Clinical Practice

Maternity emergencies 2: normal birth

Births attended by the ambulance service are generally those where the mother has been caught off guard and labour has progressed particularly rapidly or where the mother has been unaware of her...

ECG case series for paramedics: September 2024

This ECG shows the patient to be in atrial flutter with a variable ventricular response and left bundle branch block configuration. His high sensitivity troponin was moderately elevated..

Inappropriate use of nocebic language in prehospital care: a cautionary tale

The working assumption of this pilot study was that emergency responders would display a high level of clinically appropriate communication, largely devoid of nocebic words and inappropriate language...

To err is an opportunity

However, the week before graduation, while on a day shift, I made my first major error. I attended to a patient who was fitting. In the London Ambulance Service (LAS), we administer Midazolam to...

ECG case series for paramedics: July 2024

There is ST segment elevation of up to 15 mm in V1–V6 suggestive of an extensive anterior lateral ST elevation myocardial infarction. There is ST segment depression in the inferior leads II, III and...

Wristwatches in bare-below-the-elbows out-of-hospital policies: time for a review

Two searches by the Library and Knowledge Service for Ambulance Services in England were commissioned by the author. This service undertakes searches of PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE and EMCARE...

Decision making in prehospital and paramedic practice: part 1

After completing this module, the paramedic will be able to: l Understand the key principles and frameworks that support decision-makingl Provide an overview of critical thinking and problem-solvingl...

ECG case series for paramedics: May 2024

A 12-lead ECG was recorded (Figure 1)..

Neuroleptic malignant syndrome: a neuro-psychiatric emergency

While the pathophysiology of neuroleptic malignant syndrome is complex and not fully understood (Berman, 2011), experts agree it involves a marked, sudden reduction in central dopaminergic activity...

Use of cognitive aids in paediatric out-of-hospital cardiac arrest

A survey study of 39 EMS agencies across six states of the United States was carried out. The survey (Appendix A, online) was developed as part of a larger study examining preventable serious adverse...

Confidence levels of students before and after a minor illness/injury placement

Research by Credland et al (2019) addressed the need for non-ambulance placements within the paramedic programme, such as walk-in centres, minor injury units, cardiac assessment units and general...