Includes index.

Ch. 1. Overview of Patient Assessment -- Importance of a Standardized Approach -- Overview of the Six Components of Patient Assessment -- Ch. 2. Listening to Patients -- Communication -- Making the Patient Comfortable -- Communication Techniques -- Barriers to Communication -- Special Challenges in Communicating with a Patient -- Communicating with Children -- Communicating with the Elderly -- Cultural Considerations Affecting Communication -- Ch. 3. Sizing up the Scene -- Hazards on the Scene -- Body Substance Isolation -- Mechanism of Injury or Nature of Illness -- Resources Needed and the Number of Patients -- Ch. 4. Initial Assessment -- First Impressions -- Mental Status -- Airway Status -- Breathing -- Circulatory Status -- Priority -- Ch. 5. Making a Priority Decision -- Priority Decision -- Systems of Prioritizing -- Tools Used to Determine Priority -- Triaging and Prioritizing the Burn Patient -- Triage to Determine Who Rides the Helicopter -- Triage in Multiple-Casualty Incidents -- Trauma Centers -- Ch. 6. Baseline and Serial Vital Signs -- Signs versus Symptoms -- Traditional Vital Signs -- Additional Vital Signs of Significance -- Baseline versus Serial Vital Signs -- Ch. 7. Focused History and Physical Examination of the Trauma Patient -- Reconsider the Mechanism of Injury -- Significant Trauma -- Minor Trauma -- Ch. 8. Rapid Trauma Examination -- Rapid Trauma Examination -- Steps in the Rapid Trauma Examination -- Ch. 9. Focused History and Physical Examination of the Medical Patient -- Determining Responsiveness -- Focused History -- Focused Physical Examination -- Ch. 10. Rapid Physical Examination -- Rapid Physical Examination -- Steps in the Rapid Physical Examination -- Gaining Proficiency -- Ch. 11. Detailed Physical Examination -- Detailed Physical Examination -- Priority Determines Care --