Health, safety and risk in Outward Bound

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Abstract
There are five USA Outward Bound schools with an annual enrollment of 30 000 students. The national office has general supervisory responsibility for safety, although each school has its own Safety Committee and local operating procedures. All safety incidents, including injuries, illnesses,’near misses’, student dropouts, and incident-associated activities are reported to the national office annually. Overall injury rates for all schools from 1978–1988 were 0.75 per 1000 student days. The 1988 injury rate was 0.49 and illness rate 0.40 per 1000 student days. Since 1962 there have been 13 accidental student deaths, 3 instructor deaths, and 4 deaths unrelated to accidents. The last accidental death was in 1978. Statistics for 1988 and 1989 are reviewed in detail, and a comparison made between injury rates in Outward Bound and in common sports. The injury rates in Outward Bound compare favorably with those in other sports; well supervised wilderness experiential education is as safe as, or safer than, other activities of urban youth.