Midterm Review Flashcards
Prehospital Care
Emergency medical treatment given to patients before they are transported to a hospital or other facility
The modern EMS system got its start from which document?
1966 “The white paper” Accidental death and disability: The neglect of modern society
4 levels of pre-hospital care providers.
- Emergency Medical Responder
- Emergency Medical Technician
- Advanced EMT
- Paramedic
Medical Director
The physician who is legally responsible for the clinical and patient care aspects of the EMS system.
Medical Oversight
A comprehensive term for the responsibilities fo the EMS system’s medical director.
On-Line Medical Direction
When an EMS provider and physician communicate by cell phone, radio, or video technology with the physician providing immediate feedback regarding the patient’s diagnosis, condition, and emergency care.
Off-Line Medical Direction
A set of predetermined, written guidelines, often referred to as standing orders, that allow EMT’s to use their judgment to administer emergency medical care without having to contact a physician.
5 emotional stages of grief
Denial Anger Bargaining Depression Acceptance
Cleaning
The process of washing a soiled object with soap and water.
Disinfecting
Includes hospital-grade disinfectant or germicide to kill many but not all of the microorganisms on a surface.
Sterilization
The process that kills all microorganisms on the surface of an object.
Acute Stress Reaction
A person’s acute reaction to a stressful situation.
Delayed Stress Reaction
Signs and symptoms of stress that are not immediately evident. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a typical delayed stress reaction.
Cumulative Stress Reaction
“Burnout” - the result of constant exposure to stressful situations that build overtime.
Standard Precautions
The process of protecting yourself from disease transmission through exposure to blood and other body fluids.
Pathogen
A microorganism that causes disease.
What is the most effective way to reduce the spread of an infection?
Hand- Washing
Communicable Disease
A disease that can spread from person to person.
Scope of Practice
The actions and care that EMTs are legally allowed to perform by the state in which they are providing emergency medical care.
Standard of Care
The care that is expected to be provided by an EMT with similar training when managing a patient in a similar situation.
Duty to Act
The legal obligation to provide service.
Negligence
A tort in which there is no intent to do any harm to the patient but in which a breach in the duty to act occurred.
Battery
The act of touching a patient unlawfully without his/her consent.
Assault
A willful threat to inflict harm on a patient, which can occur without actually touching the patient.
Informed Conset
Informing a patient of the care to be provided and the associated risks and consequences, prior to rendering emergency medical care.
Expressed Consent
A patient informed of the treatment verbally or non-verbally expresses their consent.
Implied Consent
Obtaining consent through assuming that a patient who is unresponsive or unable to make rational decision would consent to emergency medical care if they could.
Involuntary Consent
Patient who does not have the legal right to determine his or her own medical care..
Prehospital Care Report
Documentation that is written or electronically generated record of the patient and the care they received.
5 Functions of a PCR
- Continuity of medical care
- Administrative Uses or billing purposes
- Legal Document to be used in court
- Educational and Research Uses
- Evaluation and Continuous Quality Improvement.
Pertinent Negative
Signs and symptoms that might be expected, but the patient denies having.
Base Station
Dispatch or coordination area that is ideally in contact with all other elements of the system.
Mobile Radios
Vehicle-mounted devises used to communicate within the EMS system. Capable of transmitting over a 10-15 mile range with low power transmission capabilities.
Portable Radios
Radios used when you are out of your vehicle; have a very limited range.
Repeaters
A device that receives transmissions from a relatively low-powered source and rebroadcasts them at another frequency and higher power.
Cell phones
Used as a back-up communication device to the radio
Pros: Excellent sound quality, availability of channels, and easy maintenance.
Cons: ineffective in disaster situations
Emergency Medical Dispatcher
Specially trained personnel who take calls at PSAP and facilitate the dispatch of emergency resources. They also provide instructions for lifesaving emergency care.
Body Mechanics
The safes and the most efficient method of using your body to gain a mechanical advantage.
4 principles of body mechanics
- Keep the weight of the object as close to your body as possible.
- Lift with your leg, hip, and gluteal muscles.
- Stack your hips, shoulders, and feet.
- Reduce the height or distance through which the object must be moved.
Emergency Move
A move used when there is immediate danger to the patient or to the rescuer.
Urgent Move
A move used when the patient is suffering from an immediate life threat.
Non-Urgent Move
A move used when there is no immediate threat to life to the patient or the rescuer.
Prone
Face Down Position
Supine
Lying flat on the back
Lateral Recumbent Position
“Recovery Position”- Patient lying on his left or right side.
Anatomical Position
The patient standing erect, facing forward, with arms down at the sides and palms facing forward.
Fowler’s Position
Patient lying on their back with their upper body elevated at a 45 - 60 degree angle.
Semi-Fowlers Position
Patient is lying on their back with their upper body elevated at less than a 45 degree angle.
Minute Volume or Minute Ventilation
The amount of air moved in and out of the lungs in 1 minute.
Tidal Volume
The amount of air moved in and out of the lungs with 1 breath.
Cardiac Output
The amount of blood the heart pumps out in 1 minute.
Stroke Volume
The amount of blood ejected from the left ventricle with 1 beat.
What 2 molecules are necessary for normal cell metabolism?
