Emergency Medical Dispatch - Glossary Terms

Abandonment - Answer Unilateral termination of a patient-caretaker relationship by the caretaker where an adequate replacement for that caretaker has not been provided when this action results in some preventable harm. Abrasion - Answer Scraping or rubbing away of a surface. It is usually the result of traumatic injury. ACE (Accredited Center of Excellence) - Answer Centers that have achieved compliance to the highest level of standards as set forth by the Academy's Twenty Points of Accreditation. ACLS (Advanced Cardiac Life Support) - Answer Unified standard of care for cardiac emergencies including drugs, intubation, and other invasive procedures. Acute - Answer Sharp, severe, or having rapid onset and short course; not chronic. ALS (Advanced Life Support) - Answer Intervention that utilizes cardiac monitoring, advanced airways, and pharmacology for the treatment of life-threatening emergencies. This term refers to care given prehospital or inhospital. AED (Automated External Defibrillator) - Answer A portable, computerized device that interprets cardiac rhythms, verbally coaches the user, and the advises shock (or no shock) for electrically correctable rhythms.