Paramedic Care: Principles & Practice PCPP6 Chapter 06

Paramedic Care: Principles & Practice Sixth Edition Chapter 6 Public Health Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Standard Public Health...

Paramedic Care: Principles & Practice Sixth Edition Chapter 6 Public Health Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Standard Public Health Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Competency Applies fundamental knowledge of principles of public health and epidemiology, including public health emergencies, health promotion, and illness and injury prevention. Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Introduction EMS providers drawn to EMS to make contribution to society and those in need Respond to scenes of crisis and tragedy; excited when critically ill or injured patient improves after receiving emergency medical care Often, there is a thought amongst us “I wish I could have done more,” or, “I wish this would not have happened to them” Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Basic Principles of Public Health (1 of 3) Public health: science and practice of protecting and improving health of a community – Use of preventive medicine – Health education – Control of communicable diseases – Application of sanitary measures – Monitoring of environmental hazards Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Figure 6-1 An overview of public health. (Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Basic Principles of Public Health (2 of 3) To have a strong link between EMS and public health, you should have: – Strong medical oversight of both public health and EM S – To educate emergency care and public health providers about roles – Recognition of role of and commitment to develop and maintain relationships between leaders of component groups Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Basic Principles of Public Health (3 of 3) To have a strong link between EMS and public health, you should have: (cont ) inued – To bring community stakeholders into planning process – To create disaster plans developed locally; public health and emergency care; drill repeatedly – To pursue and secure funding Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Figure 6-2 Much of the role of EMS falls within the domain of public health. Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Accomplishments in Public Health Public health has improved both the quality of life and the life span of humankind – Major Accomplishments ▪ Vaccinations ▪ Motor vehicle safety ▪ Workplace safety ▪ Home safety ▪ Control of infectious diseases ▪ Disease surveillance/testing ▪ Decline in cardiovascular diseases ▪ Food education ▪ Prenatal and well baby clinics ▪ Family planning ▪ Fluoridation of drinking water ▪ Decreased tobacco use Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Public Health Laws Laws that affect public health practice and strategies, divided into three categories – Illness and prevention – Police powers for public health agencies – Epidemiological tools Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Epidemiology (1 of 6) Epidemiology – Branch of medicine dealing with the incidence and prevalence of disease in large populations ▪ Source and causes of epidemics of infectious disease ▪ Frequency and pattern of health events that occur in a population Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Epidemiology (2 of 6) Concepts Used in Epidemiology – Years of productive life – Injury (unintentional or intentional) – Injury risk – Injury surveillance program – Primary prevention – Secondary prevention – Tertiary prevention Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Epidemiology (3 of 6) Common Epidemiological Terms Table 6-2 Common Epidemiological Terms biologic transmission The indirect vector-borne transmission of an infectious agent in which the agent undergoes biologic changes within the vector before being transmitted to a new host. carrier A person or animal without apparent disease harboring a specific infectious agent and is capable of transmitting the agent to others. contact Exposure to a source of an infection or a person so exposed. contagious Capable of being transmitted from one person to another by contact or close proximity. direct transmission The immediate transfer of an agent from a reservoir to a susceptible host by direct contact or droplet spread. droplet spread The direct transmission of an infectious agent from a reservoir to a susceptible host by spray with relatively large, short-range aerosols produced by sneezing, coughing, or talking. epidemic The occurrence of more cases of disease than expected in a given area or among a specific group of people over a particular period of time. Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Epidemiology (4 of 6) Common Epidemiological Terms Table 6-2 [continued] host A person or other living organism that can be infected by an infectious agent under natural conditions. pandemic An epidemic occurring over a very wide area (several countries or continents) usually affecting a large proportion of the population. prevalence The number or proportion of cases, events, or conditions in a given population. reservoir The habitat in which an infectious agent normally lives, grows, and multiplies; includes human reservoirs, animal reservoirs, and environmental reservoirs. vector An animate intermediary in the indirect transmission of an agent that carries the agent from a reservoir to a susceptible host. vehicle An inanimate intermediary in the indirect transmission of an agent that carries it from a reservoir to a susceptible host. virulence The proportion of persons with clinical disease who, after becoming infected, becomes severely ill or die. Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Epidemiology (5 of 6) Major Roles in Public Health Practice – Public health surveillance – Field investigation – Analytic studies – Evaluation – Linkage – Policy development Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Epidemiology (6 of 6) EMS Public Health Strategies – Roles for EMS in public health ▪ Health promotion ▪ Disease surveillance ▪ Disaster management ▪ Injury prevention Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Public Health and EMS (1 of 4) EMS personnel prime candidates to be advocates of injury prevention Members of the EMS community often go beyond their primary roles and work cooperatively with members of the public EMS providers widely distributed in population; reflect composition of their communities – EMS is over 700,000 practitioners strong Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Public Health and EMS (2 of 4) Organizational Commitment – Protection of EMS providers – Education of EMS providers – Data collection – Financial support – Empowerment of EMS providers Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Figure 6-4 EMS in the United States needs to be proactive in public education programs. (Dr. Bryan E. Bledsoe) Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Public Health and EMS (3 of 4) EMS Practitioner Commitment – Standard Precautions – Physical fitness – Stress management – Seeking professional care – Driving safety Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Figure 6-5 Disease prevention starts with health care workers. Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Public Health and EMS (4 of 4) EMS Provider Commitment (cont ) inued – Scene safety: ▪ Safety is always first priority ▪ Attention on response and equipment that will be needed ▪ Do not approach dangerous scenes until law enforcement has arrived and deemed the scene safe Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Figure 6-6 Every EMS practitioner should have the appropriate safety equipment readily available and in good repair. The needs can vary based on the potential risks. (© Ken Kerr) Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Prevention in the Community (1 of 8) Areas of Need (where EMS can be active in prevention) – Infants and children: ▪ One of every three deaths among children in the United States results from injury ▪ Motor vehicle collisions, pedestrian or bicycle injuries, burns, falls, firearms Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Prevention in the Community (2 of 8) Areas of Need (where EMS can be active in prevention) (cont ) inued – Motor vehicle collisions: ▪ Responsible for more than half of all deaths from unintentional injuries ▪ Alcohol use factor in about half of all motor vehicle fatalities Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Prevention in the Community (3 of 8) Areas of Need (where EMS can be active in prevention) (cont ) inued – Geriatric patients: ▪ Falls responsible for largest number of preventable injuries for persons over 75 ▪ Some may suffer from some degree of dementia – Wander from home, other threats Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Prevention in the Community (4 of 8) Areas of Need (where EMS can be active in prevention) (cont ) inued – Work and recreation hazards: ▪ 27.5%: back injuries; disabling injuries ▪ 22%: injuries to eyes, hands, fingers ▪ Sports injuries common Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Prevention in the Community (5 of 8) Areas of Need (where EMS can be active in prevention) (cont ) inued – Medications: ▪ Taken improperly; taken by others ▪ Following physician's, pharmacist's, label directions imperative Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Prevention in the Community (6 of 8) Areas of Need (where EMS can be active in prevention) (cont ) inued – Early Discharge ▪ Managed care organizations often mandate shorter hospital stays ▪ Often, more patients discharged home sooner with illnesses Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Prevention in the Community (7 of 8) Implementation of Prevention Strategies – Preserve safety of response team – Recognize scene hazards – Document findings – Engage in on-scene education – Know your community resources Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Figure 6-7 EMS is well positioned to assist in injury prevention. Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Prevention in the Community (8 of 8) Implementation of Prevention Strategies (cont ) inued – Conduct community needs assessment: ▪ Childhood and flu immunizations ▪ Prenatal and well-baby clinics ▪ Elder-care clinics ▪ Defensive driving classes ▪ Workplace safety courses ▪ Health clinics ▪ Prevention information on your agency's website Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Summary Each member of EMS shares responsibility of promoting wellness and preventing illness and injury among coworkers and community EMS services have gone beyond traditional treatment- and-transport-only Commonplace for EMS services to offer programs to public Partner with members of community to make everyone more aware of how to prevent avoidable illness and injury Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Copyright This work is protected by United States copyright laws and is provided solely for the use of instructors in teaching their courses and assessing student learning. Dissemination or sale of any part of this work (including on the World Wide Web) will destroy the integrity of the work and is not permitted. The work and materials from it should never be made available to students except by instructors using the accompanying text in their classes. All recipients of this work are expected to abide by these restrictions and to honor the intended pedagogical purposes and the needs of other instructors who rely on these materials. Copyright © 2023, 2017, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved