Conclusion

Regardless of how well one is trained, or how frequently he or she has to deal with life and death situations, some degree of doubt or fear is normal when confronted with an emergency. When someone's life is at risk, emergency help is vital and cannot wait. Following the basic rules for providing basic life support, or at the very least remembering to call 911, may save a life. According to the American Red Cross: "The worst thing to do is nothing."5

In most states Good Samaritan laws give legal protection to those who provide emergency care as long as the victim is not being charged for the emergency care and the person providing the care does not exceed the scope of their training for medical emergencies. Individuals who provide care in an oral health care facility have an obligation to provide a higher level of emergency care than one would expect in a grocery store or other nonmedical facility.

Management of a medical emergency is an ethical, moral, legal, and professional obligation owed by oral health care personnel to any patient who enters the dental office. An emergency can occur not only to dental patients, but also to oral health care personnel themselves, to relatives or friends who accompany patients, or to individuals who enter the dental office for other reasons. The best policy is to prevent what can be prevented and be prepared for what cannot be prevented. The information in this paper is not all-inclusive. Readers are urged to seek other sources of information about managing medical emergencies, and to always, always keep CPR certification up-to-date.