Course Breakdown:  1.5 Hours Self-Paced Course
Credit Awarded:  1.5 Hours
Credit Type: Advanced
Accredited: CAPCE (F3-Distributive), CE Broker (FL & TN), Pennsylvania Bureau of EMS*, and Virginia Office of EMS(Pending)
Enrollment Period:  One year or until completed, whichever comes first
Topics: Medical Emergencies

*PA Bureau of EMS reporting is by Regional Endorsement.

This self-paced course, General Medical Emergencies, prepares EMS clinicians to recognize high-risk clinical patterns, identify physiologic instability, provide appropriate supportive care, reassess for deterioration, and communicate effectively with the receiving facility.

The emphasis of this course is not on establishing a definitive diagnosis in the field. Instead, learners will develop a systematic approach to recognizing potentially life-threatening conditions and prioritizing airway, breathing, circulation, perfusion, neurologic status, temperature, medication history, and recent medical treatments.

Topics Include

Hematologic Emergencies

  • Sickle cell crisis and acute chest syndrome
  • Anticoagulant-associated bleeding
  • Hemophilia
  • Hypercoagulable states
  • Anemia-related instability
  • Neutropenic sepsis

Endocrine Emergencies

  • Adrenal crisis
  • Thyroid storm
  • Myxedema coma
  • Recognition of hypermetabolic and hypometabolic patterns

Immunologic Emergencies

  • Acute transfusion reactions
  • Autoimmune emergency presentations
  • Systemic inflammatory responses
  • Immunosuppression and infection risk

What You Will Learn

  • Apply a systematic assessment to complex or undifferentiated medical patients.
  • Use history, medications, recent treatment, vital-sign trends, and physical findings to identify high-risk clinical patterns.
  • Recognize serious hematologic emergencies involving bleeding, clotting, impaired oxygen delivery, and infection.
  • Differentiate adrenal crisis, thyroid storm, and myxedema coma using clinical presentation and physiologic patterns.
  • Recognize acute transfusion reactions and potentially serious autoimmune presentations.
  • Select appropriate prehospital priorities including airway support, oxygenation, ventilation, hemorrhage control, cardiac monitoring, vascular access, temperature management, and shock care.
  • Recognize findings requiring rapid transport, early hospital notification, or specialty-capable destination consideration.
  • Communicate relevant history, treatment information, clinical trends, and patient response during transfer of care.

Course Scope Note: Diabetic ketoacidosis, hyperosmolar hyperglycemic state, hypoglycemia, and other common diabetic emergencies are not covered in detail in this course, as these topics are addressed extensively in other EMS continuing education courses.