what are the levels of situational awareness?
Level 1 - Perception
Level 2 - Comprehension
Level 3 - Projection
What is the first level of situational awareness
Perception.
Without basic perception of important information, the odds of
forming an incorrect picture of the situation increases dramatically.
What is the second level of situational awareness
Comprehension.
• How people combine, interpret, store, and retain information.
• Integration of multiple pieces of information and a determination of
their relevance to the goals
• Flach (1995) points out that “the construct of situation awareness demands that the problem of meaning be tackled head-on. Meaning must be considered both in the sense of subjective interpretation
(awareness) and in the sense of objective significance or importance (situation)”
What is the third level of situational awareness
Projection.
the ability to forecast future situation events and dynamics.
This ability to project from current events and dynamics to anticipate future
events (and their implications) allows for timely decision making.
what is situational awareness?
the operator’s internal model of the state of the environment.
what factors create situational awareness?
Sensory input
Attention
Working memory
Long term memory
What are some strategies to optimise situational awareness?
Communication
Have a plan
Listen to all the team members
Take control
How can we optimise comms in major incidents and critical situations?
• Clinical Approach
• Guidelines that supports good clinical
decision-making
• Develop critical thinking skills and exercise
good clinical judgement through reflective
practice
• Dynamic risk assessment
How do we optimise situational awareness at major incidents for identifying hazards?
Identifying Hazards
- Pause and plan
- Windscreen review of a scene using ‘ETHANE’
- Appreciating own scope and abilities and others areas of expertise and deferring to experts where appropriate – ‘Is the scene safe for me to enter?’
- SES, fire services, police
- Continual review of the scene, communication with colleagues and other agencies
- Use all senses and instincts including sight, sound, smell, motion
- Do not put yourself into a dangerous situation which requires you to be rescued!
How do we optimise situational awareness at major incidents for patient identification?
Identify all involved in incident – e.g. MVA
- Look in every vehicle (including the boot)
- Ask occupants how many others were in the car
- Establish where each person was seated
- Account for occupants of child restraints
- Ask witnesses who was involved/how many occupants/how many vehicles
- Account for the vehicle that has left the scene or the person who has been taken into a nearby house
- Consider the person assisting you
How do we optimise situational awareness at major incidents for Resource requirements?
Resource requirements
Windscreen assessment of scene
• All incidents require scene evaluation as paramedics arrive
Remain calm and consider:
• Area that scene is spread over
