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Welcome to the Rescue Services Division. This Division will provide you with great information that can help you in knowing when to contact rescue for help. Our goal is to educate you with rescue tips and hints to recognize emergencies and to help us with helpful information for faster service.
How do you tell the difference between a true emergency and a minor problem? Certain symptoms are so
alarming that the need for emergency care - or even an ambulance - is obvious. But what should you do about more common illnesses and injuries? Only a doctor can diagnose medical problems. But, you can protect your family's health by learning to recognize certain symptoms. Know which symptoms to watch for. According to the American College of Emergency Physicians, the following are warning signs of a medical emergency: · Difficulty breathing, shortness of breath · Chest or upper abdominal pain or pressure · Fainting · Sudden dizziness, weakness or change in vision · Change in mental status (such as unusual behavior, confusion, difficulty arousing) · Sudden, severe pain anywhere in the body · Bleeding that won't stop · Severe or persistent vomiting · Coughing up or vomiting blood · Suicidal or homicidal feelings You should also be familiar with the symptoms of common illnesses and injuries. Talk to your regular doctor before you have an emergency. Ask what you should do if you think someone in your family needs emergency care. Should you call the doctor's office first? Should you go straight to the emergency department? What should you do when the doctor's office is closed? Trust your instincts. Parents are usually very good at recognizing signs of unusual behavior or other symptoms that indicate an emergency. Many other factors, including the time of day, other medical problems, or state of mind, can make an otherwise minor medical problem an "emergency."
· Is the victim's condition life-threatening? · Could the victim's condition worsen and become life-threatening on the way to the hospital? · Could moving the victim cause further injury? · Does the victim need the skills or equipment of paramedics or emergency medical technicians? · Would distance or traffic conditions cause a delay in getting the victim to the hospital? If the answer to any of these questions is "yes," or if you are unsure, it's best to call an ambulance. This is true even though you can sometimes get to the hospital faster by driving than by calling an ambulance. Paramedics and emergency medical technicians communicate with the physician in the emergency department by radio. They are trained to begin medical treatment on the way to the hospital. This prevents any delay that could occur if the patient is driven to the emergency department. The ambulance can also alert the emergency department of the patient's condition in advance. Call 911 for emergency medical services, fire, and police. When you call for help, speak calmly and clearly. Give your name, the address, phone number, location of victim (such as upstairs in the bedroom), and nature of the problem. If you are calling from the phone that you need help to respond to, the dispatcher will have your address and phone number. If you are calling from a different phone number then where the help needs to respond to, let the dispatcher know. Don't hang up until the dispatcher tells you to. They may need additional information or need to give you instructions.
How prepared are you to handle a pediatric medical emergency? Follow these seven steps. Your child's life could depend on it!
What Is A Child Health Emergency? A child health emergency is an illness or injury that may threaten a child's life if action is not taken immediately; for instance: · Loss of consciousness (the child cannot wake up) · Seizures or convulsions
· Falls from high places · Severe burns · Breathing difficulty · Eating or drinking something poisonous · Heavy bleeding that will not stop · Injuries from a car or bike crash · High fever · Diarrhea or vomiting lasting than 24 hours Small cuts, low fevers, minor diarrhea or constipation, stomachaches, earaches, minor bruises, minor nosebleeds, rashes and sprains are non-emergency problems. A parent or caregiver who has basic first-aid skills and a first-aid kit can handle most of these problems. If you are not sure about what to do for a health problem that is not an emergency, call the primary care provider. If determined to be an emergency or if you are not sure, dial 9-1-1 or your local emergency number.
The Making of EMS: Three Decades of Change
It's a dark and stormy night. You drive your ambulance to the scene of the accident. As you step out into
the rain, the police officer says, "There's only one, but he looks pretty bad." You look Suddenly, you wake up and realize it was all just a dream. But wait -- was it? Thirty years ago, this was what EMS was about: get the patient into the ambulance and get to the hospital as fast as you can. We've come a long way. Emergency care in the mid-20th century was inadequate and chaotic. Station wagons or hearses often served as ambulances, staffed by untrained personnel and dispatched by municipal hospitals, fire services, private services, or funeral homes. Patients arrived at hospital emergency wards staffed at most by a nurse or intern with no formal training in emergency care. No guidelines existed for training or equipment for emergency personnel. Ambulances in the 1960s were often called horizontal taxicabs. They were designed to carry patients to the hospital in a horizontal position but did not allow room for attendants to perform CPR or other medical procedures. Many ambulance services were run by morticians, and few vehicles carried any medical supplies or equipment. At night, many hospital emergency wards were dark and the doors were locked, forcing ambulance services -- even those with critically ill patients -- to ring the bell and wait for admittance.
