You never know what a shift might bring. Each time you report to duty, you have no idea what the day will hold. Which is why you must be prepared for anything. Whether it’s a natural disaster that suddenly descends on your community or an MCI on the interstate, sending critical patients to area hospitals and closing major thoroughfares, you and your crew must be ready for whatever unfolds.

Welcome to our SSCOR monthly newsletter. Each month, we will focus on the latest EMS preparedness news, keeping you up on the latest trends in emergency response, education, and training.

Welcome to our first edition of the SSCOR monthly newsletter. Each month, we will focus on the latest EMS preparedness news, keeping you up on the latest trends in emergency response, education, and training.

As an emergency responder, you have a lot of responsibility. You must be ready for anything: critical patients, natural disasters, and the ever-present threat of terrorist attacks. And a key to readiness is maintaining your equipment, for without your tools, you are little help to anyone.

Trauma-related respiratory emergencies can be some of the most difficult patient scenarios to treat. Trauma comes in many forms: from blunt to penetrating to blast injuries involving any or many parts of the body. And when the trauma affects the respiratory system, whether through direct impact (oral or facial injuries) or indirectly (pneumothorax or hemothorax), your patient can teeter on the brink of survival.

Treating respiratory emergencies is never easy. And when they are compounded by trauma, they can be downright deadly. So, let's discuss what to look for when it comes to trauma-related respiratory emergencies.

As a paramedic, you know how important a well-provisioned trauma bag can be. A fully stocked trauma bag enables you to begin treatment immediately, no matter the illness or injury. Bleeding can be controlled with trauma dressings and tourniquets, CPR can be initiated with a bag-valve device, and pneumothoraces can be decompressed with a kit or a well-placed catheter. A good trauma bag is essential.

Respiratory emergencies are some of the most critical cases you will encounter. Every second counts, so you had better be ready. Recognizing a patient in distress, treating him or her immediately, and transferring him or her to an appropriate facility are some of the ways you can help improve patient outcomes, but there are other concerns that you as a medic must keep in mind. Here are three of them:

As a front-line paramedic, you know how important oral and nasal suctioning can be in patient outcome. How else are you going to clear that airway, if not through an effective and efficient portable suction unit? From respiratory emergencies, such as pulmonary edema, to traumatic injuries, there is no better way to clear an airway than through prompt suctioning.

Here’s a question: If your car broke down, would you feel comfortable fixing it yourself, even if you had no idea how an internal combustion engine works? I doubt it. Knowing the inner workings of a system is key to identifying problems within the system and even more important to fixing said problems.

We have previously discussed the importance of evaluating your hospital’s Emergency Operations Plan. Through a series of exercises that gradually increase in complexity, strengths and weaknesses of the plan can be identified.