Introduction to Emergency

Medical Services (EMS)

Welcome to Emergency Medical
Services…..

EMS – a coordinated network of

Professionals whose function is to
provide a variety of medical services
to people in need of emergency care.
 Defining “Emergency”
• Emergency is a situation that poses an
immediate risk to health, life, property or
environment.
• Most emergency require urgent intervention
to prevent a worsening of the situation,
although in some situations, mitigation may
not be possible and agencies may only be
able to offer palliative care for the
aftermath.
• In order to be defined as an emergency,
the incident should be one of the following:
1. Immediately threatening to life, health,
property or environment.
2. Have already caused loss of life, health
detriments, property damage or
environmental damage.
3. Have a high probability danger to life, health,
property or environment.
 In our system of emergency care
providers:

Most emergency cases are handled by:

• Pertahanan Awam / Bomba & Rescue
• Bulan Sabit Merah / St. John
• MA – Paramedic (Hospital & Clinic base)
 Pertahanan Awam / Bomba
• CPR trained at the health care
professional level
• Required minimum training.
• Usually the first on the scene in an
emergency
• Trained to treat life-threatening
emergencies with a minimum amount of
equipment
 Bulan Sabit / St John
• All of the skills of the first responder plus:
– Trained in the use and operation of the
ambulance
– Certified to treat non-invasive procedures,
such as splinting, bandaging ect.
 Assistant Medical Officer (MA)
Invasive and non-invasive procedures:
– Capable of starting an intravenous line and
infusing volume-replacing normal saline
– Trained to place an endotracheal tube in a
patient’s windpipe to create a secure means
of ventilating the lungs
– Administration of intravenous medications for
cardiac, diabetic and other medical conditions
under either off-line or on-line direction
– Many other optional and advanced skills such
as chest decompression and needle
crichothyrotomy, etc.
 Basic or Advanced?
• Basic life support called BLS describes the
care given by First Responders and EMT-
Basics
• Advanced life support, called ALS, is the
higher level of care performed by MA’s
and Paramedics
– Permitted to perform invasive procedures
• Procedures that introduce foreign substances or
equipment into the patient’s body
 Code of ethics
• A fundamental responsibility of MA is to
conserve life, to alleviate suffering, to
promote health, to do no harm, and to
encourage the quality and equal availability
of emergency medical care.
• The MA provide services based on human
need, with respect for human dignity,
unrestricted by consideration of nationality,
race, creed, color or status.
• The MA respects and holds in confidence
all information of a confidential nature
obtained in the course of professional work
unless required by law to divulge such
information.
• The MA shall maintain professional
competence and demonstrate concern for
the competence of other members of the
emergency medical services.
 Roles & Responsibilities
1. TRIAGE
- sorting out patient according to urgency
of treatment.
- RED for critically ill
- YELLOW for urgent cases
- GREEN for stable / walk-in cases.
2. RESUSCITATION, STABILIZATION and
Treatment of Unstable patients
3. Immediate Zone
4. Non-Critical Zone
- Those could be discharged after some
procedures done, eg. bandaging,
dressing etc.

5. PRE HOSPITAL CARE

- site management
- on the route management (ambulance)