Medical Terminology and Anatomy

Boston EMS Study Guide

• This guide helps prepare applicants for the Boston EMS hiring written exam.

Medical Terminology

• Essential for EMTs to have a comprehensive grasp of medical terminology.
• Clear communication and documentation necessitates an understanding of terminology, signs, representations, and acronyms.
• Unfamiliar words can be understood through word formation knowledge.
• Effective communication with colleagues relies on medical terminology mastery.

Structure of Terms

• Medical terminology has components for various purposes; alteration affects meaning.
• Components include:
  • Word root (base meaning)
  • Prefix (information about location/intensity)
  • Suffix (changes meaning or function of a word; often indicates methodology, condition, illness, or grammatical category)
  • Combining vowels (links word root to suffixes or other roots)
• Meaning depends on component combination.
• Accurate spelling is essential.
• Anatomy knowledge helps identify terms in context.

Etymology

• Word root: the word's primary component which gives the fundamental signifycance.
• Most terms include at least one word root.
• Meanings change when prefixes or suffixes are modified.
• Word roots can function as prefixes or suffixes in other terms.

Rules for Construction

• Prefix consistently positioned at the start
• Suffix invariably at the end
• Combining vowel used when suffix begins with a consonant to ease pronunciation.
• Terms with multiple word roots use a combining vowel between roots, starting vowel is irrelevant.

Prefixes

• Typically convey information about a location or intensity.
• Not all medical terms will have prefixes.
• Prefix gives the word root distinct meaning.

Suffixes

• Suffixes are located at the conclusion of the word.

Plural Endings

• Converting a term from singular to plural form requires following some requirements.
• Adding "s" pluralizes some words, but rules vary:
  • Singular words ending in change to "ae."
  • Words ending in "is" become "es."
  • Nouns ending in “ex” or "ix" change to "ices."
  • Nouns ending in "on" or "um" become "a."
  • Words ending in "us" will be changed to "i"

Special Word Parts

• Prefixes can denote numerals, color spectrum, or spatial orientation.

Numerals

• Presence of numerical value is expressed by prefixes: uni-, dipl-, null-, primi-, multi-, bi-.
• Examples of prefixes include uni-, dipl-, null-, primi-, multi, bi-.

Color

• Color is indicated by word roots, including cyan/o (blue), leuk/o (white), erythr/o (red), cirrh/o (yellow), and melan/o (black).

Spatial Orientations

• Direction, position, or place are signified employing prefixes: ab-, ad-, de-, circum-, peri-, trans, epi-, and supra-.

Terms for Direction, Movement, and Position

• Common terms for directional terminology are right, left, superior, and inferior.

Superior/Inferior

• The superior aspect is closer to the head from some point of reference, the section closer to the feet is the lower part , to denote the correlation between one structure and another.

Lateral/Medial

• Relative sides or positions from the midline body: lateral (outside), and medial (closer to midline).

Proximal/Distal

• Relationship between two extremity structures: proximial (close to trunk), distal (distanced from the center body).

Superficial/Deep

• Proximity to skin: superficial (close to the surface) or locations far away (deep).

Ventral/Dorsal

• Underside and the Backside.
• Specifically, ventral refers to the front surface, dorsal to the rear surface or spine-facing side.

Medical Terminology: Common Phrases

• Common phrases to reference location and placement within medical terminology: anterior (front surface of body), posterior (back surface of body).
• Palmar and plantar indicate the hand and foot surfaces, anterior is commonly known as the palmar surface of hand, the underide is the plantar surface of foot.
• Apex is the tip of a structure..

Terminology Related to Movement

• Act of bending indicated by flexion, straightening to extention, adduction indicated by parts moving towards midline, adduction is parts departing from the midline

Anatomy Positions

• Structures present bilaterally or unilaterally determines their direction.
• Accurate terminology vital in medical professions to anticipating treatments/outcomes.
• Anatomic positions are used as reference points in medical and anatomical studies.
• Common anatomical references when denoting patient postions:
  • A body lying face down is in prone position.
  • A body laying with the face is in supine position.
  • Fowler's position is a reclined position.
  • Semi-Fowler position is sitting on the stretcher with the back inclined to 45 degrees.
  • High-positions involves the back positioned to 90 degrees.

Breaking Apart Terms

• Understanding the components can help determine a phrase's meaning.
• Begin determining meanings with examining the root/suffix, then move in reverse order. If the term has a prefix, specify the suffix.
• "nephr/o/pathy" relates to kidneys, with "-pathy" meaning "disease" and "nephr" meaning "kidney."

