Patient Assessment
Patient assessment is the process an EMT or paramedic follows to evaluate an injured or ill patient. The process includes a scene size-up, which is the identification and mitigation of risks, a primary assessment to find and fix life threats and a secondary assessment to perform a focused history and physical exam of the patient. Each step is an opportunity to collect information that will guide treatment and inform a transport decision. In the EMS1 Patient Assessment topic find the latest news about patient assessment and top resources to improve your patient assessment skills.
Explore how alpha and beta receptors within the autonomic nervous system regulate vital involuntary functions and respond to stressors
Diabetic ketoacidosis calls are rising — are your skills ready for the spike?
Drs. Christine Carico and Matt Levy reveal why lifesaving blood transfusions remain rare in EMS care — and what needs to change to save more lives
Avoiding anchoring bias in EMS by balancing speed with safety
A red-flag approach to identifying true emergencies and treating patients with compassion
Goose Creek Fire Department has added nitrous oxide/oxygen systems to its scope of pain management
Revamped triage criteria streamline decision making and relieve the burden on hospital systems
Approach the patient with an intentional primary and secondary survey to avoid letting painful and gruesome wounds distract from life-threatening injuries
Ashley Summers’ brother said she drank approximately 4 bottles of water over 20 minutes and was feeling lightheaded
Nine interactive scenarios designed to enhance your understanding of seizures, strokes and common acute patient presentations
Learn how leprosy presents in patients and how providers can protect themselves when treating someone suffering from the condition
The University of Birmingham team will evaluate saliva, blood and urine samples in those with suspected stroke
A language barrier led to the initial call being dispatched as a medical emergency at a Milford construction site
Helicopters transported 2 patients from the Holliston house explosion to trauma centers in Boston
LAFD firefighters had to extricate three people from the car after it crashed into the camp
Residents reported an explosion in the Newark Housing Authority building that led to the collapse
At least 25 patients were transported to local hospitals after a second-floor deck at a Billings country club collapsed
30 backup batteries for MRI machines had begun “off-gassing,” creating a hazmat incident in the Tampa facility
At least 4 patients were flown to hospitals from the I-70 crash near Highland
Ladders and ropes were used to remove some passengers in the Manhattan bus collision
Medical helicopters flew 5 teens to Memorial Hermann hospital in Houston
Synchronized and unsynchronized electrical cardioversions are safe and effective in the prehospital environment
EMTs, paramedics and firefighters have a responsibility to identify fall hazards and share prevention tips with patients and at the public events we host
Laguna Beach theater students used their makeup, costume skills to play the part of patients for EMT students
First responders in Sacramento arrived to find a total of 11 patients with serious injuries
Human metapneumovirus has many of the same symptoms as COVID and RSV
The next time you encounter a patient for which your clinical impression is “excited delirium,” remember that the treatment you render isn’t to treat the delirium
“Their clinical assessment assumed that the agonal respiration the patient took was the same as being apneic,” said Clearwater Fire & Rescue Chief Scott Ehlers
Karen Owens shares insider tips for training to treat pediatric athletic injuries, some of which may surprise you
Should we be using midazolam instead of morphine in congestive heart failure?
Some have been moving toward citing the causes that can contribute to such deaths, including police restraint, drug use and medical conditions
Another tool in the diagnostician’s briefcase
Watch as EMS clinicians respond to an allergic reaction at, of all places, an allergy clinic
