After completing this course, participants should be able to:
- Describe the role of the health care professional and the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system.
- Describe physical and mental preparations that are needed as a health care professional.
- Identify diseases that pose a risk of transmission to health care professionals and precautions to minimize transmission of such diseases.
- Describe your role in educating others about reducing risk factors of cardiovascular disease.
- Identify the links in the Chain of Survival and the role of the health care professional within the chain.
- Describe legal and ethical concerns that a health care professional may have to deal with.
- Understand the major components of the nervous, respiratory, and circulatory systems.
- Identify the normal breathing and pulse rates for adults, children, and infants.
- List conditions that can compromise respiration.
- Identify three medical conditions that can result from circulatory system failure.
- Describe your tasks at the scene of an emergency to ensure your personal safety and the safety of other rescuers and bystanders.
- Describe the steps taken during the initial patient assessment.
- Identify the steps to assess the patient’s level of responsiveness and the ABCs.
- Demonstrate how to position an unresponsive but breathing patient.
- Demonstrate how to position an unresponsive patient and open their airway.
- Demonstrate how to check for breathing and circulation in an unresponsive adult and child patient.
- Demonstrate how to deliver rescue breathing using mouth-to-mouth and mouth-to-barrier device methods.
- Discuss how to perform rescue breathing using mouth-to-nose and mouth-to-stoma methods.
- Demonstrate how to perform CPR on an adult and child patient.
- Identify causes and types of airway obstruction.
- Demonstrate how to manage an airway obstruction in a responsive adult or child patient.
- Demonstrate how to manage an airway obstruction in an unresponsive adult or child patient.
- Demonstrate how to properly open the airway for an unresponsive infant.
- Demonstrate how to perform rescue breathing for an infant.
- Demonstrate how to perform CPR for an infant.
- Demonstrate how to clear an obstructed airway in a responsive infant.
- Demonstrate how to clear an obstructed airway in an unresponsive infant.
- Identify situations in which suctioning may be used to resuscitate a patient.
- Describe how to properly use a suctioning device.
- Identify situations in which you would consider using an oral or nasal airway device.
- Demonstrate how to use various ventilation devices to minimize the risk of contamination.
- Describe how to use an automated external defibrillator (AED).
- Identify emergency situations that may present special challenges for the health care professional.
- Describe how to approach and manage a patient with a possible head or neck injury.
- Describe how to manage a near-drowning victim.
- Describe how to recognize and properly care for a patient with hypothermia.
- Identify the precautions you should take when approaching and caring for a patient who has been electrocuted.