Medical Emergencies in the Dental Setting
Course #54354 - $45 -
- Participation Instructions
- Review the course material online or in print.
- Complete the course evaluation.
- Review your Transcript to view and print your Certificate of Completion. Your date of completion will be the date (Pacific Time) the course was electronically submitted for credit, with no exceptions. Partial credit is not available.
Numerous dental procedures are completed annually, many with the use of local anesthesia. The individual health of the dental patients can span the spectrum of issues. Some patients will have no current medical problems, while others can have one or more chronic health issues, some for which prescribed medications are taken. Any of these patients can develop a life-threatening medical problem during any phase of dental treatment. Even patients without past or current medical problems can become involved in an acute medical crisis for which immediate medical assistance performed by trained staff members is required. A thorough awareness of the patient's current and past medical history is required before the initiation of any dental treatment, as it can identify issues that may predispose a patient to a medical emergency. This course will review the most common medical emergencies that arise during dental treatment and their underlying cause(s), pathophysiology, and treatment. Staff preparation and the appropriate medications used for emergency medical treatment will be reviewed.
- INTRODUCTION
- PATIENT ASSESSMENT AND MEDICAL HISTORY
- COMMON MEDICAL EMERGENCIES IN THE DENTAL SETTING
- ALLERGIC REACTIONS DURING DENTAL TREATMENT
- ASPIRATED AND INGESTED OBJECTS DURING DENTAL TREATMENT
- STAFF PREPARATION AND TRAINING FOR MEDICAL EMERGENCIES
- CONCLUSION
- Works Cited
- Evidence-Based Practice Recommendations Citations
This course is designed for all members of the dental profession, including dentists, dental hygienists, and dental assistants.
Patients, those who accompany them, or members of the dental staff can be stricken suddenly and without warning by any of a variety of medical emergency issues. The purpose of this course is to provide all members of the dental staff with the training necessary to provide immediate assistance to a patient that experiences any problem that constitutes a medical emergency.
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:
- Outline the importance of the medical history as a means to decrease the occurrence of medical emergencies.
- Review the most common medical emergencies in the dental setting and how to identify patients who may be at risk.
- Identify causes of allergic reactions during dental treatment and describe acute care interventions.
- Discuss methods to prevent aspiration and the protocol to treat patients who have aspirated an object.
- Outline the role and responsibilities of the dental staff during a medical emergency.
Mark J. Szarejko, DDS, FAGD, received his dental degree from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1985. He received fellowship from the Academy of General Dentistry in 1994.
Contributing faculty, Mark J. Szarejko, DDS, FAGD, has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
Sarah Campbell
The Director of Development and Academic Affairs has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
The purpose of NetCE is to provide challenging curricula to assist healthcare professionals to raise their levels of expertise while fulfilling their continuing education requirements, thereby improving the quality of healthcare.
Our contributing faculty members have taken care to ensure that the information and recommendations are accurate and compatible with the standards generally accepted at the time of publication. The publisher disclaims any liability, loss or damage incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents. Participants are cautioned about the potential risk of using limited knowledge when integrating new techniques into practice.
It is the policy of NetCE not to accept commercial support. Furthermore, commercial interests are prohibited from distributing or providing access to this activity to learners.
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The role of implicit biases on healthcare outcomes has become a concern, as there is some evidence that implicit biases contribute to health disparities, professionals' attitudes toward and interactions with patients, quality of care, diagnoses, and treatment decisions. This may produce differences in help-seeking, diagnoses, and ultimately treatments and interventions. Implicit biases may also unwittingly produce professional behaviors, attitudes, and interactions that reduce patients' trust and comfort with their provider, leading to earlier termination of visits and/or reduced adherence and follow-up. Disadvantaged groups are marginalized in the healthcare system and vulnerable on multiple levels; health professionals' implicit biases can further exacerbate these existing disadvantages.
Interventions or strategies designed to reduce implicit bias may be categorized as change-based or control-based. Change-based interventions focus on reducing or changing cognitive associations underlying implicit biases. These interventions might include challenging stereotypes. Conversely, control-based interventions involve reducing the effects of the implicit bias on the individual's behaviors. These strategies include increasing awareness of biased thoughts and responses. The two types of interventions are not mutually exclusive and may be used synergistically.