Emergency Nursing Vocabulary Quiz

Triage is the process of rapidly assessing and prioritising patients according to the urgency of their medical condition. In an emergency department, triage nurses sort patients into categories — immediate, urgent, less urgent and non-urgent — so that the most critical cases receive care first. Common triage tools include the Manchester Triage System (MTS) and the Emergency Severity Index (ESI). Triage is a core skill for any nurse working in an acute care or emergency setting.

CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) is a specific emergency technique involving chest compressions and rescue breaths to maintain blood circulation and oxygenation when the heart has stopped. Resuscitation is a broader term that encompasses all interventions used to restore vital functions in a patient who is in cardiac or respiratory arrest, including CPR, defibrillation, airway management and drug administration as part of Advanced Life Support (ALS) protocols.

The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is a standardised neurological assessment tool used to evaluate a patient's level of consciousness. It scores three components: eye opening (1–4), verbal response (1–5) and motor response (1–6), giving a total of 3 to 15. A score of 15 indicates full consciousness; a score of 8 or below is generally considered a coma, often prompting intubation to protect the airway. The GCS is essential for monitoring patients with head injuries, strokes or drug overdoses.

Oxygen saturation (SpO2) measures the percentage of haemoglobin molecules in the blood that are carrying oxygen, monitored non-invasively with a pulse oximeter. A normal SpO2 is 95–100%. Values below 94% (or below 88% in patients with COPD) indicate hypoxaemia and may prompt supplemental oxygen therapy or, in severe cases, non-invasive ventilation or intubation. Continuous SpO2 monitoring is a standard of care in emergency and critical care settings.

Anaphylaxis is a severe systemic allergic reaction that typically presents with two or more body systems affected after exposure to an allergen such as peanuts, bee venom or a drug. Classic signs include urticaria (hives) and angioedema (swelling), bronchospasm causing wheeze and dyspnoea, and cardiovascular collapse with a sudden drop in blood pressure. First-line treatment is intramuscular adrenaline (epinephrine), followed by oxygen, IV fluids, antihistamines and corticosteroids.

Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection. It is recognised using clinical criteria: a suspected or confirmed infection combined with acute organ dysfunction such as altered consciousness, hypotension, raised respiratory rate, fever or hypothermia and elevated lactate. The Sepsis Six bundle — high-flow oxygen, blood cultures, IV antibiotics, IV fluids, urine output monitoring and lactate measurement — should be started within one hour of recognition.

Defibrillation is the delivery of a controlled electric shock to the heart to depolarise cardiac muscle and allow the sinoatrial node to re-establish a normal rhythm. It is used in cardiac arrest caused by shockable rhythms: ventricular fibrillation (VF) and pulseless ventricular tachycardia (pVT). Automated external defibrillators (AEDs) can be used by trained first responders, while manual defibrillators are used by advanced clinicians. Early defibrillation — within three to five minutes — dramatically improves survival.

An ECG records the electrical activity of the heart using electrodes placed on the chest, arms and legs. It shows the rate and rhythm of the heartbeat and can reveal a wide range of conditions, including myocardial infarction (heart attack), arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation and heart block, electrolyte imbalances and drug toxicity. A 12-lead ECG is performed routinely in emergency departments for patients with chest pain, palpitations, collapse or suspected cardiac events.

An IV cannula (intravenous cannula) is a short, flexible plastic tube inserted into a peripheral vein — typically in the hand or forearm — to create IV access. Establishing IV access is one of the first priorities in emergency nursing because it allows rapid administration of life-saving medications (e.g. adrenaline, antibiotics, thrombolytics), IV fluids to treat shock, and blood transfusions. Where peripheral access is impossible, intraosseous (IO) access — inserting a needle into the bone marrow — can be used as an alternative.

A nursing handover is the structured communication process by which one nurse or team transfers responsibility for patient care to another at a shift change. Effective handovers ensure continuity of care, reduce the risk of errors and keep all team members informed of each patient's current status, active problems, medications, test results and planned interventions. Many hospitals use structured tools such as SBAR (Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation) to standardise handovers and improve patient safety.