Triage Flashcards
Triage assumes that we have limited ______.
Resources
time, personnel, space, and supplies.
We must sort patients based on urgency so that the most critical patients are receiving those limited resources.
T/F: triage only occurs once when an animal presents to the hospital
false – we are constantly reevaluating patients and their triage status
how long should triage take?
60 seconds
which 3 major body systems should you be assessing briefly in your triage exam and why these 3 only?
heart
lungs
brain
because without these 3, you’d die immediately!
what 2 things should you be quickly assessing as a part of the neurological assessment of triage?
- mentation (normal, dull, stuporous, comatose, dead, demented)
- are they actively seizing?
________ mentation meanas responding to all stimuli but with less vigor than normal
dull
________ mentation means only responding to noxious stimuli
stuporous
_________ mentation means not responding to any stimuli at all.
comatose
_________ mentation means responding inappropriately to stimuli
demented
T/F: you do not need your stethoscope for triage
true
What 3 things are you assessing about the respiratory system during your triage?
- are they breathing?
- how is the effort?
- what is the rate?
What is the only piece of actual equipment you need to assess the cardiovascular system during triage?
thermometer which assess perfusion
What parameters can you assess quickly in your triage to evaluate perfusion in your patient?
- heart rate
- MM color
- CRT
- mentation
- temperature
- pulse quality
In dogs ________ heart rate is more concerning
tachycardic (>120)
higher may be ok if they are excited, happy, or agitated, so take context into consideration.
Cardiac output =
HR x SVR
BP =
CO x SVR
in cats ______ heart rate is more concerning.
bradycardic (<180)
cats become bradycardic in shock
where does the color of the mucous membranes come from?
hemoglobin
pink gums = oxyhemoglobin
blue gums = deoxyhemoglobin
brown gums = methemoglobin (damaged hemoglobin)
white gums = no hemoglobin
yellow gums = bilirubin (a byproduct of hemoglobin breakdown)
T/F: you should assume that a patient with pink gums have an appropriate pulse ox
false
what is a NORMAL CRT?
1-2 seconds
what CRT indicates vasodilation?
CRT < 1 sec
what CRT indicates vasoconstriction?
CRT > 2 seconds
How can mentation give you information about perfusion?
the brain needs oxygen and sugar (from the blood) to operate appropriately.
If a patient is not perfusing appropriately, the brain becomes deprived of these things and mentation is altered.
You should treat the perfusion FIRST, then reassess mentation
T/F: the worse the mentation, the more urgently a patient should be seen and treated.
true
which temperature extreme are we MOST concerned about in our patients?
hypothermia
when we are cold, we vasoconstrict and vasoconstricting will make us cold.
What are the 3 pulse qualities?
- normal
- weak
- bounding
T/F: respiratory distress requires urgent intervention
true
T/F: triage is about severity of the disease, not urgency of the intervention
false – opposite.
