July 13, 2014
Aileen Boyd
The following is an example of a case study that
could be given to paramedic students after they
have learned the theory behind medical
emergencies.
The introduction would be given prior to the class
so the students will know what to expect
(activation).

As a demonstration, the students will be given
a short example of what is expected. I would
start with the following practice:
You have a 16 year old male complaining of chest
pain, name 3 causes it could be.
 What if the patient was 80 years old or 6 years old?
Anything change?
 Would the colour, temperature, condition of the skin
change your diagnosis? Why or why not?
 Given the following vital signs and history (not
provided here), what is the likely cause of the chest
pain?

You have been dispatched for a patient with
abdominal pain.
You have three minutes to write down 25 causes
of abdominal pain
Now turn to your neighbor and collaborate your
lists.
A 14 year old female lying in the fetal position
clutching her stomach and crying. She is pale,
cool and dry, she has a rapid radial pulse and has
active guarding throughout her abdomen.
Collaborate with 4 others, write down 5 reasons
for the guarding and 10 likely causes of the
abdominal pain based on age and gender.
Your patient is a
 14 year old male
 75 year old female
 obese 25 year old male
 6 year old male
 middle aged homeless man

Collaborate with 4 others to:


List five questions that you want answered.
Now consider if this was a 14 year old male, a 75
year old female, a 25 year old obese male or a 6
year old male
Any similarities/differences? Collaborate with
another group
Your 14 year old female patient tells you that she was in a
car accident 4 days ago with her boyfriend. They were at a
party and he was driving her home when they struck a
tree with the front of the car. She wore her seat belt, the
car did not have air bags and was travelling at
approximately 100 kmh. They did not report it and both
ran from the scene.
What anatomical structures might be involved in
this mechanism of injury that could cause
abdominal pain?
Your 14 year old female patient tells you that she has
been vomiting on and off for a few days, she thinks she
picked up a stomach bug from her brother as he was sick
last week. She has not been able to keep anything down.
Based on this information, individually write down your
treatment plan
Now collaborate with your group
Now collaborate as a large group
That was a brief example of a case study used to develop
critical thinking skills and team building. The collaboration
will help each student learn from each other and they
should leave the room with some new information (25
causes of abdominal pain) and the ability to make
adjustments in diagnoses when the age and gender
change but the problem does not.
I would expand on this case study by adding vital signs.
The students would have to match the cause with the
presentation of the vitals.

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http://www.webmd.com/painmanagement/guide/abdominal-pain-causestreatments
Bledsoe, B. E., Porter R. S., Cherry R. A., &
Clayden D. E. (2006). Essentials of Paramedic
Care. New Jersey: Prentice Hall Inc.