Earliest documented EMS
1790s
Nonmilitary ambulance services began operating in U.S.
early 1900s
EMS did not develop in smaller communities until
late 1940s
Department of Transportation charged with developing EMS standards
1966
Founding of the National Registry of EMTs (NREMT)
1970
National Emergency Medical Service Systems Act passed by Congress
1973
________ issued strict guidelines about precautions against exposure to bloodborne pathogens
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
When treating an individual suspected of TB, wear ______
N-95 or high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) respirator
Hepatitis B and C
- Infection causes inflammation of the liver
- Can live on surfaces in dried blood for several days
- Hepatitis B is deadly but vaccines are available
- Hepatitis C poses some risk but no vaccines
HIV/AIDS
- Attacks immune system, leaving patient unable to fight off infection
- Set of conditions that results when the immune system has been attacked by HIV
- Infection through blood
Scope of Practice
- Regulations and ethical considerations that defines the scope, or extent and limits of an EMT’s job
What you can do
Standards of Care
- Care that would be expected from an EMT with similar training when caring for a patient in a similar situation
How you should do it
Torts
Lawsuits against EMTs
Res ipsa loquitur
“the thing speaks for itself”
Legal concept important in negligence cases
Negligence
Failing to act properly when you have a duty to act
- Not providing patient care
- Not following the correct procedure of treatment
