Another big issue is going to be hypo/hyperthermia. I don't know what area you are planning on teaching this class in, but that is going to impact your training considerably. Are you a hotter climate? Wet? Higher Altitude? All of these areas have their own unique sets of issues.
For example, finding water is never an issue here, we're a rain forest.. but we have to make sure that the water is fit to drink. So, heavy emphasis on filters, disinfection, making sure filters aren't clogged and are still effective... but the downside of the wetter climate is the issues with hypothermia, wet is cold and you can't warm up a wet person. We get hypothermic pts in the middle of July/August due to the damp and heavy canopy of the trees.
The one constant, no matter where you are is infection and I can't stress enough, the importance of preventing infection, recognizing it early and treating it hard and fast. All of this is covered in a good wilderness first aid course. I would highly recommend your getting one of those before you do anything else. The information is tailored for the wildnerness event and there are many things that are done quite differently because of the remote location and time needed to reach a hospital.