Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Vocabulary

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and definitions in Emergency Medical Services systems, legal concepts, stress management, anatomical terminology, and pathophysiology.

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) System

A network of professionals and agencies working together at a local or regional level to provide emergency medical care.

Medical Direction

Directions provided by a physician medical director who authorizes EMS providers to give medical care in the field.

Protocols and Standing Orders

Off-line or indirect medical directions that define the EMT's scope of practice for specific conditions without needing to consult a physician first.

Online Medical Control

Direct physician directions given over the phone or radio to confirm or modify a treatment plan during a call.

Public Safety Access Point (PSAP)

An Emergency Communications Center that serves as the primary access point to the EMS system.

Enhanced 911

A system that utilizes Automatic Number Identification (ANI) and Automatic Location Identification (ALI) to help dispatchers locate callers.

Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD)

A system where dispatchers use scripts to select appropriate units and provide pre-arrival instructions to callers.

Burnout

The exhaustion of physical or emotional strength resulting from prolonged stress.

Compassion Fatigue

The gradual lessening of compassion over time experienced by healthcare providers.

Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM)

A process that includes formal debriefing and defusing sessions to help reduce or alleviate critical incident stress.

Scope of Practice

The comprehensive guide that delineates what care an EMT can legally perform.

Do-Not-Resuscitate (DNR) Order

An advance directive that gives permission to healthcare providers not to resuscitate a patient.

Advance Directives

Written documentation, such as living wills, specifying desired medical treatments should a patient become unconscious or unable to make decisions.

Abandonment

Terminating patient care without the patient's consent and without providing for continued care by a provider of equal or higher training.

Negligence

A failure to provide the standard of care, requiring proof that a duty was owed, that duty was breached, and that the breach caused actual damage.

Battery

Unlawfully touching a person, such as providing medical treatment without patient consent.

Medial

Topographic term meaning toward the midline of the body.

Lateral

Topographic term meaning away from the midline of the body.

Proximal

Topographic term meaning closer to the trunk.

Distal

Topographic term meaning farther from the trunk.

Superior

Topographic term meaning closer to the head.

Inferior

Topographic term meaning closer to the feet.

Anterior (Ventral)

Topographic term describing the front surface of the body.

Posterior (Dorsal)

Topographic term describing the back surface of the body.

Midline

The imaginary vertical line dividing the body into equal right and left halves.

Bilateral

Appearing on both sides of the midline of the body.

SBAT Report

A structured report format consisting of Situation, Background, Assessment, and Treatment used to deliver patient information upon hospital arrival.

Patient Care Report (PCR)

A legal document that records all patient care from dispatch to hospital arrival.

Hypoxia

A deficiency of oxygen reaching the tissues of the body.

Hypercarbia

An excess amount of carbon dioxide in the blood.

Shock (Hypoperfusion)

A condition that occurs when organs and tissues do not receive enough oxygen.