The initial assessment of a potentially critical patient begins with a rapid overview consisting of two assessments and related measures to consider:
Safety
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Potential measures include putting on gloves, protective clothing, visors, calling for additional help; in the prehospital environment, measures may include waiting for the police or fire department to secure the scene and relocating to a safer working environment
Stability
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Cardiac arrest should be recognized immediately and followed by advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation
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For other potentially critical patients, the next step is to carry out the ABCDE algorithm
