Patient Assessment: Emergency Medical Technician

The Patient Assessment is one of if not the most important skill and tool in the in the career of an Emergency Medical Technician. EMS stands for Emergency Medical Services this is like the genus or the foundation and Paramedic, Advance Emergency Medical Technician (AEMT), and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) are like the spices. Each of these spices has different ranges of the skills they are allowed to perform but each one has to go through one common step and that is the Patient Assessment. There are five steps to the Patient Assessment those steps are Scene size-up, Primary assessment, History taking, Secondary assessment, and Reassessment.

Step One: Scene size-up
1. The first thing You should do when arriving on scene is to ensure

Assess the Airway and treat any life threats. In this step you will be looking to see if the patient has an open and adequate airway. If they have no airway you will have to look for the problem and fix it.
4. Assess Breathing. This is directly related to the Airway step but in this step you will be asking yourself questions like, Is the patient breathing? Are they breathing adequately? Is the patient hypoxic? If any problems arise you will need to treat them.
5. Assess Circulation. Does the patient have a pulse? Are they bleeding all over? What does their skin look like? Is it warm and pink or is it blue and clammy? Treat any problems that arise.
(Side Note: EMTs refer to the last three steps as their ABCs, these are the most important to assess in any medical situation and are always done is that order. )
6. Perform Primary Assessment. After making sure their ABCs are adequate you will do your primary assessment. You will examine the patients body for any life threats (this is a rapid assessment moving from the patients upper extremities to their

Obtain SAMPLE History. Signs and Symptoms. Allergies. Medications. Pertinent past medical history. Last oral intake. Events leading up to the injury or illness. Step Four: Secondary Assessment
1. Take the patient's vital signs using the appropriate monitoring device. Step Five: Reassessment
1. Repeat Primary Assessment.
2. Reassess Vitals. Looking for change.
3. Reassess Chief Complaint. Looking for change.
4. Identify and treat any changes in the patient's condition.
5. Reassess patient every 5 minutes if unstable and 15 if stable. The EMS system is evolving continually, ten years from now it could look completely different than what we see today. One thing, however, will always be there and that the Patient Assessment. This makes it possible for medical technicians to provide the best care and helps with ensuring first-rate continual care. When a Patient Assessment is performed correctly and adequately it improves the patient's situation