ESL Podcast 602 - Calling an Ambulance
to lose consciousness - to faint; to black out; to become unaware of where one is and what is happening around oneself for a period of time, often because one has been hit on the head or has had too much to drink
Have you ever had so much alcohol that you lost consciousness?
911 - an emergency number that can be dialed on any telephone in the United States to be connected with emergency services (police, ambulance services, firefighters, poison control center, etc.)
When Jackie heard strange sounds in the middle of the night, she called 911 and asked them to send a police officer to her home.
paramedic - a person whose job is to provide emergency medical services to stabilize a patient, but is not a doctor or nurse
The paramedics made sure the little girl continued to breathe on the way to the hospital.
to black out - to lose consciousness; to faint; to become unaware of where one is and what is happening around oneself for a period of time, often because one has been hit on the head or has had too much to drink
Sheila blacked out when the baseball hit her on the head, but she was fine within a few minutes.
a history of - past events; records of things that have happened in the past
His father has a history of heart attacks, but the last one was almost 10 years ago.
allergy - a physical reaction that occurs when one eats or touches something, usually causing breathing problems or red, itchy skin
Angel has an allergy to cats, so whenever he comes to visit, we have to put our cats outside and vacuum really well.
to bleed - to lose blood; for a warm, sticky, red liquid to come out of a cut or other opening in one's skin
Your dog bit my son, and now he's bleeding!
wound - an injury, especially when the skin has been cut or otherwise opened
Many animals lick their wounds until they stop hurting.
to stay still - to not move; to remain in one position
It seems like it's impossible for two-year-olds to stay still for more than a few seconds!
to get checked out - to be examined; to be searched for problems or anything unusual
It's a good idea to get a used car checked out by a professional mechanic before deciding to buy it.
stretcher - a special bed on wheels, used in hospitals to move people who cannot walk for medical reasons
The doctors used a stretcher to move the unconscious patient from the operating room to the recovery room.
ambulance - a large vehicle used to move people from where they were hurt to a hospital, with room for the patient to lie down, full of medical instruments, equipment, and medicine
Did you ride an ambulance to our hospital, or did your wife drive you here?
emergency room - the part of a hospital where people can go when they are having a medical emergency and must be seen by a doctor right away, without making an appointment ahead of time
If your child has a temperature of more than 105 degrees, take him or her to the emergency room.
helicopter - a flying machine that is smaller than an airplane and does not have wings, but instead has one large propeller on the top that moves around to keep the device in the air
The news channel uses a helicopter to take pictures of the cars on major streets and highways and to find out which roads are the busiest during rush hour.
medivac - medical evacuation; an emergency service that moves injured people very quickly from where they were hurt to a hospital, usually by helicopter
The rock climber fell down a cliff and was taken by medivac to a hospital, where doctors tried to save her life.
injection - shot; medication or a vaccination that is pushed into one's veins (tubes that carry blood through the body) by a sharp needle
Many people are scared of injections, even though they don't hurt very much.