& Answers
Differentiate between medical emergencies and trauma emergencies, remembering that
some patients may have both. (p 561) - answer Trauma Emergencies: injuries
resulting from physical forces applied to the body
Medical Emergencies: involve illnesses or conditions caused by disease
Name the various categories of common medical emergencies and give examples. (p
561) - answer Respiratory: Asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis
Cardiovascular: Heart attack, congestive heart failure
Neurologic: seizure, stroke, syncope
Gastrointestinal: appendicitis, diverticulitis, pancreatitis
Urologic: kidney stones
Endocrine: diabetes mellitus
Hematologic: Sickle cell disease, hemophilia
Immunologic: anaphylactic reaction
Toxicologic: substance abuse, food, plant, or chemical poisoning
Psychiatric: Alzheimer disease, schizophrenia, depression
Gynecologic: Vaginal bleeding, STI,
Describe the evaluation of the nature of illness (NOI). (p 562) - answer Medical
patient assessment focuses on:
The Nature of Illness (NOI)
Symptoms
The patient's chief complaint
Discuss the assessment of a patient with a medical emergency. (pp 562-566) - answer
Rapid examination visual clues include:
Apparent unconsciousness, obvious severe bleeding, extreme difficulty breathing.
Use AVPU scale to determine patient's level of consciousness