EMS Protocol of the Week - Decompression Sickness (Adult and Pediatric)

Weather's getting nicer, which makes it the perfect time for underwater adventures and the mayhem they may bring! The prehospital approach to decompression sickness mainly takes the form of recognizing the signs and symptoms and transporting to the closest hyperbaric center as appropriate (see the previously discussed list of specialty centers for reference). Don’t forget that companion divers should be transported in addition to the primary patient!

Anyone else a fan of these short emails? Plenty of info, without going…too deep? Hah!

www.nycremsco.org and the protocol binder, don’t forget!

Dave

EMS Protocol of the Week - Altered Mental Status (Adult and Pediatric)

Another protocol to have been affected by 2022 reformatting, the prehospital approach to AMS primarily addresses hypoglycemia at this point. Naloxone dosing, which was previously found under this protocol, is now under the Overdose protocol reviewed earlier in the year.

EMS must obviously be mindful of other etiologies of AMS (toxicologic, traumatic, behavioral, etc.) and manage appropriately, both in terms of patient care and overall scene safety. For patients with a change in mental status due to hypoglycemia, this protocol goes over a number of considerations for oral and parenteral management based on level of training and patient condition, all of which are worth reviewing.

Replete the sugar, is what it comes down to. Once again – short…and sweet? On a roll, here.

www.nycremsco.org and the protocol binder for more.

Dave

EMS Protocol of the Week - Bone and Joint Injuries (Adult and Pediatric)

A lot of the meat behind the protocol for bone and joint injuries was previously due to it being where to find the options for prehospital analgesia. Now that we have a dedicated pain management protocol, it’s since been thinned out a bit, but it’s still worth a skim for a review of assessment and stabilization of broken bones, as well as instructions for how to reduce a dislocated patella (if approved by OLMC – make sure they’re describing a patellar dislocation and not a knee dislocation!).

Have fun out there! www.nycremsco.org or the protocol binder for anything else you may…knee-d. Bye!

Dave