2. Allergy, immune response and anaphylaxis – May 2015 The human body has a number of defence mechanisms to protect itself against the outside world. The skin, coughing and sneezing form one outer level of barrier. Inevitably some things get in […]
Continue Reading1. Circulation, pulse and blood pressure – May 2015 Circulation refers to the movement of blood throughout the body to supply oxygen, sugar and other essential nutrients to the cells and then remove any waste product afterward. This is sometimes referred […]
Continue Reading40. Aged or frail? – May 2015 There isn’t a whole lot that can be said to be going for getting old. The one thing anyone has that is undeniable though when they get old is that not everybody has […]
Continue Reading12. What if doing nothing is what is needed? May 2015 I eyed the others in the room slowly then looked back to the patient. She was only in her sixties but looked older than that. Secondary and terminal cancer […]
Continue Reading39. Diastolic heart failure and HOCM – May 2015 A frequent question that arises in the management of suspected cardiac chest pain or acute pulmonary oedema is what if the problem is due to a diastolic problem and not a […]
Continue Reading5. Technology & mechanical assisted cardiopulmonary resuscitation – May 2015 Resuscitation of the patient in cardiac arrest is at the very core of all emergency clinical guidelines and first aid courses. There is no question that over the years there […]
Continue ReadingMeningococcal infection – May 2015 Meningococcal infections are deservedly amongst the most concerning of all in Australia. The bacteria that causes it, Neisseria meningitides, or meningococcus to its friends, is difficult to pass on and uncommonly problematic. But when it […]
Continue Reading33. Writing a clinical practice guideline – May 2015 Paramedics frequently believe they have an idea that will be better clinical practice than what they currently are doing. This stems from a mix of intelligent and educated practitioners, well read […]
Continue ReadingParamedic professionalism and moral quandaries – May 2015 The young girl before me was a mess. Her face swollen almost twice normal, a horrid abstract of blue, red and purple. If she was normally pretty, you couldn’t tell now. If […]
Continue Reading34. Perfusion assessment & management – May 2015 Patient assessment is critical in determining what management therapies need to be provided. Perfusion is part of vital sign assessment. To determine patient perfusion, a number of easy to measure evaluations are […]
Continue Reading4. Circulation drugs for pre-hospital emergencies – May 2015 What is an emergency responder without tools of the trade with which to render assistance? And when it comes to tools of the modern trade, what better than emergency drugs. And […]
Continue Reading35. Crashed vehicle rescue extrication – part 2 May 2015 In a small number of motor vehicle accidents the patient will be physically trapped and require some assistance to be freed. In the simplest terms, freeing the patient will require […]
Continue Reading28. Crashed vehicle rescue extrication – May 2015 One of the most stereotypical pre-hospital emergency responses is to a motor vehicle crash. The variety of presentations ranges from a single car to multiple vehicles including trucks, trains or buses. Patients can […]
Continue Reading26. The patient has unnatural rhythm – ACS and the ECG – May 2015 Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) can cause a number of ECG changes. These can be used to help identify an acute coronary syndrome along with patient history […]
Continue Reading32. Acute spinal injury – May 2015 Acute spinal injury can be one of the most debilitating traumatic injuries. Just as there can be a challenge identifying when trauma to the head is serious, so too can working out what […]
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