Acute (of disease): Severe, rapidly developing, or of a sudden onset.

Ambulance Technician: Experienced ambulance crew member capable of delivering a wide range of drugs and treatments to patients.

Angina: Condition of gripping chest pain associated with disease and the narrowing of the arteries of the heart which can be described as cramping of the heart muscle.

Asphyxia: Suffocation by smothering or any condition that prevents oxygen being taken up by the blood.

Aspirator: A suction device used in the removal of fluids from the airway and other cavities.

Asthma: Tightening or restriction of the lower small airways accompanied by a sense of suffocation or tightness of the chest.

C

Cardiac: Relating to the heart.

Casualty: Any victim of an accident or sudden illness.

Catheter: A tube designed to be passed into a body cavity.

Chronic (of disease): persistent and lasting disease or medical condition, or one that has developed slowly.

Communication assistance device: A portable device which may provide a communication-challenged person with a means of communication. (i.e. an enhanced or artificial voice, script on a monitor screen).

Community Nurse: A nurse who specialises in care for people within their own home or local health centres.

Coronary Thrombus: Blockage of one or more of the arteries that supply blood to the cardiac muscle usually caused by blood clots and/or fatty tissue.

Cyanosis: A dusky bluish tint to the skin due to a lack of oxygen in the blood.

D

Diabetes Mellitus: Disease caused by either insulin deficiency or uptake problems.

Dyspnoea: Difficult or laboured breathing.

E

Emergency Care Assistant: Ambulance crew member usually working alongside a more experienced colleague in the delivery of emergency care.

Emergency Care Practitioner: Senior and highly skilled ambulance crew member capable of delivering advanced medical skills and treatments above and beyond that of a Paramedic.

Emergency Operations Centre (EOC): Where 999 calls are received and ambulance resources despatched/managed from.

Emphysema: A chronic and debilitating condition affecting the very small airways within the lungs, the primary cause being smoking.

Epilepsy: Convulsive seizures caused by a disorder of the normal functioning of the brain.

F

Fibrillation: Uncoordinated contraction of muscle fibres and cells within the heart.

H

Hyperglycaemia: High levels of glucose in the blood.

Hypoglycaemia: Low levels of glucose in the blood.

Hypoxia: Low levels of oxygen within the blood and tissues of the body.

I

Incident: Any accident, occurrence or other unforeseen event requiring an ambulance response.

P

Pacemaker: An apparatus for artificially controlling the rhythm and rate of the heart.

Paramedic: Senior and highly skilled ambulance crew member capable of administering a large range of drugs and medical skills.

Personal protective equipment (PPE): Specialised equipment provided for your safety such as hi-visibility jacket, gloves etc

Pleurisy: Inflammation of the covering of the lungs.

Pneumonia: Infection of the lung tissue.

Pulmonary: Relating to the lungs.

R

Response times: The time lapse between notification of an emergency and the arrival of an ambulance response.

T

Tachycardia: A fast heart rate, normally >100 beats per minute

V

Vaccination: Immunisation by giving a vaccine.

Vaccine: Substance created from the germs of an infectious disease used to treat that disease (vaccine may be either active or inactive).