Vol.2-Ch.2 "Primary Assessment" Flashcards
What is the goal of the Primary Assessment?
To identify and correct immediate life threatening conditions of the PTs ABC’s
What is the basis of all prehospital emergency medical care?
The Primary Assessment
Immediately following the primary assessment what should you do?
Make your transport decision
What does the Primary Assessment consist of? (5)
- Forming general impression
- Stabilizing C-Spine (if necessary)
- Assessing baseline mental status (AVPU)
- Assessing and Managing ABC
- Determining priorities of care and transport
What is your first intuitive evaluation of your PT.
The general impression (Aka “your view from the door”)
What is the standard CPR ratio of compressions to breaths?
30 comps to 2 breaths
What is one of the first determinations you will make in a general impression?
Do they look dead or not dead
What are some factors about your PT that may effect your index of suspicion?
Age, Sex, Race
Which comes first: C-Spine Stabilization or Check Mental Status?
C-Spine comes first in trauma PTs especially when unconscious, looking around a lot, or after significant mechanism of injury.
What else can be done in a small child trauma PT to stabilize C-Spine apart from collar or manual stabilization?
You can place a towel or pad beneath their shoulders to help maintain alignment
When does pt assessment begin?
As soon as you approach the scene
What questions can you ask an Alert PT to see if they are oriented?
Person, Place, Time, Event
What is Decorticate postering?
Arms flexed, legs extended
What is Decerebrate postering?
Arms and legs extended
What type of movements should you look for in a PT that is responding to painful stimuli?
Is the response Purposeful (ex. they try to swat your hand away at the stimulated area) or Non-Purposeful (decorticate or decerebrate postering which would indicate serious brain injury)
What do you do to test painful stimuli?
Pinch fingernails or “horsebite” (pinch sensitive areas)
If oxygen drops below ____ give them O2 until they reach _____?
below 95; get them to 95-100%
What should you assume about an unconscious PTs airway?
They cannot maintain it and have no gag reflex
What are the 2 maneuvers to open a PTs airway? Which do you use if a C-Spine injury is suspected?
Head-Tilt/Chin-Lift or Jaw-Thrust ; Use Jaw-Thrust for injured C-Spine PTs
How do you assess a PTs airway?
Look for chest rise and fall while listening for quite airflow and free air movement
What is another term for a high pitched inspiratory screech?
Stridor
What is Stridor?
A high pitched INspiratory screech
What is Stridor a sign of?
Upper airway obstruction (foreign body, severe swelling, allergic reaction, or infection)
What should you do it you see poor air flow and suspect a foreign body movement? (3 actions in order)
- Chest thrusts (not abdominal)
- If 1 fails, remove object under direct laryngoscopy with Magill forceps
- If 2 fails, go for endotracheal tube and either go past it (prefered) or push object into right mainstem bronchus so that the left and ventilate
If patients present with Anaphylaxis, what should be administered to decrease upper airway swelling so that proper ventilation can occur?
Vasoconstrictor medication (Epinephrine)
Respiratory Burns can cause ____ and require ____?
Rapid massive swelling of upper airway ; require a quick endotracheal tube before airway completely closes
What is wheezing?
A softer EXpiratory whistle
What is another term for a soft EXpiratory whistle?
Wheezing
What does wheezing indicate?
A lower airway restriction (often with asthma and is treated with albuterol or ipratroprium)
If PT has a pulse (no need for chest compressions) but not moving air what should you do?
Provide ventilation with a bag-valve-mask and O2
How many bag rescue breaths should you give and how should you squeeze the bag/look for when doing so?
You give 2 rescue breaths, each over 1 second per squeeze, with enough volume to make the chest rise
How many ventilations should you give an adult PT per minute? (W/BVM)
10-12