Pediatric advanced life support has become such an integral part of emergency care in the United States that it is hard to believe that it has been only 18 years since the first PALS course was offered in the fall of 1988. The abundance of textbooks and courses in pediatric resuscitation currently being produced belie the paucity of concern and resources available for the care of critically ill children at the time that first course was offered. We can recall the spate of newspaper articles decrying the care our children were receiving, the lack of pediatric equipment in our rescue squads and emergency departments, and the inadequate training of our personnel, from first responder to physician, in dealing with pediatric emergencies.
There was a remarkable response to these reports, both at the national and the local levels. Funding was provided by the federal government to establish Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMS-C), a program that has now touched every state in the Union. Research projects were planned, needs were assessed, equipment was purchased, child safety programs were initiated, and courses were developed. Among the most successful programs created during this period was the American Heart Association’s Pediatric Advanced Life Support Course, thanks in large part to the efforts of Dr. Leon Chemeides and others in promoting pediatric resuscitation.
PALS has become an integral part of the “alphabet soup” of courses required of many physicians, nurses, respiratory care professionals, paramedics, and emergency medical technicians. It provides a common language and approach in dealing with the critically ill child. It provides a mechanism for disseminating information in a period of increasingly rapid change, and it strives to provide evidence-based approaches in pediatric resuscitation. Currently, there are over 270,000 providers and 26,000 instructors certified in PALS.
The purpose of this book is to encourage the learning and retention of the material presented in a PALS course. The material has been updated according to the 2005 guidelines. The authors have worked through the material paragraph by paragraph, creating questions about the information presented in that text. All of the answers are either direct quotes or paraphrases of the published materials. While the primary purpose of the other volumes in the Pearls of Wisdom series is to help you study for a standardized test, the primary purpose of PALS Pearls of Wisdom is to help you learn and review information by utilizing the Socratic method instead of reading a text. It will help you study and review information critical to improving the emergency care received by our children as well as improve your performance on the PALS final exam.
With this goal in mind, the text is written in question/answer format. The student receives immediate gratification with a correct answer. Misleading or confusing multiple-choice “foils” are not provided, thereby eliminating the risk of assimilating erroneous information. Another advantage of this format is that the student either knows or does not know the answer to a given question. This results in active learning, rather than the passive learning of studying multiple-choice questions. Active learning goes beyond the desire to pass an exam; when administering epinephrine to a child in cardiac arrest, you must know instantly that you need to push 0.01 mg/kg, and there will be nobody to ask you if you want to push (a) 1 mg, (b) 0.1 mg/kg, (c) 0.01 mg/kg, or (d) none of the above.
Questions may have answers without explanation. This is done to enhance ease of reading and rate of learning. Explanations often occur in a later question/answer. It may happen that upon reading an answer, the reader may think—“Hmm, why is that?” or, “Are you sure?” If this happens to you, GO CHECK! Truly assimilating this information into a framework of knowledge absolutely requires further reading. Information learned as a response to seeking an answer to a particular question is much better retained than that passively read. Take advantage of this. Use PALS/Review Pearls of Wisdom with your provider manual and preferred source texts handy and open or, if you are reviewing on a train, plane, or camelback, mark the question for further investigation.
By definition, resuscitation courses are developed by consensus and their texts must be produced on a given date. The dynamic knowledge base and clinical practice of medicine is not like that! The information taken as “correct” is that indicated by the 2005 guidelines. New research and practice occasionally deviate from that which likely represents the “right” answer for test purposes. Refer to your most current sources of information and local authorities for direction on current practice.
PALS Review Pearls of Wisdom is designed to be used, not just read. It is an interactive text. Use a 3 × 5 card and cover the answer. Attempt all questions. A study method we strongly recommend is oral group study. The mechanics of this method are simple and no one ever appears stupid. One person holds the book, with answers covered, and reads the question. Each person, including the reader says “Check!” when he or she has an answer in mind. After everyone has “checked” in, someone states his or her answer. If this answer is correct, on to the next one. If not, another person states his or her answer, or the answer can be read. Usually, the person who “checks” in first gets the first opportunity at stating the answer. If this person is being an answer-hog, then others can take turns. You can do it in teams. Try it—it’s almost fun!
PALS Review Pearls of Wisdom is also designed to be reused several times to allow for improved performance in answering the questions correctly. If you are a pessimist, put a check mark in the circle every time you miss a question. If you check the circle twice for one question, this concept needs further study. Forget this question! You will get it wrong on the exam. If you are an optimist, place a check mark when the question is answered correctly once; skip all questions with check marks thereafter. Utilize whatever scheme of using the check circles that assists you in learning or relearning the material.
Contents
The 2005 Guidelines: What Do You Need to Know?
About the Author
There was a remarkable response to these reports, both at the national and the local levels. Funding was provided by the federal government to establish Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMS-C), a program that has now touched every state in the Union. Research projects were planned, needs were assessed, equipment was purchased, child safety programs were initiated, and courses were developed. Among the most successful programs created during this period was the American Heart Association’s Pediatric Advanced Life Support Course, thanks in large part to the efforts of Dr. Leon Chemeides and others in promoting pediatric resuscitation.
