Exercises in the ambulance - Essay Example

Topic:  Exercises in the ambulance Instructions: COMPULSORY PORTFOLIO ACTIVITY qualities and Paramedic practice Instructions Write down the 7 student skills/ qualities listed below. 2. Under each of the 7 headings, write down ‘specific examples of how this skill might be useful for you in the future when you are a paramedic and why’ (explain by using day to day examples in the life of a paramedic). Persistence. Since I might be the only one caring for the patient on the trip to hospital (or other medical facility), and since I therefore need to know a wise-range of emergency treatments, I need to be persistent in my studies and aim to constantly keep up my knowledge in emergency techniques.

Motivation. I might be faced with unpleasant situations, such as dealing with a wound from a gunshot or resuscitating a critically ill patient. I would need to be thoroughly and constantly motivated in order to best deal with these situations, particularly considering that an emergency demands that I be in top form.Organization. Organization is important for a paramedic. When you are organized then you can treat patients more quickly. For example: When arriving at the accident spot where 2 people have been involved in an accident, I am first on the spot therefore need to quickly assess the situation and what I can best do to help.

I need to determine whom is the most hurt and in which places in order to know who to treat first and who gets treated last. Organization helps keep me and others (my patients or assistant) calm, as well as helping me focus on the most important tasks.Using support: A person’s injuries might sometimes be life threatening. I might not have time to transport him or her to hospital, making it necessary that I conduct the required life-interventions on the spot. This might be traumatic for me, or the person might die despite my greatest efforts.

These and other instances would make it easier for me to have a supervisor and/ or teacher that would assist me (someone whom I can talk cases over with) and family and friends whom I can share the pain with.Realistic expectations – Since I am the ‘doctor on the go’ and perhaps the only one in the situation, I must be prepared to deal with any possible situation. This could involve: CPR, assisting with childbirth, or using EKGs or X-ray devices.Reflect on their experience. Experience helps me become more confident and relaxed about my work.

On the other hand, if I become too confident I might become too smug and make mistakes, therefore, it would help me to always reflect on situations that have occurred and ask myself where I did well and how I can do better.Time commitment. The human brain starts dying after 4 minutes without O2 so if paramedics are late, patient may die. I therefore have to be focused on the preciousness of time in order to do well.COMPULSORY ACTIVITY 2: Types of thinking and the Paramedic job role As you progress through your course you will encounter a variety of learning and assessment strategies that are aimed at developing each of the different types of thinking listed above.

Can you think of ways in which these different types of thinking might be important to a paramedic in carrying out their job role? Under each of the headings below write down a specific example to illustrate/demonstrate each one (your examples should come from daily paramedic practice). Strategic thinking. This means that I need to consider the entire situation; who can be most helped in this case. For example: More than 40 cases in same accident means disaster. Paramedics aid by using the 60 sec rule in triage.

The 60 sec rule means helping those who have the most chance to survive. Critical thinking. Sometimes a family might think that the patient needs emergency care. The ambulance crew has carried out initial observations and asks the paramedic for further patient assessment in order to make final decision. Patient has noisy breathing and complains of shortness of breath. Crew and family are apprehensive, but paramedic using critical thinking might also wonder whether this were not due to anxiety (that patient is simply afraid) and that by talking to her and claming her he breathing might be improved.

Analytical thinking Paramedic finds his patient unconscious and realized that close to him his insulin injection is empty so he checked the patient glycaemia.Creative thinking. A heavily bleeding patient needs instant care and cannot be moved to the ambulance. In the frenzy, paramedic cannot find enough bandages in his case. A creative plan would be to rip off his own coat and press it tightly against patient’s wound.Consequential thinking This thinking contains both positive and negative effect of action.

Such as paramedic who is going to help patient who has bitten by insect but this patient has severe allergic from medication, so paramedic can be careful with patient and give him a smaller dose to avoid respiratory problems or cardiac arrest problemsReflexive thinking. Constantly thinking about my beliefs and assumptions. Learning from experience. The news today (3/24/2010) was that a man died after ten 911 calls were not answered. I might learn from that news to value time better and be faster in my responses.