Ch 5 EMS Communications Practice Flashcards

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers EMS communication systems, technical equipment specifications, radio procedures/regulations, and therapeutic communication techniques based on Chapter 5 of 'Prehospital Emergency Care'.

Base Station

A dispatch and coordination center with a high power output of $80-150\text{ watts}$.

Land Mobile Radio Systems (LMRS)

UHF, VHF, or $700-800\text{ MHz}$ systems that typically have a $10$- to $15\text{-mile}$ range.

Mobile Radios

Vehicle-mounted transmitter/receivers with $20-50\text{ watts}$ of power and a $10$- to $15\text{-mile}$ range.

Portable Radio

A handheld transmitter/receiver with $1-5\text{ watts}$ of power used when EMTs are out of the vehicle.

Repeaters

Devices located in vehicles or at fixed sites that receive lower-power transmissions and amplify them to achieve greater radio range.

Digital Equipment

Systems utilizing encoders and decoders that allow more radios to operate on crowded frequencies.

Mobile Data Terminals

Digital equipment that can transmit messages at the push of a button.

Telemetry

The transmission of patient data, such as ECGs and vital signs.

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

The United States government body that governs radio operations and broadcast regulations.

Push-to-talk (PTT)

A button on the radio that the EMT must press and wait one second before speaking.

Echo medical orders

The process of repeating medical directions back to medical direction to ensure accuracy.

SBAR

An acronym used to organize information for health care professionals, standing for Situation, Background, Assessment, and Recommendation.

Military Time

A system where clocks must be accurate and synchronous; for example, $1427\text{ hours}$ is $2:27\text{ p.m.}$ and $0030\text{ hours}$ is $30\text{ minutes}$ after midnight.

Therapeutic Communication

Communication that fosters a positive patient relationship and is composed of thoughts, ideas, information, and emotion.

The Communication Process

The sequence where a sender encodes a message, the receiver decodes the message, and providing feedback.

The Three Cs

Confidence, compassion, and cooperation; important elements when communicating with patients during emergencies.

Communication Responses

Techniques including facilitation, clarification, summary, explanation, silence, reflection, empathy, and confrontation.