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Courses >
Personal Enrichment > Handling Medical Emergencies
 What would you do if a member of your family suffered a medical emergency? You could certainly call for trained emergency medical responders, but what would you do while you're waiting for them to arrive?
Every second counts during a medical emergency. Recognizing the early signs and symptoms of common medical conditions and providing appropriate treatment can mean a better outcome for the patient. Early recognition and intervention can greatly reduce the seriousness of the illness, which means a shorter hospital stay and lower medical costs. It's also very satisfying to know how to help someone in a time of need.
This course will identify common medical emergencies affecting children and adults, help you recognize signs and symptoms, and teach you how to render appropriate emergency care. For adults, you will learn how to recognize and manage chest pain, heart attack, stroke, diabetic problems, seizures, breathing difficulty, burns, and allergic reactions. For children, you will also learn about poisoning, fever, childhood illnesses, injuries from accidents, and the signs of abuse.
This course includes a knowledgeable and caring instructor who will guide you through your lessons, facilitate discussions, and answer your questions. The instructor for this course will be Bryan Scyphers.
 Bryan Scyphers is a Nationally Registered Paramedic who has provided emergency medical care for over 28 years. A former student trainer for Virginia Tech’s football team and a trainer with the San Francisco Giants baseball organization, he is also experienced in sports medicine. Bryan holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Education, has taught pre-hospital emergency medicine at the college level for many years, and has trained hundreds of Emergency Medical Technicians and Paramedics. He has responded to over 8,000 calls for medical assistance and is currently a member of the National Disaster Medical System, responding to natural and man-made disasters in the United States. Bryan is also a member of the National Medical Response Team, deployed to render aid to locations threatened by the use of nuclear, biological, or chemical Weapons of Mass Destruction.
To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:
Requirements:
Internet access, e-mail, the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser, and the Adobe Flash and PDF plug-ins (two free and simple downloads you obtain at http://www.adobe.com/downloads by clicking Get Adobe Flash Player and Get Adobe Reader).
Syllabus:
All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two lessons are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have to be present when the lesson is released, but you must complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.
A new section of each course starts on the second or third Wednesday of each month. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.
| Week One |
| Wednesday - Lesson 01 |
Every day, thousands of medical emergencies occur in the United States. In our first lesson, you'll learn what happens when someone dials 911 to report the emergency. You'll see how emergency 911 operators do their jobs, who will respond to the emergency, and what will happen after emergency medical services personnel arrive at the scene. We'll also explore how you can help without exposing yourself to legal liability. Then, we'll start going over the human body so you'll know why your organs work like they do!
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| Friday - Lesson 02 |
Today, you'll learn how to make sure you stay safe at the scene of an emergency—from watching out for traffic and identifying hazards, to protecting yourself from transmitted diseases. Then, you'll learn the ABCs of emergency care so you'll know what steps to take in order to help someone in need. Also, you'll see how to take a reading of a patient's respiration and pulse to determine if the heart and lungs are working normally.
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| Week Two |
| Wednesday - Lesson 03 |
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for adults in the USA. In today's lesson, you'll learn what causes heart disease and how you and your family can prevent it from happening to yourselves. We'll discuss angina and heart attacks, and I'll tell you why you may not want your family member to go to the closest hospital if you suspect they may be having heart problems!
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| Friday - Lesson 04 |
Would you know what to do if your child suddenly choked on a small toy or piece of food? Today's lesson addresses choking and breathing problems, the leading causes of accidental deaths in children. You'll also learn about asthma, emphysema, pneumonia, and carbon monoxide poisoning. And I'll show you how using everyday household cleaning products might be dangerous!
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| Week Three |
| Wednesday - Lesson 05 |
In this lesson, you'll learn all about the body's master organ—the brain! We'll discuss concussions, head injuries, seizures, and strokes. You'll see how the pupils of the eyes give you important information about brain function, and how to recognize the signs of a stroke, one of the most common events leading to adult disability.
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| Friday - Lesson 06 |
Do you know what the largest organ of the body is? Surprise—it's your skin! In today's lesson, we'll go over what happens when you injure your skin—whether you've scraped, cut, torn, punctured, or burned it. We'll also go over how to recognize the signs of bleeding, even if the bleeding is internal and out of your sight. You'll see how to stop all types of bleeding and how to treat all types of burns, including electrical, chemical, thermal, and even severe sunburns!
