Most people have heard about the life saving medication naloxone, better known as Narcan. What many have not heard about is the potential danger faced by the EMTs who administer it. Narcan is a drug used to reverse the effects of opioids, specifically the effects on breathing. When a person overdoses on opioids, such as heroin and some pain medications, their breathing slows and may even stop, potentially causing damage to their brain due to the lack of oxygen. Narcan reverses the opioid effects, allowing the person to breathe again, but also taking away the high. Some people who recover from the overdose too quickly become agitated and “come out swinging”. That is the danger EMTs face when administering Narcan. EMTs work in the
1Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opiate analgesic, which has a primary function in managing malignant and non-malignant contractible pain, similar to morphine however it is more potent. This is because fentanyl has an octanol-water partition of 9550 compared to morphine, which has 6. This effectively demonstrates that fentanyl is highly lipid soluble, crossing the blood brain barrier more rapidly. Hence it has a quicker reaction time but at a shorter duration compared to morphine. It is commonly used to treat patients with severe pain or patients experiencing pain after a surgery. Fentanyl can also be used to treat patients with chronic pain that are physically tolerant to opiates. Patients who are not physically tolerant to opiates should avoid the use of fentanyl as this can cause undesirable side effects, which can in some cases be toxic. Fentanyl is registered as a class II prescription drug, meaning that it has a greater potential for being abused, which could have negative implications on a patient’s health as it can result in psychological or physical dependence.1
and giving medicine and IVs. A RN makes sure the patient has knowledge of their situation and
Nitrous oxide is administered via a face mask and is used to take the edge off of your nerves. This form of sedation is great for uncomplicated procedures and for patients experiencing only mild levels of fear or anxiety. If you fall into this category, nitrous oxide sedation may be for you.
“Summary Report for: 29-2041.00 - Emergency Medical Technicians and Paramedic.” O*Net. 2008. Web. 18 Feb. 2010.
As a pain killer, morphine is used in hospitals around the United States for pain management and post-surgery. The main types of consumption is through smoking, snorting, rectal, I.V, orally, and through injection. A pump can also be used to administer the drug to the patient. Most times pumps are used in extreme cases of nerve disorders which usually entail a catheter being microscopically implanted into the spinal cord. The use of a pump is normally for pain management. Pumps are filled with a months or less supply of the drug, which is administered from the abdomen to the spinal area of pain. It basically numbs erratic nerve function and allows a normal life to be had by the patient. Morphine can also be us...
In a perfect world, violence, plane crashes floods and other disasters would not occur. Disease and illness would be non-existent. Emergency medical services would not have a basis for fruition. Unfortunately, the world is not perfect place. EMT's and other EMS workers are vital to all societies globally. According to the American College of Emergency Physicians, the definition of an emergency services is, " Emergency services are those health care services provided to evaluate and treat medical conditions of recent onset and severity that would lead a prudent layperson, possessing an average knowledge of medicine and health, to believe that urgent and/ or unscheduled medical care is required." The following pages will illustrate the struggles of an emergency medical technician and other emergency medical service workers.
As the quantity of patients expanded, it ought to have been obvious that one registered Nurse and one Licensed Practical Nurse were insufficient to look after the patients. The emergency department ought to be viewed as a high priority location, and should have staffed with more Registered Nurses; Licensed Practical Nurse essentially do not have the training and abilities to assess patients or delegate the workload. Dangerous actions such as moderate sedation on a patient with no supplemental oxygen or EKG observing. The patient seems to have been overmedicated, with insufficient time between medications to decide his actual level of
The main purpose of a rapid response team (RRT) is to prevent cardiac arrest and to take action before the patient stops breathing. Every facility has a set of criteria that indicates a patient’s condition is declining, and then at that point the nurse will activate the rapid response team. A nurse or a patient’s family member can activate the RRT if the patient has an acute change in heart rate, acute change in systolic blood pressure, acute change in respiratory rate, acute drop in O2 saturation, acute change in mental status, major drop in urine output, new, repeated, or prolonged seizures, fractional inspired oxygen of 50% or greater, ...
Naloxone is an opioid antagonist which is designed to quickly reverse an opioid overdose. The medication binds to the opioid receptors and prevent other opioids from reaching them. It has the potential to reverse and block the effects of opioids and rapidly restore normal respiration to an individual whose breathing has stopped or slowed
Morphine is a medication that is designed to alleviate moderate to severe pain. It works by altering the way that the body responds to pain. Morphine is a type of opiate. Morphine is available by prescription only.
There is no way one would talk about suboxone without its main component which is buprenorphine. Buprenorphine is a secondary form of the opioid alkaloid Thebaine. It has a chemical structure of C_29 H_41 〖NO〗_4. It acts differently depending on the activation site or receptor it is located. It works at mu and kappa opioid receptors as an agonist and at the delta opioid receptor as an antagonist. As a derivative of Thebaine, it is a stronger and longer-lasting painkiller compared to morphine. It proved to be more effective than morphine, when used in a comparably small dose.
...the patient’s safety, gathering supplies needed and checking if equipment needed are working, setting up the sterile field, maintaining its sterility, and completing all the documents. Hamlin (2010) further states that RNs may be required to provide emotional support during the induction phase of anaesthesia.
A Rapid Response Team (RRT) is a group of healthcare providers that are called upon when a patient is showing signs of rapid deterioration due to cardiac or respiratory problems. One of the concepts of a RRT is to provide the fastest response possible to an emergent situation, allowing any healthcare employee, being a patient care assistant, nurse, medical technician, or unit coordinator, to call a rapid response if a patient is suspected of going into cardiac arrest or any life-threating situation. By providing a RRT to a hospital, the risk of a serious adverse event is decreased. A serious adverse event is when there is a delay in medical care to a patient that increases risk of death or disability (Jones, 2011)
EMT and Paramedics have an important job in saving lives of millions of people. As part of their job they must respond to 9-11 calls in cases of emergencies, such as emergency medical assistance like (CPR) cardiopulmonary resuscitation, bandaging a wound, or if a someone needs to be rushed to an Hospital for immediate care. An EMT/Paramedic must transport a patient safely while one drives an ambulance and another keeps check of the patient’s vital sign and additional care, but if a patient is critically ill or injured they need to be transported by helicopter. Also to transport a patient to another medical facility for certain treatment that the facility specializes in or long-term care like Nursing homes. In this job field there are three levels of EMTs and Paramedics. First is EMT or EMT-Basic in which they access
Our home, though seemingly safe, you need to have an adequate stock of supplies in the first aid kit in a place accessible without any difficulty. The longer you take to locate the first aid kit can make a huge difference in complicating the injuries.