IAED EMD cheat sheet

Case Entry collects five mandatory data elements in fixed order: incident location, callback number, chief complaint ("Tell me exactly what happened"), patient age, and the conscious/breathing status pair.

Address verification means repeating the location back to the caller and confirming apartment/suite number, city, cross street or building name, and the nearest access point for responders.

Case Entry is designed to be completed in roughly 30 seconds; prolonged interrogation at this stage delays Chief Complaint selection and dispatch.

The Chief Complaint is one of the numbered protocols in the Medical Priority Dispatch System, e.g., 6 Breathing Problems, 10 Chest Pain, 11 Choking, 31 Unconscious/Fainting, 32 Unknown Problem.

Consciousness and breathing are the two Case Entry answers that most often redirect the call, because a not-conscious, not-breathing patient is handled as cardiac arrest.

For a third-party caller not at the scene, information is limited to what the caller can confirm; the dispatcher records that the data are unverified rather than assuming.

On an abandoned or disconnected call, the dispatcher calls the number back; with no answer, dispatch decisions follow local protocol rather than the absence of a complaint.

When the caller is in a moving vehicle, Case Entry must capture direction of travel, roadway, and intended destination so the responding unit can intercept.

Determinant levels in descending acuity: ECHO, DELTA, CHARLIE, BRAVO, ALPHA, OMEGA.

Response mode rule: ECHO, DELTA and CHARLIE generate a hot response (lights and siren); BRAVO, ALPHA and OMEGA generate a cold response.

Determinant code format is Complaint-Letter-Number, e.g., 6-D-2, where the letter is the acuity level and the final digit identifies the key question answer that produced the code.

Key Questions are asked in protocol order and stop as soon as the highest-priority affirmative answer fixes a determinant.

Not alert, not breathing, and ineffective/agonal breathing are escalation triggers that commonly yield DELTA or ECHO determinants.

OMEGA determinants represent non-urgent complaints and may be routed to an alternative response or nurse-triage pathway per local policy.

When key-question answers conflict or are ambiguous, the higher-acuity determinant is selected.

Determinant selection precedes any pre-arrival instruction; the code is set and the call dispatched before instructions begin.

Pre-Arrival Instructions are scripted, medically approved text delivered after the determinant is set and the response is dispatched.

Agonal or gasping breathing is classified as not breathing and triggers immediate CPR instructions rather than reassurance.

Adult compression standard: rate 100 to 120 per minute, depth approximately 2 inches (5 cm), with full chest recoil between compressions.

Single-rescuer compression-to-ventilation ratio is 30 compressions to 2 breaths; hands-only CPR is used when the caller cannot or will not ventilate.

Conscious adult choking is managed with abdominal thrusts; if the patient becomes unresponsive, the instruction switches to CPR.

Severe hemorrhage: firm direct pressure with both hands, add dressings over saturated ones, and do not lift or remove the original dressing.

Imminent childbirth: support the emerging head, check for a cord around the neck, and never pull on the infant.

Instructions are read or paraphrased in the approved wording, in plain language, one step at a time, with the caller confirming each step.

Post-Dispatch Instructions are given after dispatch and after any Pre-Arrival Instructions, filling remaining time to prepare the scene for responders.

Standard PDIs include unlocking the door, turning on exterior lights, securing pets, gathering medications and identification, and staying on the line.

A PDI must never contradict or delay a Pre-Arrival Instruction; the PAI takes precedence whenever both compete for the same time.

Call closure steps: confirm the caller has no further questions, restate the callback number, advise calling back if the condition changes, then release the line.

The dispatcher does not disconnect first unless the caller is abusive or the line is required for another emergency.

A reported change in the patient's condition after dispatch requires re-entry into the protocol and may raise the determinant and response level.

All instructions given, and the caller's responses to them, are documented in the call record for quality review and responder briefing.