Assignment

Directions: Write a one to two page response for each of the numbers 1 through 5.

1. You are called to a local residence for several people who are "sick." The dispatcher believes that one or two may be unresponsive and three others report scratchy throats and "difficulty breathing." You arrive at a single-family residence and find a woman and child sitting on the lawn outside the house. The woman tells you that her mother was mixing something to clean the floors when she passed out. There are three people, including an infant, inside the residence. Should you go inside to check the other patients? Why or why not? What additional assistance should you call for? Does this qualify as a multiple casualty incident? Why or why not?

2. You are called to a motor-vehicle collision on a rural road in your town. You arrive to find a vehicle overturned in a ditch. The vehicle is on its roof and appears to be rocking, the hood and then the trunk striking the ground repeatedly. You hear at least one person moaning inside the vehicle. Should you attempt to access any patients inside the vehicle? Why or why not? What resources should be requested to this scene? Is there any way to stabilize the vehicle prior to the arrival of specialized rescue units?

3. You are called to a patient who was found unresponsive in an indoor pool. You are close and respond to the scene in your personal vehicle. Other people at the scene (who appear to have been drinking) say that the patient tried to dive from a tabletop into the shallow end of the pool. One person is in the pool and holding the patient afloat face-up. The bystanders appear not to be a danger. You update incoming units and enter the shallow end of the heated pool. What are your initial concerns about this patient? Will you remove the patient from the pool? Explain your answer.

4. You are called to a residence where a truck delivering some sort of fuel has rolled into the side of a house. You arrive to the vicinity of the scene and observe that the house's porch has collapsed on top at the vehicle. How can you obtain information on the substance involved without going near the truck or residence? When you are able to identify the hazardous substances involved, how do you find out additional information about the dangers they pose?

5. You are a volunteer in a community First Responder organization. You stop by the station at the start of your shift. The other member of your crew is there waiting for you. After talking together about what has happened since the last shift, you open the door to the truck to check your kits. "Oh come on," your partner moans. "The truck hasn't gone out for almost 48 hours. Why bother checking it?" Why would you check the equipment? What would you say to your partner? What would happen if you responded to a call and you did not have a required piece of equipment?