Post your assessment in the comment section below, and the person with the best answer will receive one of our exclusive EMS1 Challenge Coins!
You and your partner have just arrived back at your station when the telephone rings. Your dispatcher requests that you start en route to 537 West Main St. for a report of a fall. After getting into the ambulance and starting out the door, dispatch provides the following update:
“176 you are responding Priority 3 (non-emergent) on a 65-year-old female who fell in the bathtub. The front door is unlocked and family is on scene.”
You arrive at the residence and are met at the door by the patient’s daughter. She states that she came over to check on her mother and found her upstairs in the tub, unable to stand. The daughter says that her mother has difficulty standing for long periods of time and has been told by her doctor to use a shower chair, but does not.
As you walk into the bathroom, you find an obese woman seated in the bath tub. She says that she has been sitting in the same position for approximately three hours.
She reports that during her shower, her legs became tired and she fell to a seated position in a controlled manner. She denies any pain or other complaints and states that she simply wants help out of the tub.
As you proceed with the call think about the following questions:
- What are your concerns about this situation?
- What are some potential diagnoses for this patient?
- What are your next steps?
Post your answers below in the comments.
