PHECC Advanced Paramedic key terms

The published national documents issued by PHECC that set out the assessment and treatment steps Advanced Paramedics are expected to follow for each presenting condition, including which medications and interventions may be used.

The defined range of skills, assessments and medications an Advanced Paramedic is authorised to use, determined by their registration level, PHECC standards and local service policy rather than personal preference.

A practitioner whose name appears on the PHECC register at a particular registration level, and who is therefore entitled to practise and use the associated titles, skills and medicines within the limits of that level.

The ongoing requirement for registered practitioners to maintain and demonstrate current knowledge and skills through recorded education, practice and assessment so that registration can be renewed.

Passing a specific task or intervention to another practitioner who is competent to perform it, while the delegating Advanced Paramedic retains accountability for the decision and for ensuring appropriate supervision.

Being answerable for one's own clinical decisions and actions, including omissions, so that the practitioner must be able to justify what was done or not done in the patient's interest.

A patient's voluntary agreement to assessment or treatment, given with sufficient information and decision-making capacity; it may be implied by cooperation in an emergency or refused, and refusal must be respected and recorded.

A person's ability at the time of a decision to understand information relevant to it, retain it, weigh it and communicate a choice; it is decision-specific and may fluctuate, for example with intoxication or head injury.

A patient's informed decision to decline assessment, treatment or transport; the practitioner must confirm capacity, explain risks, consider safeguarding and document the discussion and any advice given.

The duty not to disclose patient information to others except with consent, where required by law, or where necessary to protect the patient or the public, sharing only the minimum needed.

The contemporaneous written record of assessment findings, decisions, interventions, times, medication doses and responses, made so that another clinician could understand and continue the patient's care.

The structured transfer of responsibility for a patient to another clinician, communicating presenting problem, findings, treatment given and outstanding concerns so that care continues safely.

A rapid, prioritised assessment of catastrophic or immediately life-threatening problems, usually structured as airway, breathing, circulation, disability and exposure, with resuscitation begun as each problem is found.

A systematic head-to-toe examination and history taken after immediate threats have been managed, to identify other injuries, signs of illness and relevant background information.

A structured history covering signs and symptoms, allergies, medications, past medical history, last oral intake and events leading to the presentation, used to guide treatment and destination decisions.

The process of gathering findings, forming and testing working impressions, and choosing an action such as treat, transport, refer or escalate, while weighing benefits, risks and available resources.

A finding that signals serious underlying illness or rapid deterioration, such as altered consciousness, severe pain or abnormal vital signs, and which should change urgency or destination rather than be observed expectantly.

Sorting patients by urgency of need so that limited resources are directed to those most at risk, using physiological and situational findings rather than the order of arrival.

Whether air can pass freely from the mouth or nose to the lungs; it is assessed by look, listen and feel for air movement and is threatened by the tongue, vomit, blood, swelling or foreign bodies.

A manual manoeuvre that lifts the tongue away from the back of the throat by extending the head and lifting the chin, used to open the airway when cervical spine injury is not suspected.

An airway-opening manoeuvre in which the angles of the jaw are lifted forward without extending the neck, preferred where cervical spine injury is suspected or when head tilt is ineffective.

A curved plastic device inserted into the mouth to hold the tongue forward and maintain a clear passage; it is only tolerated in patients with a depressed level of consciousness and requires correct sizing.

An airway device placed blindly above the larynx to channel air into the trachea without entering it, used as a rescue or primary adjunct in patients who are unresponsive and not breathing adequately.

Delivery of breaths by squeezing a self-inflating bag attached to a mask sealed over the face, requiring a patent airway, a good seal and a two-person technique where possible to avoid gastric inflation.

A positive-pressure breath given to a patient who is not breathing adequately, delivered over about one second with just enough volume to produce visible chest rise.

Chest compressions combined with ventilations, delivered in a defined ratio and depth, to maintain circulation and oxygenation when a patient is in cardiac arrest until return of spontaneous circulation or termination of efforts.

Delivery of an unsynchronised electrical shock to terminate a shockable rhythm such as ventricular fibrillation or pulseless ventricular tachycardia, most effective when performed early after collapse.

The sequence of actions that together improve survival from cardiac arrest: early recognition and call for help, early CPR, early defibrillation, advanced care and post-resuscitation care.

Continuous measurement and display of exhaled carbon dioxide, used to confirm and monitor airway placement, judge quality of compressions and ventilation, and detect return of spontaneous circulation.

A scored assessment of eye opening, verbal response and motor response, giving a total from three to fifteen that describes level of consciousness and allows trends to be tracked.

A quick four-level description of responsiveness: alert, responding to voice, responding to pain, or unresponsive; it is faster than the Glasgow Coma Scale but less detailed.

The path by which a medicine enters the body, such as intravenous, intramuscular, intranasal, inhaled, oral or rectal, chosen for speed of onset, reliability of absorption and patient condition.

Using a medicine in a way not covered by its product authorisation, such as a different indication, dose or route, which may be permitted only where authorised by the relevant guidelines or governance arrangements.

A harmful or unintended response to a medicine given at a normal dose, ranging from rash to anaphylaxis, which must be recognised, treated and reported through the appropriate reporting system.

A severe, rapidly developing systemic hypersensitivity reaction involving airway swelling, bronchospasm or circulatory collapse, treated promptly with intramuscular adrenaline, oxygen and fluids.

A circumstance in which a medicine or intervention should not be used, either absolutely because harm clearly outweighs benefit, or relatively because risk is raised and must be weighed against need.

Systematic review of recorded practice against an agreed standard, used to identify gaps and drive improvement in patient care rather than to judge an individual clinician.

The legal and ethical rules governing how patient information is collected, stored, shared and disposed of, requiring that it is used only for legitimate purposes and kept secure.