Emergency Medical Patients: Assessment, Care, and Transport

Features

For courses in Adult Medical Emergencies.

EMPACT (Emergency Medical Patients: Assessment, Care & Transport) offers a practical approach to common medical emergencies. Formerly published as AMLS (Advanced Medical Life Support), EMPACT is updated and revised to conform to the 2010 American Heart Association guidelines. Providing foundational chapters on assessment, critical thinking/decision making, and the difficult airway, the text moves on to cover common medical complaints, such as shock/hypoperfusion, dyspnea, chest discomfort or pain, and more. Presenting a realistic approach to the care of the patient, each chapter moves from assessment- and complaint-based primary assessment (identifying and controlling immediate life threats) to field diagnosis and management of immediately treatable underlying diseases. Intended for students with paramedic or other advanced-level training; a familiarity with anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology; and an overall understanding of the nature of medical emergencies.

Hallmark Features:

Chapter features designed—to help with study and review.

• "Possibilities to Probabilities” in Chapter 1 walks students through a reasoning process of patient assessment.
• A scenario with an end-of-chapter follow-up presents chapter content in a realistic context.
• Terms and definitions are highlighted and are defined in the margins.
• “Clinical Insights” provide special perspectives on assessing and managing the patient.
• Summaries of important information appear in boxes.
• Typical findings associated with various etiologies are summarized in tables.
• A “Treatment Pathway” in algorithm format appears at the end of each complaint-based chapter.
• A “Further Reading” bibliography suggests sources to consult for additional information.

ThreeThree appendices—provide valuable reference information.

• Waveform Capnography (new to this edition)
• Electrocardiographic Interpretation
• Normal Laboratory Values

A “Pharmacology Index” and “Anatomy and Physiology Illustrations”—are available, along with other supplemental materials, online at www.MyBradyKit.com.

An Instructor’s Course Guide and slide program—are available to accompany the text.

EMPACT (Emergency Medical Patients: Assessment, Care & Transport) offers a practical approach to common medical emergencies. Formerly published as AMLS (Advanced Medical Life Support), EMPACT is updated and revised to conform to the 2010 American Heart Association guidelines. Providing foundational chapters on assessment, critical thinking/decision making, and the difficult airway, the text moves on to cover common medical complaints, such as shock/hypoperfusion, dyspnea, chest discomfort or pain, and more. Presenting a realistic approach to the care of the patient, each chapter moves from assessment- and complaint-based primary assessment (identifying and controlling immediate life threats) to field diagnosis and management of immediately treatable underlying diseases. Intended for students with paramedic or other advanced-level training; a familiarity with anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology; and an overall understanding of the nature of medical emergencies.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Assessment of the Medical Patient

Chapter 2: Critical Thinking and Decision Making

Chapter 3: The Difficult Airway (Sample Chapter)

Chapter 4: States of Hypoperfusion and Shock

Chapter 5: Dyspnea, Respiratory Distress, or Respiratory Failure

Chapter 6: Chest Discomfort or Pain

Chapter 7: Altered Mental Status

Chapter 8: Acute Abdominal Discomfort or Pain

Chapter 9: Gastrointestinal Bleeding

Chapter 10: Seizures and Seizure Disorders

Chapter 11: Syncope

Chapter 12: Headache, Nausea, and Vomiting

Appendix A: Waveform Capnography

Appendix B: Electrocardiographic Interpretation

Appendix C: Normal Laboratory Values