In 1966, most ambulance attendants had little or no medical training. The emergency medical technician first came into being in 1969 with the introduction of an 81-hour training course by the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. The EMT is trained for basic life support (BLS) procedures: maintaining airways, treating shock, immobilizing patients for transport to the hospital, and administering CPR. In 1966 the National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council released a report on trauma that initiated the modern era of emergency medical services systems. The report, titled Accidental Death and Disability, the Neglected Disease of Modern Society, found that accidental death resulting from Trauma was the fourth leading killer in the United States, and the leading killer between ages 1-37. The authors estimated that a person's chances of being killed were higher on American roads than in the battlefields of Vietnam. This report was instrumental in the passage of the Highway Safety Act of 1966, which established the cabinet level Department of Transportation and placed it in charge of emergency medical services improvement through its National High Traffic Safety Administration. The act authorized the DOT to develop national standards for EMS and to grant funds for research and development of EMS systems. At the same time, cardiologist J. F. Pantridge and his colleagues discovered that In the late 1960s, systems were developed that could transmit a patient's electrocardiogram to the hospital emergency department by radio, in addition to allowing EMS personnel to speak directly with a doctor in the ED. When these telemetry systems proved successful, EMS systems around the country began using radio for telemetry and for ambulance dispatch.
With the development of paramedic units and mobile intensive care units, rescue personnel could administer drugs, defibrillate patients, and perform other medical procedures in the field and en route to the hospital. In 1974, President Gerald Ford signed the first National Emergency Medical Services Week proclamation. The observance has grown to include events in every state and territory in the U.S. honoring emergency personnel and educating the public about the EMS system.
The past thirty years have brought widespread change in the availability and quality of emergency care A New Life-Saving Technology Every year, about 250,000 Americans die as a result of heart disease. Most of these deaths occur suddenly from cardiac arrest. Some medical experts suggest that the use of this new technology might increase the initial survival rate of cardiac arrest victims from 2 percent to as much as 40 percent. Remember .. always call 911 or your local emergency number first in any medical emergency.
What does an AED good for? When a human heartbeat is interrupted, damage done to the victim is directly related to the length of the interruption. The sooner a normal heartbeat can be re-established, the better. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) helps keep oxygen flowing to the body, but it doesn't restart the heart. An AED can re-establish a normal heartbeat if used early. By placing AED equipment at many locations, in Baker County, it can help ensure wider public access, and help many heart attack victims benefit from this life-saving technology. In Baker County we have AED’s on all fire trucks, and many Deputy Sheriff’s cars. There will be many more AED’s in other county and public places within the next few years. How does an AED work? An AED is an electronic device that delivers electricity to the heart to re-establish a heart rhythm that will generate a pulse. It also has a recording device to store the patient's electrocardiogram and information about the machine's operation. Because it includes a rhythm analysis system that determines if the patient needs a shock, it can be used by operators who need less intensive training than emergency medical technicians. Who can operate an AED? Any properly trained person can perform this vital procedure. No formal education in medicine or science is required. All newly trained CPR classes are trained in the use of AED’s. What should you do when you are driving and see an Emergency Vehicle approaching? You should yield to the right. When the Emergency Vehicle is approaching even if it is from the opposite way, yield to the right. The Emergency Vehicle will pass you on the left side of the road even when you are on the opposite side of the road. If you yield to the right, you will leave ample space for the vehicle to have plenty of driving space to get by safely. In a two way highway, still yield to the right, the Emergency Vehicle will know where you are planning to go. If there is one Emergency Vehicle that passes you, look and make sure there is not another Emergency Vehicle behind them, stay where you are. Many times there are Sheriffs Department, Rescue and Fire vehicles behind each other so make sure there is not anyone behind the first Emergency Vehicle. Give them plenty of space to drive by because they are traveling at a high rate of speed to get where they are going to and they may be driving a large truck that needs more room on the highway then a regular car or truck. Stroke Warning Signs The American Stroke Association wants you to learn the warning signs of stroke:
Be prepared for an emergency.
