5 important EMT responsibilities

Wondering what the most important tasks are on an EMTs list of responsibilities? Here's a list of the top five:

1. One of the most critical EMT responsibilities is assessing the medical needs of the sick or injured. This must be done quickly and efficiently, especially in serious life or death situations when a minute lost can mean the difference between saving someone or not.

In order to provide an accurate assessment, an EMT must remain composed enough to draw upon his or her training and experience. Sometimes making an assessment is relatively easy. An example would be when a child has fallen and broken their arm. The EMT stabilizes the broken bone, checks for shock or any other injuries and transports the child to the hospital so the bone can be x-rayed and set.

A more difficult assessment would be a car crash where multiple people are injured. Then, the EMT must decide who is in the most dire need of help and administer aid to save that person before responding to the others.

2. Another one of the top EMT responsibilities involves taking vital signs of the sick or injured. The first of the basic vital signs is level of consciousness (LOC). Is the patient conscious or unconscious? Are they awake and able to communicate? To they respond to physical stimulation? The second vital sign is respiration. Are they breathing? If not, swift intervention must occur to save them. Is their breathing weak or labored and rasping? This can indicate their condition.

The next step is to take their pulse to see if their heart is still pumping blood through their veins. If no pulse, immediate steps must be taken to restart the heart beating. The condition of the patient's skin is another vital sign. Color is important. Are they flushed, jaundiced, pale or bluish? What is their skin temperature – hot, cold or clammy? Dry or heavily perspiring? These can indicate their condition and guide the EMT toward a medical assessment. Their pupils are another vital sign. Dilated or restricted? How do they respond to light? Blood pressure is also a vital sign. If their blood pressure is extremely high or low, measures must be taken to remediate.

3. Taking a SAMPLE history is another of the top five important EMT responsibilities. SAMPLE stands for:
S – Signs and symptoms
A – Allergies
M – Medications
P – Pertinent past medical history
L – Last oral intake
E – Events leading to injury/illness

4. Properly moving patients is also one of the most important EMT responsibilities. EMTs must always lift and carry patients in a manner that insures their safety. They must also take steps to insure their own safety and avoidance of injury. Proper lifting and moving methods include using at least two people, making sure the patient is properly strapped into the stretcher, coordinating movements with the coworker and using the correct lifting techniques.

5. Maintaining composure in critical and stressful situations in another of the top EMT responsibilities. These can include mass casualty incidents, emotionally charged situations, the death of injury of children, incidents of violence or the death or injury of a friend, relative or coworker. An EMT must also realize when their mental state is affected by job stress and take appropriate actions to get help. Some of the indications of being overly stressed are insomnia, nightmares, anger, disorientation, panic attacks, depression, memory loss and increased alcohol use.