NREMT Paramedic

Category - Medical

During the transport of a patient who was complaining of difficulty breathing, you reassess vital signs and note the following: the patient’s mental status changes from alert and oriented to responsive to painful stimuli; his pulse rate has increased from 82 to 116 beats per minute; and respiratory rate changes from 12 breaths per minute to 24 breaths per minute and shallow. What will this be indicative of for the emergency physician when receiving your telemetry?
  1. It indicates that the patient requires minimal additional treatment.
  2. It shows the patient is becoming more unstable.
  3. It indicates that the patient is stable and responding to treatment.
  4. It demonstrates marked improvement in patient condition.
Explanation
Answer: B - The patient exhibiting a decrease in mental status, increase in pulse rate and increase in respiratory rate will be indicative of decreased stability to an emergency physician upon your telemetry. When providing telemetry be certain to repeat any numbers slowly so the receiving physician may understand them clearly. Always be sure to highlight the major patient changes to the emergency physician during any telemetry, even if the patient has regained stability.
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