Special Challenges
A permanent surgical opening in the neck that some patients breathe through.
What is a stoma?
The nine phases of an ambulance call begin with this phase, before the call even comes in.
What is preparation?
The EMT's number-one priority at any rescue or extrication scene.
What is safety?
The standardized system used to organize resources and command at any incident.
What is the incident management system (ICS)?
The acronym for the categories of terrorist weapons.
What is CBRNE?
The term for a feeding tube placed directly into the stomach through the abdominal wall.
What is a gastrostomy tube (G-tube)?
The dangerous area around the ambulance where a driver cannot see, requiring a spotter when backing.
What is a blind spot?
The type of access that requires tools to force open doors or windows.
What is complex (forcible) access?
The single person in overall charge of an incident.
Who is the incident commander?
The zones at a hazmat/terrorism scene: hot, warm, and this outermost one.
What is the cold zone?
This the device that handles the functions of the left ventricle. We transport these patients to MUSC.
What is a left ventricular assist device (LVAD)?
This is the method by which you kill pathogenic agents by directly applying a chemical made for that purpose to a surface or equipment.
What is disinfection?
Confined space, water, and trench rescues require this specially trained group.
What is a technical rescue team?
The process of sorting multiple patients by the severity of their injuries.
What is triage?
The process of removing hazardous substances from patients and responders.
What is decontamination (decon)?
You will be unable to palpate this when assessing a patient with an LVAD.
What is a pulse?
These are the two most dangerous phases of air medical transport.
What are takeoff and landing?
This is the 'E' in the FAILURE mnemonic.
What is equipment not mastered?
A common START triage tag color meaning the patient needs immediate care.
What is red (immediate)?
The type of chemical agent, like sarin.
What is a nerve agent?
In patients with epilepsy, this device can be used to help control seizures if medication has not proven effective.
What is a Vagus nerve stimulator?
When marking an area as a landing zone for a helicopter, the provider needs to mark off an area this large.
What is 100ft by 100ft?
This is your ability to understand and react to threats around you.
What is situational awareness?
This the triage process used to triage pediatric patients.
What is JumpSTART?
This agency provides key technical information to responders who respond to an incident involving a chemical spill.
What is CHEMTREC?