PALS has become an integral part of the “alphabet soup” of courses required of many physicians, nurses, respiratory care professionals, paramedics, and emergency medical technicians. It provides a common language and approach in dealing with the critically ill child. It provides a mechanism for disseminating information in a period of increasingly rapid change, and it strives to provide evidence-based approaches in pediatric resuscitation. Currently, there are over 270,000 providers and 26,000 instructors certified in PALS.
The purpose of this book is to encourage the learning and retention of the material presented in a PALS course. The material has been updated according to the 2005 guidelines. The authors have worked through the material paragraph by paragraph, creating questions about the information presented in that text. All of the answers are either direct quotes or paraphrases of the published materials. While the primary purpose of the other volumes in the Pearls of Wisdom series is to help you study for a standardized test, the primary purpose of PALS Pearls of Wisdom is to help you learn and review information by utilizing the Socratic method instead of reading a text. It will help you study and review information critical to improving the emergency care received by our children as well as improve your performance on the PALS final exam.
With this goal in mind, the text is written in question/answer format. The student receives immediate gratification with a correct answer. Misleading or confusing multiple-choice “foils” are not provided, thereby eliminating the risk of assimilating erroneous information. Another advantage of this format is that the student either knows or does not know the answer to a given question. This results in active learning, rather than the passive learning of studying multiple-choice questions. Active learning goes beyond the desire to pass an exam; when administering epinephrine to a child in cardiac arrest, you must know instantly that you need to push 0.01 mg/kg, and there will be nobody to ask you if you want to push (a) 1 mg, (b) 0.1 mg/kg, (c) 0.01 mg/kg, or (d) none of the above.
Questions may have answers without explanation. This is done to enhance ease of reading and rate of learning. Explanations often occur in a later question/answer. It may happen that upon reading an answer, the reader may think—“Hmm, why is that?” or, “Are you sure?” If this happens to you, GO CHECK! Truly assimilating this information into a framework of knowledge absolutely requires further reading. Information learned as a response to seeking an answer to a particular question is much better retained than that passively read. Take advantage of this. Use PALS/Review Pearls of Wisdom with your provider manual and preferred source texts handy and open or, if you are reviewing on a train, plane, or camelback, mark the question for further investigation.
By definition, resuscitation courses are developed by consensus and their texts must be produced on a given date. The dynamic knowledge base and clinical practice of medicine is not like that! The information taken as “correct” is that indicated by the 2005 guidelines. New research and practice occasionally deviate from that which likely represents the “right” answer for test purposes. Refer to your most current sources of information and local authorities for direction on current practice.
PALS Review Pearls of Wisdom is designed to be used, not just read. It is an interactive text. Use a 3 × 5 card and cover the answer. Attempt all questions. A study method we strongly recommend is oral group study. The mechanics of this method are simple and no one ever appears stupid. One person holds the book, with answers covered, and reads the question. Each person, including the reader says “Check!” when he or she has an answer in mind. After everyone has “checked” in, someone states his or her answer. If this answer is correct, on to the next one. If not, another person states his or her answer, or the answer can be read. Usually, the person who “checks” in first gets the first opportunity at stating the answer. If this person is being an answer-hog, then others can take turns. You can do it in teams. Try it—it’s almost fun!
PALS Review Pearls of Wisdom is also designed to be reused several times to allow for improved performance in answering the questions correctly. If you are a pessimist, put a check mark in the circle every time you miss a question. If you check the circle twice for one question, this concept needs further study. Forget this question! You will get it wrong on the exam. If you are an optimist, place a check mark when the question is answered correctly once; skip all questions with check marks thereafter. Utilize whatever scheme of using the check circles that assists you in learning or relearning the material.
Study hard and good luck!
The 2005 Guidelines: What Do You Need to Know?
Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) recommendations are ever changing as is the literature that supports these guidelines for resuscitation. In the medical journal Circulation, December 2005, the American Heart Association (AHA) published its latest guidelines for resuscitation.
The process of changing resuscitation guidelines is not a simple one. The evidence evaluation for the 2005 changes was extensive and took place over 3 years. Hundreds of experts in the United States and around the world participated in this process. The end result is a set of new guidelines for resuscitation and new educational materials to train providers in their use.
- 1. Emergency Medical Services for Children
- 2. Recognition of Shock and Respiratory Failure
- 3. Pediatric Basic Life Support
- 4. Airway and Ventilation
- 5. Vascular Access
- 6. Fluid Therapy and Medications
- 7. Cardiac Rhythm Disturbances
- 8. Trauma Resuscitation
- 9. Newborn Resuscitation
- 10. Immediate Postarrest Stabilization and Secondary Transport
- 11. Ethical and Legal Aspects of CPR in Children
About the Author
- Guy H Haskell, Ph.D, NREMT-P is the Director of Emergency Medical and Safety Services Consultants. He is also a Paramedic and Firefighter with the Benton Township Volunteer Fire Department in Unionville, IN.
- Marianne Gausche-Hill, MD, FACEP, FAAP is a Professor of Medicine at David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA in Los Angeles, CA. She is also the Director of Emergency Medical Services and Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowships at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center's Department of Emergency Medicine in Torrance, CA.
Book Details
- Paperback: 200 pages
- Publisher: McGraw-Hill/Appleton & Lange; 3 edition (May 9, 2007)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0071488332
- ISBN-13: 978-0071488334
- Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8.4 x 0.5 inches