The stress experienced in an emergency medical service (EMS): A descriptive study.

INTRODUCTION: Stress, described as an adaptation of the body to an event, is a considerable problem among health workers, especially for those who work in emergency situations, as they very often have to face complex situations. It has been proven that stress affects the performance of health professionals, which is why it is interesting to measure it in these situations, to be able to know what methods to implement to reduce it in future events. Despite having previous measurements in healthcare personnel during clinical simulations, this study is relevant because stress has never before been measured in EMS professionals when performing their work. OBJECTIVE: To determine the acute stress experienced by professionals in an Emergency Medical Service (EMS) when handling five types of clinical emergencies. As secondary objectives, to determine if there were differences in the increases in stress in relation to sex, age, profession, team, and above all, type of emergency handled. METHOD: The following were measured for the analysis: physiological (mean heart rate (HR), systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressure), and biochemical (salivary alpha amylase (sAA) activity) markers, before (Basal) and after (Post-Stress) the interventions of 27 professionals from an EMS. RESULTS: In general, the results obtained showed significant differences between the baseline measurement of physiological and biochemical markers versus the post-exposure measurement. Some of the differences in stress levels in relation to sex and professional role are striking. CONCLUSION: The determination of acute stress experienced by professionals from an EMS in a real emergency showed significant increases in the sAA enzymatic marker of acute stress. These results are the first data published in this regard, and could be used as a reference to follow in clinical simulation in the training of students and the training of nursing professionals. IMPLICATIONS FOR CLINICAL PRACTICE: Evidence based studies are needed to improve the education and training of emergency and intensive care professionals. The results from are a great step in the analysis of the real stress that professionals are subjected to when they handle different emergencies.

Cervical misalignment in motorcyclists in relation to new helmet removal recommendations shown with augmented reality resources: A biomechanical analysis.

Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the best technique and position for helmet removal in injured motorcyclists by comparing cervical misalignment produced in the supine position and prone position. Method: Comparative cross-sectional clinical simulation study to quantify CM using biomechanical analysis with the use of inertial systems. The main variable was determined for the flexion-extension motion. The extraction was tested for both positions (prone position and supine position), which were repeated 3 times for each of the 30 volunteers included, and the movement from the initial neutral position was also determined, resulting in a total of 270 biomechanical studies. Results: A flexion was observed when moving the patient from the neutral position to the SP, due to the size of the helmet, of 1.29° ± 5.12°. Helmet removal in the supine position resulted in an average flexion-extension range of 17.51° ± 6.49°, while the same extraction in prone position recorded an average range of 10.82° ± 8.05°. For the main variable, statistically significant differences were found when comparing prone position and supine position (p = 0.0087). Conclusions: The main conclusion of the study is that the helmet removal should be done in the position in which we find the patient, whether in prone position or supine position. Additionally, the new technique described for the prone position causes less movement of the cervical spine than the usual supine position.