EMT Basic · Chapter 15 · Review · Chapter track
Medical Overview
Referencing the content of EMT-Basic training and emergency patient care
Learning objectives (6)
Define infectious disease and communicable disease — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 604); confirm wording in your course copy.
Describe the evaluation of the nature of illness (NOI) — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 604); confirm wording in your course copy.
Differentiate between medical emergencies and trauma emergencies, remembering that some patients may have both — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 604); confirm wording in your course copy.
Discuss the assessment of a patient with a medical emergency — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 604); confirm wording in your course copy.
Explain the importance of transport time and destination selection for a medical patient — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 604); confirm wording in your course copy.
Name the various categories of common medical emergencies and provide examples — Knowledge/skills objective (printed page 604); confirm wording in your course copy.
Chapter web resources
Optional reading from authoritative sites. Your textbook remains the primary source for this course.
- MedlinePlus medical emergencies · NIH
General medical emergency overview
- CDC emergency preparedness · CDC
Public health emergency context
When sources disagree (5 topics to verify before you teach from this chapter alone)
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Vocabulary · 11
Sign
An objective finding — something the provider can observe, measure, or palpate (e.g., a blood pressure or skin color).
SourceMerriam-Webster Medical Dictionary — Sign (medical)
Symptom
A subjective experience the patient reports — pain, nausea, dizziness — that cannot be directly measured by the provider.
SourceMerriam-Webster Medical Dictionary — Symptom
Acute
Of sudden onset and short duration.
SourceMerriam-Webster Medical Dictionary — Acute
Chronic
Persisting over a long time or recurring frequently.
SourceMerriam-Webster Medical Dictionary — Chronic
Etiology
The cause or origin of a disease.
SourceMerriam-Webster Medical Dictionary — Etiology
Pathophysiology
The study of how disease processes alter normal body functions.
SourceMerriam-Webster Medical Dictionary — Pathophysiology
Generalized symptom
A complaint affecting the whole body — fatigue, fever, weakness.
SourceAAOS — Emergency Care and Transportation of the Sick and Injured, 12e — Generalized vs. focal symptoms
Focal symptom
A complaint localized to a specific body region or organ system.
SourceAAOS — Emergency Care and Transportation of the Sick and Injured, 12e — Generalized vs. focal symptoms
Comorbidity
An additional disease or condition occurring at the same time as a primary condition.
SourceNIH MedlinePlus — Multiple chronic conditions
Prognosis
The expected outcome or course of a disease or condition.
SourceMerriam-Webster Medical Dictionary — Prognosis
Differential diagnosis
The list of possible conditions that could account for a patient's signs and symptoms.
SourceNIH MedlinePlus — Differential diagnosis
Sequences · 2
- Working up a medical complaint — Order the EMT's information gathering for a medical patient.
- Acute vs. chronic onset triage thinking — Order these onset descriptions from most acute to most chronic.