Emergency Care in Medical Imaging

Emergency Care

• Providing care in an emergency situation is intended to preserve life, prevent further harm, and promote recovery.

Administering Emergency Care

• The single most important action for the radiographer when administering emergency care is to remain calm and call for help if needed.

Emergency Cart

• A common name for an emergency cart within medical imaging is the "crash cart".

Medical Terms

• The medical term for a temporary suspension of consciousness is syncope.

Types of Shock

• Shock caused by a failure of the heart to pump enough blood to the vital organs, including the brain, is cardiogenic shock.
• Shock caused by severe loss of blood is hypovolemic shock.
• Shock caused by a severe reaction to the contrast media used in radiographic examinations is anaphylactic shock.
• Shock caused by loss of blood from a knife or gunshot wound is hemorrhagic shock.

Emergency Response

• If a patient is having a generalized seizure, the action that you must take is to protect the patient from injury and call for help.
• If a patient who is standing turns pale and says he feels dizzy, the first thing you should do is have them sit or lie down to prevent a fall.
• When caring for a patient with epistaxis, the patient should be kept calm and upright.
• An effective method to handle a patient with an asthmatic attack during a radiographic procedure would be to administer oxygen and call for medical help.

Patient Care

• When working with burn patients, it is critically important to prioritize infection control and prevent further injury.
• When radiographing a patient from the emergency department who has a knife wound to the upper extremity and is getting lightheaded, you should call for medical help and apply pressure to the wound to control bleeding.

Assessment and Response

• If a patient has no verbal response to any stimuli but moves with touch and pinch, this person demonstrates a decreased level of consciousness.
• When comparing a semi-automatic AED device with an automatic device, a semi-automatic device requires the rescuer to activate the shock.
• When comparing hyperglycemia with hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia is characterized by high blood sugar levels.
• When performing CPR as a single rescuer, call for help and begin CPR.

Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)

• CPR can be stopped when EMS arrives or the person starts showing signs of regaining consciousness.
• When performing two-person CPR, one person handles compressions and the other handles ventilations.
• CPR performed on an infant requires a 30:2 compression-to-ventilation ratio.
• The Heimlich maneuver is used to relieve choking.
• When using an AED, follow the device's instructions and voice prompts.
• When performing CPR on a patient who is lying supine in a patient bed with a soft mattress, you would first look for a backboard or firm surface to support the patient.