Take action in an emergency.
If you have the symptoms of a stroke, call 9-1-1 immediately because you have 3 hours from the onset of symptoms to get to a stroke center. Our local stoke center is Shands in Jacksonville. You may be able to receive the live saving drugs available to counteract the stroke and reverse the effects of your stroke. This may make the difference between being paralyzed and being able to obtain your normal life. Heart Attack Symptoms & Warning Signs Some heart attacks are sudden and intense where no one doubts what's happening. But most heart attacks start slowly, with mild pain or discomfort. Often people affected aren't sure what's wrong and wait too long before getting help. Here are signs that can mean a heart attack is happening:
If you or someone you're with has chest discomfort, especially with one or more of the other signs, don't wait longer than a few minutes (no more than 5) before calling for help. Call 9-1-1... Get to a hospital right away. Calling 9-1-1 is almost always the fastest way to get lifesaving treatment. Emergency medical services staff can begin treatment when they arrive -- up to an hour sooner than if someone gets to the hospital by car. The staff is also trained to revive someone whose heart has stopped. You'll also get treated faster in the hospital if you come by ambulance. If you can't access the emergency medical services (EMS), have someone drive you to the hospital right away. If you're the one having symptoms, don't drive yourself, unless you have absolutely no other option. How do I know if a heart attack has occurred? A doctor who's studied the results of several tests must diagnose a heart attack. The doctor will:
Blood tests confirm (or refute) suspicions raised in the early stages of evaluation that may occur in an emergency room, intensive care unit or urgent care setting. These tests are sometimes called heart damage markers or cardiac enzymes.
Baker County CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) About CERT The Federal Emergency Management Agency, using the model created by the Los Angeles City Fire Department, began promoting nationwide use of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) concept in 1994. Since then, CERTs have been established in hundreds of communities, including Baker County. CERT training promotes a partnering effort between emergency services and the people that they serve. The goal is for emergency personnel to train members of neighborhoods, community organizations, or workplaces in basic response skills. CERT members are then integrated into the emergency response capability for their area. If a disastrous event overwhelms or delays the community’s professional response, CERT members can assist others by applying the basic response and organizational skills that they learned during training. These skills can help save and sustain lives following a disaster until help arrives. CERT skills also apply to daily emergencies. If your neighbor is affected by a disaster, you will go to them and assist them. Why not be trained to help them in a safe manor and know what to do in an emergency so that you will do it safely? CERT members maintain and refine their skills by participating in exercises and activities. They can attend supplemental training opportunities offered by Baker County Emergency Services. CERT members can volunteer for projects that improve community emergency preparedness. Many times volunteers are needed to answer phones in a disaster, or deliver food to Emergency Services Personnel. CERT Personnel will be trained in:
For Information on upcoming classes, please call 259-6111, or e-mail Carolyn Hodges, chodges@nefcom.net Photos of previous CERT Classes
Graduating CERT Members will receive the essential equipment to take care of their neighbors, do basic first aid and get prepared for a disaster. Classes are free and equipment is provided. President George W. Bush stated that “We will find ways to train and mobilize more volunteers to help when health and emergencies arise.” Department of Emergency Services 1190 W Macclenny Ave Macclenny, FL 32063 (904) 259-6111
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When
should you call an ambulance instead of driving to the emergency department? Ask yourself the following questions:
for
a cervical collar, but can't find any. There's no KED. There is a backboard, so you take that to the crumpled vehicle. You and your partner carefully remove the patient and try to stabilize his spine, as best you
can. There's a lot of blood in the vehicle, and you decide to apply the MAST, but you can't find that, either. You try to call Medical Control, but there's no radio in your vehicle. In fact, your vehicle seems awfully small -- there's no room to stand up.
patients'
chances of surviving cardiac arrest were significantly greater if they were resuscitated in the field, than in the hospital. The mobile cardiac care unit created by Pantridge inspired physicians in New York, Seattle, Los Angeles, and elsewhere, to begin prehospital cardiac care services, ushering in
the era of advanced life support.
in the United States. Due to the efforts of EMS providers and the support of the American public, we have seen the development of a nationwide system for delivery of emergency care by trained individuals using specialized equipment. Emergency care has developed into a medical specialty and a
professional occupation.