Oxygen and Glucose
Neonate
Birth to 1 month
Infant
1 month to 1 year
Toddler
1 year to 3 years old
Preschool age child
3 years to 5 years old
School age child
6-11 years old
Adolescents
12-18 years old
Early Adulthood
20-40 years old
Middle Adulthood
40-60 years old
Late Adulthood
60 years or older
Internal Respiration
The exchange of oxygen and glucose with the bodies tissues.
External Respiration
The exchange of oxygen and glucose at the alveolar-capillary membrane.
Systolic Blood Pressure
The amount of pressure exerted on the walls of the arteries when the heart contracts.
Diastolic Blood Pressure
The amount of pressure exerted on the walls of the arteries when the heart is relaxed.
Ventilation
The mechanical process of moving air in and out of the lungs.
What substance or molecule is responsible for a healthy individual’s stimulus for breathing?
Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
Which type of patient’s are at risk for developing the hypoxic drive?
COPD patients
What are the by-products of aerobic metabolism?
CO2, H2O, and Heat.
What are the by-products of anaerobic metabolism?
Lactic Acid
What are the three different types of muscle and where are they found?
- Skeletal Muscle (Voluntary Muscles)
- Smooth Muscle (Blood Vessels, Bronchioles, & Intestines)
- Cardiac Muscle (Heart)
What are the two heart rhythms the AED is designed to shock?
Ventricular Tachycardia (VTAC) and Ventricular Fibrillation (V-Fib)
Brain cells will die in how many minutes without oxygen?
4-6 minutes
Which cardiac condition should avoid getting aspirin?
Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA)
What is the maximum distance and EMT should reach in front of their body?
15-20 inches
To whom is an EMT allowed to transfer care?
To equal or higher level of care.
Thrombus
Blood-Clot
List the cardiac conduction system in order.
SA Node (Pacemaker) Atria Internodal Pathways AV Node Bundle of HIS Purkinje Fibers
SA Node
Sinoatrial Node or “Primary Pacemaker”
Automaticity
A trait only found in cardiac muscle. The hearts ability to generate it’s own electrical impulse.
Veins
Blood vessels that carry blood back toward the heart.
Arteries
Blood vessels that carry blood away from the heart.
Capillaries
Thin blood vessels that are best suited for gas and nutrient exchange. Capillaries connect arterioles to venules.
Arterioles
Small arteries
Venules
Small veins
Apnea
Not or no breathing
Dyspnea
Difficulty breathing
What should you look for in a General Impression?
Age, sex, chief complaint, level of distress, & position
Wheezing
Lower airway sound- high pitched, musical, whistling sound.
Indicates: Bronchoconstriction
Crackles/Rales
Lower airway sound- bubbly or crackling sounds heard during inhalation
Indicates: Fluid in the airway (ex. pulmonary edema)
Rhonchi
Lower airway sound- thick, rattling noises heard on auscultation
Indicates: mucus in the airway
Respiratory Arrest
Complete cessation or stoppage of breathing.
Respiratory Failure
The tidal volume or respiratory rate is inadequate and can no longer provide adequate oxygenation to the cells.
Respiratory Distress
Increase respiratory effort resulting from impaired breathing, while the tidal volume and respiratory rate are still adequate.
4 categories of shock
- Hypovolemic
- Distributive
- Cardiogenic
- Obstructive
Hypovolemic Shock
Shock that is caused by low blood volume
- Hemorrhagic shock
- Non-hemorrhagic shock
- Burn Shock
Distributive Shock
Shock that is caused due to massive systemic vasodilation.
- Septic Shock
- Anaphylactic Shock
- Neruogenic Shock
Cardiogenic Shock
Shock caused by ineffective pump function.
Obstructive Shock
Shock caused by a condition that obstructs forward blood flow.
Fontanelles
The “soft spot” on an infant’s head where the bony plates of the skull have not yet fused together. Useful assessment tool for dehydration and increased intracranial pressure.
Mechanism of Injury
The forces and factors that cause a traumatic injury. How a patient was injured.
Nature of Illness
The type of medical condition or complaint a patient suffers from.
Drug Action
The effect the drug has on the body
Contraindications
Situations in which the drug should not be administered.
Indications
The direct therapeutic benefit derived from the administration of the drug.
Side Effects
Actions that are not desired and that occur in addition to the desired therapeutic effect.
Common medication names for an MDI
Albuterol
Levalbuterol
Proventil
Ventolin
Baseline Vital Signs
The first set of measurements you take.
How do you protect yourself in a refusal situation?
- Conduct a thorough physical assessment
- Try to persuade the patient
- Determine if patient has capacity to understand
- Consult medical direction
- Document thoroughly
Do Not Resuscitate Order (DNR)
A legal document or order that most often governs resuscitation issues only.
Durable Power of Attorney
Designates a person who is legally empowered to make health care decisions for the signer of the document if he/she is unable to do so for themselves.
Physician orders for life sustaining treatment (POLST)
Orders that identify the desired level of life-sustaining treatment in patients with a terminal or life-threatening illness who are not likely to survive.
Normal V/S: Neonate & Infant
RR = 30-60/min HR= 100-205 bpm SBP= > 60mmHg
