Communication and Documentation

Question 1

Base station

Answer 1

Any radio hardware containing a transmitter and receiver that is located in a fixed place

Question 2

Cellular telephone

Answer 2

A low-power portable radio that communicates through an interconnected series of repeater stations called “cells”

Question 3

Channel

Answer 3

An assigned frequency or frequencies that are used to carry voice and/or data communications

Question 4

Close-ended questions

Answer 4

Questions that can be answered in short or single word responses

Question 5

Communication

Answer 5

The transmission of information to another person – verbally or through body language

Question 6

Cultural imposition

Answer 6

When one person imposes his or her beliefs, values, and practices on another because he or she believes his or her ideals are superior

Question 7

Dedication line

Answer 7

A special telephone line that is used for specific point-to-point communications; also known as a hotline

Question 8

Documentation

Answer 8

The recorded portion of the EMTs patient interaction, either written or electronic. This becomes part of the patients permanent medical record

Question 9

Duplex

Answer 9

The ability to transmit and receive simultaneously

Question 10

Ethnocentrism

Answer 10

When a person considers his or her own cultural values as more important than the values of another person

Question 11

FCC

Answer 11

Federal Communications Commission; the federal agency that has jurisdiction over interstate and international telephone and telegraph services and satellite communications, all of which may involve EMS

Question 12

Interoperable communications system

Answer 12

A communication system that uses voice-over-Internet-protocol (VoIP) technology to allow multiple agencies to communicate and transmit data

Question 13

MED channels

Answer 13

VHF and UHF channels that the FCC has designated exclusively for EMS use

Question 14

MDT

Answer 14

Mobile data terminal; a small computer terminal inside the ambulance that directly receives data from the dispatch center

Question 15

Multiplex

Answer 15

The ability to transmit audio data signals through the use of more than one communication channel

Question 16

Noise

Answer 16

Anything that dampens or obscures the true meaning of a message

Question 17

Open-ended question

Answer 17

Questions for which the patient must provide detail to give an answer

Question 18

Paging

Answer 18

The use of radio signal and voice or digital message that is transmitted to pagers or desktop monitor radios

Question 19

PCR

Answer 19

Patient care report; the legal document used to record all patient care activities. This report has direct patient care functions but also administrative and quality control functions. PCRs are also known as prehospital care reports

Question 20

Rapport

Answer 20

A trusting relationship that you build with your patient

Question 21

Repeater

Answer 21

A special base station radio that receives messages and signals on one frequency and then automatically retransmits them on a second frequency

Question 22

Scanner

Answer 22

A radio receiver that searches or scans across several frequencies until the message is completed; the process is the repeated.

Question 23

Simplex

Answer 23

Single-frequency radio; transmissions can occurs in either direction but not simultaneously in both; when one party transmits, the other can only receive, and the party that is transmitting is unable to receive

Question 24

Standing orders

Answer 24

Written documents, signed by the EMS systems medical director, that outline specific directions, permissions, and sometimes prohibitions regarding patient care. Also called protocols

Question 25

Telemetry

Answer 25

A process in which electronic signals are converted into coded, audible signals; these signals can then be transmitted by radio or telephone to a receiver with a decoder at the hospital

Question 26

Therapeutic communication

Answer 26

Verbal and nonverbal communication techniques that encourage patients to express their feelings to achieve a positive relationship

Question 27

Trunking

Answer 27

Telecommunication systems that allow a computer to maximize utilization of a group of frequencies

Question 28

UHF

Answer 28

Ultra-high frequency radio between 300 and 3,000 MHz

Question 29

VHF

Answer 29

Very high frequency radio between 30 and 300 MHz; the VHF spectrum is further divided into high and low bands