L13- Medical
Emergencies
Medical Assessment
SAMPLE:
• S – Sign and Symptoms
• A – Allergies
• M– Medication
• P – Past Medical History
• L – Last Meal
• E - Events
HEART ATTACK
1. Sudden obstruction of the blood supply to part
of heart muscle and death of heart muscle
tissue
2. May lead to cardiac arrest (when heart suddenly
stops pumping blood)
SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF HEART
ATTACK
➔ Might sudden collapse without any
warning
➔ Extreme gasping for air (“air hunger”)
➔ Pain may spread to the jaw and down
on or both arms
➔ Sudden faintness or dizziness
➔ Profuse sweating
➔ A rapid, weak or irregular pulse
➔ Pain won’t ease with rest
TREATMENT FOR HEART
ATTACK
1. DON’T lie down the casualty but place
casualty into half-sitting position
2. Call for emergency help
3. Ask if casualty allergic to aspirin. If no, assist
casualty to take medication
4. Monitor and record vital signs
ANGINA
1. Constriction of blood
supply to heart muscles
2. Occurs during exertion
or excitement
3. Feel like a heart attack,
with pressure or
squeezing in your chest
SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF ANGINA
➔ Shortness of breath
➔ Tiredness
➔ Fainting/Dizziness
➔ Pain may spread to jaw and down one
or both arms
➔ Pain will ease with rest
TREATMENT FOR ANGINA
1. Place casualty in half-sitting position
2. Let the casualty rest
3. Let casualty use medication and observe 5
mins (2nd dose if pain doesn’t ease)
4. Call 999 for emergency help if 2nd dose is
ineffective
ASTHMA
Asthma is a condition in which your airways
narrow and swell and produce extra mucus
SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF ASTHMA
➔ Wheezing sound
➔ Difficulty breathing
➔ Difficulty speaking, leading to short
sentences and whispering
➔ Coughing
➔ Grey-blue tinge to the lips
TREATMENT FOR ASTHMA
1. Reassure casualty and get casualty to take
his/her usual dose of his/her reliever inhaler
2. Let casualty sit in the position casualty finds
most comfortable
3. A mild attack should ease within 5 minutes. If
not, ask casualty to take another dose from
his/her inhaler
4. Call 999 for emergency help if the attack
worsens/ no effect
HYPERVENTILATION
1. Acute anxiety and may accompany a panic attack
2. A person breathing too quickly, exhaling more than
inhale causes a rapid reduction of carbon dioxide in
the body
SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF
HYPERVENTILATION
➔ Fast pulse rate
➔ Dizziness or faintness
➔ Unnaturally fast or deep breathing
➔ Trembling, sweating and dry mouth
➔ Tingling and cramps in the hands and feet
and around the mouth
TREATMENT FOR
HYPERVENTILATION
1. Be firm but kind when reassuring and speaking
to the casualty
2. If possible, bring the casualty away to a quiet
place
3. Ask the casualty to control his/her breathing
4. Call 999 for emergency help if the attack
worsen
❖ Do not advise the casualty to rebreathe his/her
own air from a paper bag
FAINTING
A faint is a brief loss of consciousness caused by a
temporary reduction of the blood flow to the brain
SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF FAINTING
➔ A slow pulse
➔ Pale, cold skin and sweating
➔ Brief loss of consciousness that caused the
casualty to fall to the ground
TREATMENT FOR FAINTING
1) Advise casualty to lie down.
2) Kneel down, raise his/her legs and support his/her ankles on your
shoulders or a high object
3) Make sure that the casualty has plenty of fresh air around
4) As the casualty recovers, reassure and help the casualty to sit up
gradually
5) If casualty feel faint again, repeat the steps 1)-3) until casualty recovers
fully
ALLERGY
● An allergy is an abnormal reaction of the immune
system response to a normal harmless foreign
substance (allergens) to the body
SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF ALLERGIC
➔ Red, itchy rash
➔ Red, itchy eyes
➔ Wheezing and/or difficulty breathing
➔ Swelling of hands, feet and/or face
➔ Abdominal pain, vomiting and diarrhoea
TREATMENT FOR ALLERGY
1. Assess the casualty’s sign and symptoms and is the
casualty has any known allergy
2. Remove the allergens or move the casualty away
from the allergens
3. Treat the symptoms
4. Allow the casualty to take his/her own medication for
a known allergy
HEAT EXHAUSTION
● Heat exhaustion is caused by loss of salt and water
from the body through excessive sweating
● Body overheating
SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF HEAT
EXHAUSTION
➔ Headache, dizziness and confusion
➔ Sweating, with pale, clammy skin
➔ Rapid, weakening pulse and breathing
➔ Loss of appetite and nausea
TREATMENT FOR HEAT EXHAUSTION
1) Move the casualty to a cool, shady place
2) Advise the casualty to lie down, raise and support his/her legs
3) Give casualty plenty of water to drink
4) Monitor and record vital signs
5) If the casualty’s vital signs worsen, call 999 for emergency help
HEAT STROKE
● is a type of severe heat illness that results in a body
temperature greater than 40 °C
● The body becomes dangerously overheated, usually
due to a high fever or prolonged exposure to heat
SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF HEAT SROKE
➔ Headache, dizziness and discomfort
➔ Hot, flushed and dry skin
➔ Body temperature above 40 °C
➔ Restlessness and confusion
TREATMENT FOR HEAT STROKE
1. Quickly move casualty to a cool, shady place
2. Remove as much the casualty’s outer clothing as
possible
3. Call 999 for emergency help
4. Assist the casualty to sit down and supported with
cushions
5. Wrap casualty in a cold, wet sheet until his/her
temperature falls to 38 °C under the tongue, or 37.5
°C under the armpit
TREATMENT FOR HEAT STROKE
6. Keep the sheet wet by continually pouring cold water
over it
7. Replace the wet sheet with a dry one once the
casualty’s temperature returned normal
8. Monitor and record vital signs. If the casualty’s
temperature rises again, repeat the cooling process
9. If there is no sheet available, fan the casualty, or
sponge him/her with cold water