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| Week Four |
| Wednesday - Lesson 07 |
In today's lesson, you'll learn all about shock . . . not the electrical kind, but the type that prevents oxygen from getting to your body's cells. You'll learn how to recognize and treat shock caused by infections, allergic reactions, bleeding, breathing problems, diabetes, heart problems, spinal injuries, and simple fainting. You'll also see what to look for to determine if an unconscious person has a chronic medical problem, with no one around to tell you about it!
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| Friday - Lesson 08 |
Today, we'll go in depth to learn about underlying medical problems such as diabetes, gallstones, hepatitis, appendicitis, and kidney stones. You'll also learn about heat and cold emergencies, from heat exhaustion and heat stroke to frostbite and hypothermia. And you'll find out what's happening if your patient's eyeballs look yellow!
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| Week Five |
| Wednesday - Lesson 09 |
Almost 3 million children are victims of accidental poisoning each year. In this lesson, you'll learn how poisoning occurs—how it gets into a child's body through absorption, inhalation, ingestion, or injection. You'll see why poison control centers have been established throughout the country and how you can reach one using a single phone number. Most important, you'll learn what to do and what not to do before medical help arrives at your house.
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| Friday - Lesson 10 |
Today, we'll focus on injuries to the bones and joints. We'll explore fractures, sprains, and strains, as well as how to handle neck and back injuries without causing further harm to your patient. You'll learn how to use common items to make splints to stabilize an arm or leg until help arrives. Then, we'll talk about common sports injuries affecting adults and children. You'll also learn about athletic trainers and the roles they serve in organized team sports.
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| Week Six |
| Wednesday - Lesson 11 |
Children aren't just little adults! In this lesson, you'll learn how children react to injury and illness, and how you can interact with them during the various stages they go through as they grow up. You'll learn the differences in their anatomy as they get bigger, how their vital signs change, and how they're so much more susceptible to shock than adults are. And we'll explore common childhood emergencies such as infection, fever, and seizures. Then, we'll examine the early warning signs of substance abuse among teenagers and talk about a difficult topic—teen suicide and self-injury.
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| Friday - Lesson 12 |
In our final lesson, you'll learn about illnesses common to children—croup, epiglottitis, asthma, and meningitis. We'll also explore SIDS—Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, and learn why researchers think it occurs and steps you can take to reduce its risk. We'll close by discussing the nationwide problem of child neglect and abuse, how to recognize the signs and symptoms of physical and sexual abuse, and why just one phone call can make a major positive step in an abused child's life!
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To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:
Student Reviews:
"Best online course I have taken so far. Learned a lot of useful information. I will actually be able to use the knowledge from this course in my life."
"Excellent class, had a lot of fun completing the assignments. Would definitely recommend this class to anyone wanting to start a new direction in life."
"I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed this course, and how much useful information I learned! I feel much better prepared in my home and classroom to handle emergency situations that may arise. As an instructor, I think you did a great job of coming up with good discussion area questions and assignments. I always felt like you were interested in our answers, and I enjoyed answering the assignments. Thanks for making me a safer mom and teacher!"
"I have enjoyed the course thoroughly and feel very confident that, as a teacher, I could handle any medical emergency that comes my way."
"I have gained so much information from the lessons. I was even able to recognize the first sign of my son having an asthma attack. Being able to know what to do and not be afraid but confident makes me feel happy. Thank you for all the knowledge!"
"I think this course was one of the best I have taken. The information it provides is invaluable for all. I would highly recommend it to everyone. I have gained so much insight in handling emergencies. Thank you!"
"I thoroughly enjoyed this course!! I think that the instructor is very knowledgeable in all areas of medical emergencies. I have learned so much valuable information. I made copies of the lessons so that I could have a manual in case I needed help with certain emergency situations. Once again, thanks for the great course!!"
"Not only would I recommend this class, I think it should be mandatory for everyone to take. This professor is the most awesome instructor of education I have yet to meet. I loved every minute of his class. I learned more here than I did while taking CPR and First Aid for over 12 years. I wish he had more classes in my field, I would take every one of them. Thank you so much for this instructor."
"This class was very informative. I learned a lot without any unnecessary busy work. I would recommend this course to anybody."
"This course provided some excellent material that can be used with your family and in the community. Well done."
"This course was very helpful, informative, and exciting. I am sure that I would like to continue a formal training in emergency medicine. Thanks!"
To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:
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