Medical Emergencies: CPR, Toxicology, and Wilderness
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Medical Emergencies: CPR, Toxicology, and Wilderness
This course is part of Become an EMT Specialization
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546 reviews
Skills you'll gain
- Patient-centered Care
- Emergency Medicine
- Airway Management
- Nephrology
- Clinical Assessment
- Life Support
- Medical Emergency
- Automated External Defibrillator
- Mental and Behavioral Health
- Patient Evaluation
- First Aid
- Emergency Medical Services
- Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)
- Pharmacotherapy
- Pharmacology
- Patient Advocacy
- Defibrillation
- Basic Life Support (BLS) Certification
- Acute Care
- Psychosocial Assessments
Details to know
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There are 4 modules in this course
In this course, you will develop the knowledge and skills to assess and stabilize certain types of patients for transport. By the end of this course, you will be able to: (1) Identify the signs and symptoms associated with a patient in shock, to describe the major categories of shock, to assess a patient with signs of shock and formulate a plan for treatment to stabilize the patient for transport, (2) Identify a patient in cardiac arrest and to describe the components of high performance CPR including placement of an AED, components of quality chest compressions, and options for oxygenation, (3) Identify a patient with under the influence of a drug of abuse or a toxicologic ingestion, assess a patient with a potential or known ingestion, and to formulate a plan for treatment and stabilization for transport including that of a violent patient, (4) Identify the symptoms associated with the most common environmental emergencies including hypothermia, hyperthermia, lightning strike and drowning, to assess patients with an environmental emergency and to describe initial treatment and stabilization for transportation and (5) Understanding your patient's story as well as to think critically about the complaint and symptoms associated with the gastrointestinal track, renal system, and the reproductive system.
In this module you will be learning about states of shock and the principles of resuscitation. Unlike our common use of the word shock referring to a mental state of feeling overwhelmed or alarmed, shock is a state of crisis within the body, involving one or more of the organ systems. If left uncorrected, shock can lead to death. The other topic, resuscitation, will cover the principles of treating and reversing shock, and most importantly, the treatment of cardiac arrest. We will discuss the latest scientific research and best practices of cardiac arrest resuscitation.
What's included
15 videos7 readings1 assignment
15 videos•Total 65 minutes
- Mastering Medicine - Part 2•3 minutes
- States of Shock and Principles of Resuscitation•1 minute
- Introduction to Shock•2 minutes
- Categories of Shock•5 minutes
- Stages of Shock•4 minutes
- Evaluation and Treatment of Shock•7 minutes
- Cardiac Arrest Overview•5 minutes
- Cardiac Arrest Principles•6 minutes
- High Performance Resuscitation•6 minutes
- Other Cardiac Arrest Considerations•4 minutes
- Automated External Defibrillators (AED)•5 minutes
- Chest Compressions•4 minutes
- High Performance CPR•7 minutes
- Epinephrine Auto-injector•1 minute
- Bag Valve Mask (BVM)•5 minutes
7 readings•Total 95 minutes
- IMPORTANT NOTICE: Current “Become an EMT” Specialization No Longer NREMT Eligible•10 minutes
- About Us: Become an EMT Specialization Team at Denver Health Paramedics•5 minutes
- Course Information•10 minutes
- Get help and meet other learners. Join your Community!•5 minutes
- Categories of Shock•15 minutes
- High Performance CPR•40 minutes
- NREMT - AED Checklist•10 minutes
1 assignment•Total 30 minutes
- Cardiac Arrest and Shock Assessment•30 minutes
In this module we are going to learn about poisonings, or toxicologic ingestions. There is a whole field of medicine dedicated to the study of how the thing we ingestion, usually accidentally or in an attempt of self-harm, impact our bodies. This field is called toxicology. A poison is any substance that impairs health or causes death. A toxin is a drug or substance that is poisonous to a human, and will cause an adverse event, maybe even death. An antidote is a substance that will neutralize the effect of the poison or toxin. With an understanding of the basic terminology, we can further explore the most common poisons you will encounter in the field, how they affect the body, and how we treat these patients.
What's included
11 videos4 readings1 assignment
11 videos•Total 56 minutes
- Introduction to Toxicology and Substances•3 minutes
- Common Substances of Abuse: Alcohol•5 minutes
- Common Substances of Abuse: Stimulants, Opiates, and Cannabis•6 minutes
- Other Substances of Abuse•5 minutes
- The Assessment of the Poisoned Patient•6 minutes
- Treatment of the Poisoned Patient•5 minutes
- Psychiatric Diseases•8 minutes
- Behavioural Emergencies•6 minutes
- Managing the Violent Patient•6 minutes
- Intramuscular Medication Administration•2 minutes
- Intranasal Medication Administration•4 minutes
4 readings•Total 90 minutes
- Common Substances of Abuse•20 minutes
- Other Substances of Abuse•10 minutes
- Psychiatric Diseases•10 minutes
- Behavioural Emergencies•50 minutes
1 assignment•Total 30 minutes
- Toxicology and Substance Abuse Assessment•30 minutes
In this module you will learn how environmental emergencies are caused when the body’s physiological functions are disrupted by the patient’s natural surroundings. Many of the body’s functions only function properly at a normal temperature, so a change in the body’s temperature can cause them to fail. Some examples of environmental emergencies include cold or hot temperature changes, illness and injuries caused by other animals, high altitude illnesses and injuries or illness related to water such as drowning.
