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.
Where capnography can guide treatment in complex medical scenarios
Your willingness to provide pain management is a reflection of your ability to empathize with the patient
A verbal attack can be personal; here’s how to deflect the attack and minimize the damage
Thom Dick, a paramedic, caregiver and advocate for patients and providers, discusses his more than 40 years in EMS
New Jersey is the only state with a law requiring hospitals to accommodate brain dead patients who belong to a religion that does not accept the diagnosis as a final verdict for death
Triage is a cold and calculating decision; to make the correct decision, you have to subvert a bit of your humanity.
Doctors said her symptoms were stress related, until she returned with a recording of herself describing the numbness and slurred speech as it was happening
The new transport procedure recognizes the negative effects of long spine boards and says a cervical collar without immobilization is now acceptable
Receptionists turned her away when she asked them to call her an ambulance; she dug for her cell phone outside the clinic
The patient had a blood clot, and filed a complaint after the crew stopped for the pair because they were on a dangerous road
The PIC arrived on scene, took one look at my superstar c-spine and started laughing. “Kid,” he said, “You’re gonna make one hell of a medic!”
There is nothing like doing a trauma assessment in heels and heading to your EMT basic graduation late, with bloody knees
You arrive on scene to find staff performing CPR; what are your priorities during this resuscitation?
Read the response and add your own thoughts in the comments
The lawsuit may be a bunch of crapola, but you need to take precautions to make sure it goes away as fast as it comes up
She eventually died from a closed head wound; her husband questions if her life could have been saved had the EMT not determined she was DOA
The $3.1M lawsuit says she suffered brain damage after doctors let hours pass before treating her with clot-busting medication, and instead gave her Ativan
Medics can use a new sensor and app to get ECG data on-the-fly from electrical impulses in patients’ fingertips
Atrial fibrillation is the most common arrhythmia to affect our health; recognize and treat the symptoms
Her heart rate is rapid, her skin clammy and she’s having trouble breathing — what’s your diagnosis?
He made the 27-year-old walk to the ambulance and his injuries, which included a broken back, 12 broken ribs and brain damage were not discovered until arriving at the hospital
It can be frustrating to follow procedures when you think a patient is faking an illness, but your career is worth it
A race volunteer and EMT in another city rushed over and didn’t feel a pulse; he’s concerned medics didn’t start CPR but they say she did have a pulse
Understanding the difference can sometimes make all the difference
I’m holding his hands in mine, and quietly telling him to squeeze; I do not need to be a mind reader to know what he is thinking
Police have Tasers ready for an agitated man pacing back and forth and sweating — what’s your treatment plan?
Police have tasers ready for an agitated man pacing back and forth and sweating — what’s your course of action?
Responders at the scene started to feel nauseated, and a faulty pipe was blamed for the leak that killed a restaurant manager
A service animal can be a great help to responders as well as the client — as long as you know the tasks it’s been trained on
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