Dysuria

• Denotes painful urination.
• "-ia" is the condition or state, "dys-" is difficult/painful/abnormal, and "ur" denotes "urine".

Hyperemesis

• Describes excessive vomiting
• Combining meaning "excessive" and "emesis," which refers to vomiting.

Analgesic

• Denotes relating to the absence of pain
• an/alges/ic the suffix -ic means "relating to" or "pertaining to", an is a prefix denotes the absence or lack of something., analgesic = relating to the absence of pain

Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Symbols

• Medical shorthand facilitates speedier communication.
• Widely recognized abbreviations/symbols should be utilized to avoid errors.
• Acronyms shorten multiple words through initial letters; e.g., for a condensed, spoken word.

Patient Assesment Overview

• Comprehend extent, order and the stages/elements of patient assessment for treatment and mirroring format of Boston Ems exam.
• Assessments has five components - scene size-up, primary assessment,history taking, secondary assessment, reassessment. Assessment depends on environment and patient.
• Changing assesment depends on discoveries to prioritize specific problems. Often a sign/symptom provides the patient's condition or underlying issue.

Medical Terminology Summary

• Welcome to our quick lesson in Medical Terminology! It is imperative to posses a comprehensive understanding, clear communication and documentation through terminology, acronyms, and representations!
• Medical terms consist of individual components that serve various functions, each meaning varying from language, components and alteration.
• prefixes can denote numerals, color spectrum, or spatial orientation.
• Various phrases and terminology pertain to various aspects of the body.
• Standard positions refer to standard positions of the body, including prone, supine, fowlers and other methods of positioning.

Initial Assessment of the Scene

• Assessment of circumstances is important during your functions- Situational awareness for safety is crucial during the entire call
• Dispatch offers fundamental details regarding the request for assistance. Scene size-up integrates data and visual assessments for safety/efficiency.
• Challenges can vary from minor to major hazards. Take necessary safety measures or request assistance if unsafe.
• Consider traffic and environmental factors on roadways. Safeguard onlookers if possible

Types of Hazards

Various types of hazards include environmental, physical, hazardous materials, electric, composed of fluid, composed of hydrogen and oxygen. Exercising caution when encountering is paramount in escalating acts of violence.

Injuries and Illnesses

• Requests might classify medical illnesses, traumatic injuries, or a combination.
• Traumatic injuries involve external forces on the body; ascertain mechanism of injury (MOI).
• For medical patients, ascertain etiology or nature of injury (NOI). Exercise caution when encountering scenes displaying comparable signs for several patients, this suggests a dangerous environment.
• Contemplate the MOI/NOI is advantageous to preparing and providing pt care!

Important Safety Measures

• Modify standard precautions and PPE based on work to perform within settings.
• Standard precautions are typically advised by the cdc for managing emesis, blood, and bodily fluids, and communicate diseases.
• All blood, and skin can cause risks to infections.. Ensure basic measures has taken place upon exiting the vehicle. Take into the use of eye wear/facial covering.
• During assessment total number of pt assist with determining requirements for resources from quantity of pt.
• Consider utilizing incident command determine quantity and initiate the triage process, for categorizing indivduals and their conditions..

Additional specialized resources

• Specialized resources encompass ALS, Aerial medical assistance, and Fire Departments, which manage hazordous chemicals/technical resvue srvcs, such as extracting individuals from vehicle accidents, wildnerness operations, and water rescues.

Key Questions, Initial Contact & Developing Impressions

• Is the scene is potentially hazardous to any individuals for safety? What total amount of any patients? Ww possess a necessary resources to address their circumstances.
• Patient Assessment begins after reading the patient. the initial stage requires recognizing any immediate or impeding life-threatening onditoons!
• includes a physical wxam, abc, including recording the individuals age/ sex/ chief complaints.

Evaluating Patients

• The level conciseness can give to you insight to all patients. A primary assessment prioritizes ABC, if you experience unconciousness may indicate or impairment with your resitory, circulatory or central nervous system.
• The scale assess a patient for consciousness Stimilus test determine reaction and includes pressure on the patients skin,
• Orientation evaluates a patient from assessing long/ short term memory, and cognitive abilities.
• An altered mental status categorizes are the depature from patient baseline

Determine Immediate Dangers of Life -

• life threading conditions for the potentiality to be rapidly resulted in mortality.
• sudden dead can result from airway bloacage, respiratory failure, respiratory arrest, shock severe hemorrhage, cardiac arrest. Prioritizing ABC the first addressing

Evaluating airway pathway

While conducting the primary assesment,remain vigiliant for indications of airway bockafge, ensure the airway remaina unobstructed the patent/ and sufficient.

