Medications

[bdoss2006]

What do you do if someone has took a BLS medication (Zofran, Benadryl, albuterol etc.) prior to your arrival, but still needs more? How long after each does it have to be for you to give them. That is something that my protocols don’t really say.

 

[mgr22]

You should get a ruling on that from medical control, your medical director, or someone in that hierarchy.

 

[Tigger]

Out old guidelines said any ALS med needed to given 30 minutes prior to transport if the EMT was going to attend. This wording has disappeared lately….

Zofran and albuterol are BLS here and EMTs can also assist with OTC medications in Colorado so the above scenario would not really apply.

That said a patient requiring continued albuterol treatments should probably get an ALS attend if possible.

 

[Akulahawk]

Most places that I'm familiar with allow an EMT to assist a patient with their own medication but the PATIENT is the one that must be administering it to themselves. I would suspect that if a medication is considered to be BLS by EMS, and a patient needs another dose of that BLS medication, follow the EMS orders for that medication. You'll need to know if that EMS med order allows for repeat doses.

 

[EpiEMS]

This is a question that should be answered by your protocols, that is a system deficiency. I would consider following the EMS administration guidance in your protocols if it is going to be necessary to administer, and I cannot get in touch with OLMC *or* the patient is in extremis (hard to think of a specific circumstance where this would be the case for a BLS med not covered in protocol). If I can, I'd probably call OLMC.

Zofran and albuterol are BLS here and EMTs can also assist with OTC medications in Colorado so the above scenario would not really apply.

Living the dream with that BLS zofran.

 

[bdoss2006]

Most places that I'm familiar with allow an EMT to assist a patient with their own medication but the PATIENT is the one that must be administering it to themselves. I would suspect that if a medication is considered to be BLS by EMS, and a patient needs another dose of that BLS medication, follow the EMS orders for that medication. You'll need to know if that EMS med order allows for repeat doses.

Not in Virginia. We can administer Epi, glucagon, oral glucose, Zofran, duoneb etc. whether it’s their medicine or not. We have a specific BLS drug box on the truck.

 

[Akulahawk]

What do you do if someone has took a BLS medication (Zofran, Benadryl, albuterol etc.) prior to your arrival, but still needs more? How long after each does it have to be for you to give them. That is something that my protocols don’t really say.

Not in Virginia. We can administer Epi, glucagon, oral glucose, Zofran, duoneb etc. whether it’s their medicine or not. We have a specific BLS drug box on the truck.

My statement above was not limited to EMTs being allowed to ONLY assist patients with their meds. If there are meds that BLS may administer under their own protocols, that's also OK. However, you should be aware of how often YOUR protocols allow for meds to be repeated. If you are not sure if/how frequently a med administration may be repeated, you probably shouldn't administer that repeat dose. If you're administering a medication to a patient because you're following protocol and you don't know your meds well enough to state how often a med may be repeated, or what the maximum daily dose is, you probably don't know your med well enough.