PHTLS Course for Nurses

Lesson 1 • Scene Safety and Situational Awareness

Addresses hazard identification, personal protective equipment, and dynamic scene reassessment. Ensures nurses can operate safely before patient contact.

Lesson 2 • Kinematics of Trauma

Explains energy transfer principles underlying blunt and penetrating injury. Connects mechanism of injury to anticipated injury patterns nurses must anticipate.

Lesson 3 • Roles of the Nurse in Prehospital Trauma

Defines scope of practice, team roles, and legal-ethical responsibilities in the prehospital environment. Prepares nurses to function within an integrated trauma team.

Lesson 1 • Breathing and Ventilation Assessment

Teaches recognition and initial management of tension pneumothorax, open chest wounds, and flail chest. Connects ventilation compromise to shock physiology.

Lesson 2 • Circulation and Shock Recognition

Identifies clinical signs of haemorrhagic shock classes and guides initial vascular access priorities. Bridges assessment findings to resuscitation decisions.

Lesson 3 • Massive Haemorrhage Control

Introduces the X component of the survey, focusing on external compressible bleeding. Establishes haemorrhage control as the first priority before airway management.

Lesson 4 • Airway Assessment and Management

Covers manual and adjunct airway techniques appropriate for the prehospital setting. Links airway patency to oxygenation and ventilation outcomes.

Lesson 1 • Damage-Control Resuscitation Principles

Teaches balanced blood product ratios, permissive hypotension targets, and tranexamic acid use. Aligns prehospital resuscitation with in-hospital damage-control surgery goals.

Lesson 2 • Vascular Access in the Field

Covers peripheral IV, intraosseous, and external jugular access under austere conditions. Ensures nurses can establish reliable access for resuscitation in any environment.

Lesson 3 • Advanced Haemorrhage Control Techniques

Builds on primary survey skills with advanced wound packing, tourniquet conversion, and junctional devices. Addresses haemorrhage not controlled by basic measures.

Lesson 1 • Endotracheal Intubation in Trauma

Teaches rapid sequence intubation principles, direct laryngoscopy, and video laryngoscopy. Addresses cervical spine precautions during intubation attempts.

Lesson 2 • Supraglottic Airway Devices

Covers insertion, confirmation, and limitations of supraglottic devices in trauma. Provides a bridge airway option when intubation is not feasible.

Lesson 3 • Surgical Airway Management

Covers needle and surgical cricothyrotomy as rescue airways in cannot-intubate scenarios. Prepares nurses for the most critical airway failure situations.

Lesson 4 • Ventilation Management and Monitoring

Addresses manual and mechanical ventilation parameters, waveform capnography, and avoiding ventilation-induced harm. Connects ventilation to brain and lung protection.

Lesson 1 • Thoracic Trauma Pathophysiology

Explains how rib fractures, pneumothorax, haemothorax, and cardiac tamponade impair physiology. Provides the mechanistic basis for all thoracic interventions.

Lesson 2 • Pelvic Fracture and Internal Haemorrhage

Addresses pelvic ring disruption as a source of massive internal haemorrhage and its prehospital management. Links pelvic stabilisation to haemorrhage control strategy.

Lesson 3 • Abdominal Trauma Assessment

Covers mechanism-based injury prediction, physical examination, and FAST exam principles. Identifies when abdominal injury drives immediate transport decisions.

Lesson 4 • Chest Decompression Techniques

Covers needle thoracostomy and finger thoracostomy for tension pneumothorax relief. Builds on primary survey skills with procedural depth and complication management.

Lesson 1 • Extremity Fracture and Dislocation Care

Addresses neurovascular assessment, splinting, and traction for extremity injuries. Prevents secondary injury from improper handling of fractures.

Lesson 2 • Spinal Cord Injury Assessment

Teaches mechanism-based spinal injury suspicion, neurological level assessment, and spinal shock recognition. Connects assessment findings to immobilisation decisions.

Lesson 3 • Spinal Motion Restriction Techniques

Covers evidence-based spinal motion restriction using cervical collars, long boards, and vacuum mattresses. Addresses limitations and harms of over-immobilisation.

Lesson 4 • Crush Injury and Traumatic Amputation

Covers crush syndrome pathophysiology, field amputation management, and replantation preparation. Addresses rare but high-stakes extremity trauma scenarios.

Lesson 1 • Obstetric Trauma Management

Covers maternal physiological changes, fetal assessment, and uterine displacement techniques. Addresses the dual-patient nature of obstetric trauma care.

Lesson 2 • Pediatric Trauma Assessment

Covers anatomical and physiological differences that alter injury patterns and assessment findings in children. Adapts primary survey techniques to pediatric patients.

Lesson 3 • Bariatric and Physically Challenged Patients

Addresses equipment limitations, airway challenges, and vascular access difficulties in bariatric patients. Ensures nurses adapt techniques to non-standard body habitus.

Lesson 1 • Incident Command and Communication

Covers the incident command system structure, radio communication protocols, and nurse roles in MCI operations. Ensures effective coordination under high-stress conditions.

Lesson 2 • Tactical Combat Casualty Care Principles

Introduces TCCC phases, care under fire priorities, and tactical field care adaptations. Prepares nurses working in law enforcement or military-adjacent environments.

Lesson 3 • Patient Packaging and Transport Decisions

Covers packaging for ground and air transport, load-and-go vs. stay-and-play decisions, and handoff communication. Completes the prehospital care cycle.

Lesson 4 • Austere Environment Adaptations

Addresses improvised equipment, prolonged field care, and resource substitution in remote or resource-limited settings. Builds clinical flexibility beyond standard protocols.