Ch.10patientassessment Flashcards
The assessment process is divided into five main parts
Scene size up
Primary assessment
History taking
Secondary assessment
Reassessment
A__is a subjective condition that the patient feels and tells you about
Symptom
A_is an objective condition that you can observe or measure
Sign
Therefore, it is essential to have a basic understanding of the causes and presentations of commonly encountered emergencies, as this information can help you formulate a___ (conclusion about the cause of the patient’s condition after considering the situation, history, and examination findings) that will help you determine your priorities of care.
field impression
__refers to your evaluation of the conditions in which you will be operating. Although this will be the focus of your attention when you first arrive on scene, continuous situational awareness is necessary throughout the entire call to ensure safety. Situational awareness is paying attention to the conditions and people around you at all times and the potential risks those conditions or people pose.
Scene size-up
Scene size up refers to your evaluation of the conditions in which you will be operating. Although this will be the focus of your attention when you first arrive on scene, continuous situational awareness is necessary throughout the entire call to ensure safety.__\ is paying attention to the conditions and people around you at all times and the potential risks those conditions or people pose.
Situational awareness
Make sure you place yourself ___ the patient and the potential danger, thus preventing possible access to the object
Between
These are generally classified according to the type or amount of force, how long it was applied, and where it was applied to the body. This is described as the___. The___ can be used as a guide to help you focus your assessment.
mechanism of injury (MOl)
Terms commonly associated with MOl include___\ and penetrating trauma. With ___, the force of the injury occurs over a broad area, and the skin is sometimes not broken. However, the tissues and organs underneath the area of impact may be damaged. With penetrating trauma, the force of the injury occurs at the specific point of contact between the skin and the object. The object pierces the skin and creates an open wound that carries a higher potential for infection
blunt trauma
Terms commonly associated with MOl include blunt trauma and__. With blunt trauma, the force of the injury occurs over a broad area, and the skin is sometimes not broken. However, the tissues and organs underneath the area of impact may be damaged. With __, the force of the injury occurs at the specific point of contact between the skin and the object. The object pierces the skin and creates an open wound that carries a higher potential for infection
penetrating trauma
As an emt you will also care for patients who require ems attention because of illnesses or conditions not caused by an outside force. For these patients with medical problems,you must examine the general type of illness the patient is experiencing,or the ____.
Nature of illness (NOI)
The most serious thing a patient is concerned about and the reasons ems was called
Chief complaint
Protective equipment that blocks exposure to a pathogen or a hazardous material
Personal protective equipment (PPE)
Are protective measures that have traditionally been recommended by the centers for disease control and prevention(CDC) for use in dealing with objects,blood,body fluids,and other potential exposure risks of communicable disease
Standard precautions
Is a flexible system implemented to manage a variety of emergency scenes . Emergency responders work in groups according to their function or assigned area, with the leader of each group reporting to the person in charge of the incident,the incident commander
Incident command system
Is the process of sorting patients based in the severity of their condition
Triage
identify and begin treatment of immediate or imminent life threats. To do this, you must physically examine the patient and assess level of consciousness (LOC) and airway, breathing, and circulation (ABCs); however, this is not an in-depth physical exam or assessment of vital signs. These will be addressed later in the secondary assessment.
Primary assessment
Forming the___ of a patient is a similar process, but the focus is on rapid identification of potentially life-threatening problems. The____ is formed to determine the priority of care and is the first part of your primary assessment. This includes noting things such as the person’s age, sex, race, level of distress, and overall appearance, which may lead you to anticipate different problems.
general impression
The ___ is used to assess a patients LOC depending on how well he or she responds to external stimuli,including verbal stimuli(sound) and painful stimuli(such as pinching the trapezius muscle on top of the patients shoulder)
The avpu scale
The avpu scale tests a patients responsiveness based on the following criteria
Awake and alert. The patient’s eves open spontaneously as you approach, and the patient appears to be aware of you and responsive to the environment. The patient is awake, appears to follow commands, and the eyes visually track people and objects.
V. Responsive to verbal stimuli. The patient is not alert and awake. The patient’s eyes do not open spontaneously.
However, the patient’s eyes do open when you speak to him or her, or the patient is able to respond in some meaningful way when spoken to-for example, by moaning, speaking, or moving. A patient who does not respond to your normal speaking voice but who responds when you speak loudly is responding to loud verbal stimuli.
P . Responsive to pain. The patient does not respond to your questions but moves or cries out in response to painful stimulus. There are appropriate and inappropriate methods of applying a painful stimulus (FIGURE 10-9).
Be aware that some methods may not give an accurate result if a spinal cord injury is present.
U. Unresponsive. The patient does not respond spontaneously or to a verbal or painful stimulus. Unresponsive patients usually have no cough or gag reflex and lack the ability to protect their airway.
For a patient who is alert or responsive to verbal stimuli , next evaluate ___. ___ test a patients mental status by checking his or her memory and thinking ability.
Orientation
Orientation tests a patient’s mental status by checking his or her memory and thinking ability. The most common test evaluated a patients ability to remember four things :
Person. The patient is able to remember his or her name
Place. The patient is able to identify his or her current location
Time. The patient is able to tell you the current year,month,and day of the week .
Event. The patient is able to describe what happened (the moi or noi)
Any deviation from alert and oriented to person,place,time,and event or from a patients normal baseline is considered an
Altered mental status
An airway obstruction can result in partial or complete blockage of air movement into and out of the lungs and therefore inadequate ___ of the entire body
Perfusion