"Emergency medical services (EMS), also known as ambulance services or paramedic services, are emergency services that provide urgent pre-hospital treatment and stabilisation for serious illness and injuries and transport to definitive care."
The network of medical professionals and resources that are dedicated to providing emergency care to patients. This may include ambulance services, hospitals, and first responders.
Basic Life Support (BLS): Provides a foundation for EMS providers to deliver emergency medical care to patients with life-threatening injuries or medical emergencies.
Advanced Life Support (ALS): Focuses on the advanced interventions beyond CPR and basic first aid, including advanced airway management, IV therapy, and drug administration.
Anatomy and Physiology: Study of the structure and function of the human body, including how it responds to illnesses or injuries.
Pharmacology: The science of drugs and how they interact with the human body, including how to safely administer medications to patients.
Medical Terminology: The vocabulary used in medical settings, including anatomy, physiology, and medical procedures.
Trauma Management: Focuses on initial assessment, stabilization, and transport of patients with traumatic injuries.
Cardiac Emergencies: Focuses on the treatment and management of patients with cardiovascular emergencies, including heart attack, cardiac arrest, and angina.
Respiratory Emergencies: Focuses on the treatment and management of patients with respiratory problems such as asthma, pneumonia, and COPD.
Pediatric Emergencies: Focuses on the management of pediatric emergencies, including respiratory distress, fever, and seizures.
Geriatric Emergencies: Focuses on the unique challenges associated with caring for elderly patients, such as falls, medication complications, and chronic diseases.
Obstetric Emergencies: Focuses on the management of pregnancy emergencies, including pre-eclampsia, premature labor, and complications during delivery.
Behavioral Emergencies: Focuses on the management of patients with mental health or behavioral emergencies, including suicidal ideation, psychosis, and substance abuse.
Rescue Techniques: Focuses on techniques for rescuing patients from various situations, including water rescues, vehicle extrications, and high-angle rescues.
Emergency Communications: Focuses on the importance of effective communication during an emergency, including radio use, scene reports, and patient hand-offs.
Legal and Ethical Considerations: Focuses on the legal and ethical issues that arise in emergency medical services, including patient confidentiality, informed consent, and liability.
Disaster Management: Focuses on the organization and management of resources during large-scale disasters, such as natural disasters or acts of terrorism.
Incident Command: Focuses on the organizational structure and decision-making process used in emergency situations.
Infection Control: Focuses on methods to prevent and control the spread of infectious diseases in the pre-hospital setting.
Medical Documentation: Focuses on the importance of accurate and thorough documentation of patient care to ensure continuity of care and legal accountability.
Cultural Competency: Focuses on the importance of understanding and respecting the customs and beliefs of different cultures when providing care.
Emergency Medical Technician (EMT): An EMT is a medical professional who provides basic emergency care to sick and injured persons. EMTs are trained to assess the condition of a patient, stabilize them, and transport them to a medical facility.
Advanced EMT: An Advanced EMT is a more advanced level of training for an EMT. They may be trained to perform additional medical procedures such as administering medication.
Paramedic: A Paramedic is a highly trained medical professional who provides advanced life-saving care to sick and injured persons. They are trained to administer medication, perform advanced medical procedures, and manage complex medical emergencies.
Flight Paramedic: A Flight Paramedic is a Paramedic that has additional training and experience in providing medical care during air transportation of patients.
Critical Care Paramedic: A Critical Care Paramedic is a Paramedic with additional training and experience in caring for critically ill or injured patients.
Emergency Medical Dispatcher: An Emergency Medical Dispatcher is responsible for receiving and processing emergency calls, providing medical instructions to callers, and dispatching EMS personnel to the scene.
Wilderness EMT: A Wilderness EMT is an EMT with specialized training in wilderness medicine. They are prepared to provide medical care in remote areas where traditional medical services may not be available.
Tactical Medic: A Tactical Medic is a medical professional who is trained to provide medical care in high-risk, dynamic environments such as in military operations, law enforcement operations or mass casualty incidents.
Bike Medic: A Bike Medic is a Paramedic or EMT who provides medical care while on a bike. They are often used in crowded events or areas where traditional EMS vehicles cannot quickly access.
Community Paramedic: A Community Paramedic is a Paramedic who works within a community to provide healthcare services and preventive care. They may provide services such as health education, wellness checks, and chronic disease management.
"EMS can be summoned by members of the public (as well as medical facilities, other emergency services, businesses and authorities) via an emergency telephone number."
"Ambulances are the primary vehicles for delivering EMS, though squad cars, motorcycles, aircraft, boats, fire apparatus, and others may be used."
"EMS agencies may also operate a non-emergency patient transport service."
"Historically, ambulances only transported patients to care, and this remains the case in parts of the developing world."
"When EMS is dispatched, they will initiate medical care upon arrival on scene."
"If it is deemed necessary or a patient requests transport, the unit is then tasked with transferring the patient to the next point of care, typically an emergency department of a hospital."
"The term 'emergency medical service' was popularised when these services began to emphasise emergency treatment at the scene."
"In some countries, a substantial portion of EMS calls do not result in a patient being taken to the hospital."
"Training and qualification levels for members and employees of emergency medical services vary widely throughout the world."
"In some systems, members may be present who are qualified only to drive ambulances, with no medical training."
"Most systems have personnel who retain at least basic first aid certifications, such as basic life support (BLS)."
"In English-speaking countries, they are known as emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and paramedics."
"Paramedics [...] have additional training such as advanced life support (ALS) skills."
"Physicians and nurses may also provide pre-hospital care to varying degrees in certain countries, a model which is popular in Europe." Note: Due to the length of the provided paragraph, I can only provide a selection of quotes that answer the questions. Please let me know if you would like additional quotes or information.