What's included
9 videos4 readings1 assignment
9 videos•Total 45 minutes
- Not All Who Wander Are Tox•1 minute
- Environmental Emergencies•4 minutes
- Hypothermic Patient•4 minutes
- Management of the Hypothermic Patient•6 minutes
- Hyperthermic Patient•5 minutes
- When Lightning Strikes•3 minutes
- Altitude and Water•5 minutes
- Geriatric Patients•9 minutes
- Patient with Special Challenges•8 minutes
4 readings•Total 95 minutes
- Envenomation•10 minutes
- Hypothermia•10 minutes
- Wilderness & Environmental Medicine•45 minutes
- Geriatric Patient•30 minutes
1 assignment•Total 30 minutes
- Not All Who Wander Are Tox Assessment•30 minutes
In this module we will capture topics an EMT might come across that don’t fit into the sections so far. The important “other” things that can cause patients problems. The role of an EMT is as an advocate for your patient to provide the best care possible. Part of that is taking the time to understand your patient’s story as well as to think critically about the complaint especially if difficult to diagnose. Also, we will focus of problems in the abdomen involving the gastrointestinal track, renal system and reproductive system.
What's included
10 videos6 readings1 assignment
10 videos•Total 56 minutes
- Other Emergency Situations•2 minutes
- My Stomach Hurts•7 minutes
- Digestive Tract Disorders•8 minutes
- Liver Disease and the Aorta•6 minutes
- Renal Emergencies•8 minutes
- Ovaries and Testes•8 minutes
- Abdominal Pain•8 minutes
- Blood Disorders•6 minutes
- What We've Learned So Far•1 minute
- Epistaxis•1 minute
6 readings•Total 145 minutes
- Referred Pain•10 minutes
- Renal Emergencies•10 minutes
- Abdominal Pain•10 minutes
- Anatomy of the Abdomen•45 minutes
- Practice Assessment (Optional)•60 minutes
- Epistaxis•10 minutes
1 assignment•Total 30 minutes
- Blood and Guts Assessment•30 minutes
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University of Colorado System
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Status: Free TrialCategory: Credit offered
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Reviewed on Dec 18, 2020
The course is easy to understand with applicable concepts and methods. It has helped me improve my medical emergency skills as a clinician.
Reviewed on May 31, 2020
It was very useful and informative. The pattern of assignment and evaluation of that was up to the point. And teaching was super
Reviewed on Mar 31, 2020
You should consider taking this course even if you don't plan on working as an EMT, the knowledge will be beneficial to you and the people around you.
Frequently asked questions
IMPORTANT UPDATE: "Become an EMT" Specialization & NREMT Certification
Current Course Status
The existing version of the "Become an EMT" specialization no longer meets the updated certification standards implemented by the NREMT in 2024. The current version cannot be used to qualify for NREMT examination. It remains a valuable resource for anyone exploring emergency medical services, continuing education, or general EMS knowledge. The current version is not a pathway to NREMT certification at this time.
New Version Currently in Development Phase
We are working on a redesigned NREMT‑aligned specialization which will prep you for revised NREMT. Coursera will let you know when that content will launch on the platform. We appreciate the enthusiasm from the NREMT students! Please stay tuned for updates. The goal with this new curriculum is to ensure the full course meets all current certification requirements and supports your long‑term success.
Path to NREMT Certification with the New Course
Two components must be successfully completed to sit for the NREMT exam:
If You Are Currently Enrolled
If you are enrolled and working toward NREMT certification, we recommend pausing your participation (which may include a change to your status with Coursera so that you are only paying for this course when it is ready to be taken) and waiting for the new version of the specialization. The knowledge you've already gained will still hold value as you start the new course, however, the current course will not carry over to the new version.
If You Are Considering Enrollment
We recommend waiting for the new NREMT-eligible specialization when it launches. Until then, the current specialization remains a solid foundation for others who wish to have the basic EMT knowledge without a goal of taking the NREMT exam.
Thank you all very much for your patience.
To access the course materials, assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience when you enroll in a course. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid. The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.
More questions
Financial aid available,