Operational Medicine Research Group
Managing Stress in EMS
Managing Stress in EMS - Whether you are a firefighter, an EMT, a paramedic, a first responder, or a dispatcher, as an emergency care provider, you spend your days, nights, and even weekends caring for others. But who is caring for you?
EMS professionals must constantly refine their stress management skills in order to live their lives with a greater sense of balance. Not only will this text alert EMS professionals to the stressors in their lives, but it will teach them to identify problem situations and effectively resolve issues, leading to a healthier, more fulfilling lifestyle.
- EMS-specific issues are addressed, including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Critical Incident Stress Debriefing, and gallows humor.
- "Road to Relaxation" boxes and "Stress Strategies" provide advice and activities to help providers mentally and physically relax and to relieve or avoid stress.
IntroductionThe mission of the Operational Medicine Research Group, LLC, is to advance the quality of public safety and out-of-hospital medical training and education by conducting research that not only challenges current practices, but assists the establishments in creating new mindset and methods of training to further advance the provision of medical care in austere and challenging environments. Operational medical essentials, is a concept to describe an approach to contextual-based medical practice outside the realm of the hospital infrastructure. Contexts for operational medical essentials include tactical medicine - law enforcement support, military tactical medicine, disaster response medicine as well as traditional pre-hospital medicine and derivatives of emergency medical services (EMS). Training focus will target contextual integration of medicine into operational activities. Additionally, research into human performance factors and the effects of stress under austere conditions for rescuers will be included into training activities. Concepts regarding the adverse effects of stress upon rescuers has been put forth in the first book in a planned series.
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The Right to Self ProtectionIn light of the chaotic nature of our present day world, the growing need for individuals to possess the tools to protect themselves in the event of a physical encounter is growing at increasingly alarming rates. Many of us tend to neglect this need, believing that “it cannot happen to me”. But the reality is that it can happen and does to handfuls of innocent, un-expecting citizens everyday. Self protection is a means to keep yourself out of harm’s way when at all possible, preferably all the time – it is a mental state. Self defense is a means to respond to an attack or aggressive encounter – it is a means to create a vehicle of escape to safety.
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