What is the recommended approach to documenting and handing off care to EMS?

• A. Record times, patient demographics, chief complaint, vitals, treatments given, patient response, scene details, and brief handoff to EMS.
• B. Document only final outcome.
• C. Document only vital signs.
• D. Hand off verbally without notes.

Answer: (A)

Clear, complete handoff documentation is essential to ensure continuity of care when EMS takes over. Record the exact times of key events, patient demographics, chief complaint, vitals, treatments you administered, the patient’s response to those treatments, and relevant scene details. Then provide a concise handoff summary. This combination gives EMS a precise timeline, identifies the patient, highlights what sparked the call, shows how the patient is doing now, explains what you’ve done, and flags any safety or environmental factors from the scene. Failing to include these elements means EMS lacks crucial context for safe and efficient continued care. For example, documenting only the final outcome or only vital signs omits how the patient got to that point and what still needs attention, while handing off verbally without notes increases the risk of miscommunication or missing important details.