Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Flashcards

The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) assesses which three parameters?

Answer: Eye opening, verbal response, and motor response

The GCS scores eye opening (1-4), best verbal response (1-5), and best motor response (1-6), giving a total of 3-15; scores help quantify neurological function and guide management decisions.

A GCS score of 8 or less indicates the need for:

Answer: Definitive airway management (intubation)

A GCS of 8 or less indicates severe neurological compromise with inadequate protective airway reflexes, requiring definitive airway management — typically endotracheal intubation — to secure and protect the airway.

The 'SAMPLE' history mnemonic stands for:

Answer: Signs/symptoms, Allergies, Medications, Past medical history, Last meal, Events leading to incident

SAMPLE provides a structured secondary assessment history: Signs/symptoms, Allergies, current Medications, Past medical history, Last oral intake (meal), and Events or environment leading to the emergency.

In the pre-hospital setting, the maximum recommended on-scene time for a critical trauma patient is:

Answer: Less than 10 minutes (platinum 10 minutes)

The 'Platinum 10 Minutes' guideline aims to keep on-scene time under 10 minutes for critical trauma patients, limiting field interventions to essential life-saving measures before transport to definitive care.

Which position is appropriate for a responsive patient in shock with no suspected spinal injury?

Answer: Supine with legs elevated 10-15 degrees (modified Trendelenburg)

Modest leg elevation in a supine patient increases venous return from the lower limbs to the central circulation, supporting blood pressure in hypovolaemic shock without the respiratory compromise of steep Trendelenburg.

The 'mechanism of injury' assessment helps paramedics predict:

Answer: Likely injury patterns and guide physical examination priorities

Understanding the mechanism (e.g., high-speed MVA with ejection, fall from height, stab wound) allows paramedics to predict likely injury patterns and ensure systematic examination does not miss occult injuries.