Patients for responsive, consciousness

individuals on all ages that is engaged verbal communication or displaying emotional distress by sobbing unobstructed airway for the air passage. if patient is conscious but cannpt speak or cry. quite problable blocked in their airway resolve to resolving.

Unconscious individuals prompts

Evaluate promptly the airway, the employment of jaw-thrust procedure employ during injuries. If this cant open a head tilt employment.

Blockages Individuals

• blockage that us evident like blood, injuries,
• excessive respiration noise, such as snoring, bubbling, gurgling,
• severely redness for completely the absent respiration

Evaluating patients breath

After the confirming patient airway is unobstructed,ensure patients respiration is resent/sufficient. Pose the following questions -is the breath adequate or does the patient have hypoxia!

circulation

assesment is conducted by evaluating to all -the pulse, and skin health- to detect the pulse for an assessment, manual brachial is recommended when applicable, or CPR initiation is to commence.

skin

Perfusion is determined by examining a patient skin.

• colour can affect how the skin appers Tempurture - the skin usually warm to touch
• condition the skin is indicated
• capllirty refill is commonly assessed in pediatric patients for blood flow capacity.

Manage

Evaluate for bleeding that is uncontrolled Haemroging is from the vains

• manage external conduct to detect any immediate dangers in life.

Rapid exam

quickly to scan injuries before transportations after scan of 60-90 second allocated

high-pt

to assess and arrange assess of the condition

• manifestating - unresponse,repsiratory distress,haemorage,shock the golden has a following - to optimize of the pt chances and survival for transportation.
• medical staus
• avliabilty -transpotation distance -region

historical Information

to offers and records as well to examine accounts as well.

1

• start. by introduce
• pose a series of ...
• address to the pt for the approiate. ( mr. ms mrs)
• utilize the ...
• use visual contat..
• when the pt is unresponsive. utilize the onset..provaction the opqrst

sample history assessment.

• to access. pt - necessaties a vital skill...
• gathering
• evaluating.
• sensnthesixing.

Past medical history

sensitive for alcools & drugs. that. this stragety was developed through

• and to keep and void the judgements maintain a proper apperoach.
• pt *physiccal abuse and to cause harm and or injury Notify the relvant authorities of any instances for pb or DV.
• Adhere to the regulatios set by the state and follow the specific procedures avoid mkaing accustios.
• to hx/ sex.. consider the pregnant unless..
• pt diffculty acquireing. med hxs. anxiety.
• take and organise
• to conseder
• the symptoms

Intoxication

Avoid making judgments on the patient and maintain a professional demeanor throughout your approach. Physical abuse refers to the intentional use of force or aggression against another person, resulting in physical harm or injury. Avoid placing an intoxicated patient in situation where it would seem vulunerbale or no means of escape. Notify the relevant authorities of any instances of physical abuse or domestic violence.

Medical Terminology: More details

• UniqueDifficulties of background information includes; *symptoms,anxiety,and the intoxication Active - listening and proper language
• that the medical history that would allow those patients in their appropriate age , gender ,and races to provide

Evaluation for pts.

• during ..the evaluation hx- provides a detailed to vital sign examinatin
• the - the objective is to detect concealed injuries

to conclude ... the evaluation process, is segmented into five primary components which including *medical history *and sensitivity

Boston Ems - The Human Body

This understanding with the anatomy and physiology

• termimology -- that Anatomy. + Pathophysiology (and the functional allierations that has assicated with and condition)
• Topographic pertains --- standardized manner
• bodily planes - straight that used.

Transition from cells

from those from * cells that are fundamental as tissues that *they and groups-interconnect and collaberating from all body systems. *for each,they that

The skeletical system

The that provides the human and interior *that and 206 or more to point of from * from -- skull facial that make the bones The -- the the pelvic is vertebra Aresilientandcartilage - as ligaments between them

skeleton

A consits various surfaces the in of * from a from and the * the the the the The is the five section.

Thorax

The the The the the and

Appendages

Th upper *reach their , humerours , humerous that support.. The that the the radius the the of

hand& wrist

A - the the the five of .. the

• Pervills. *and or That is , are with 3 of ==End of OCR for page 197==

This quiz covers key concepts in medical terminology and anatomy. It tests knowledge of the digestive system, liver functions, prefixes, suffixes, and plural forms. It also assesses understanding of medical terms related to spatial orientation and numerical values.