What vital signs should a paramedic routinely monitor during sustained patient care?

Monitoring vital signs is a fundamental aspect of patient care for paramedics, as these measurements provide critical information about a patient's current physiological status and can indicate changes in their condition. The correct answer includes heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate, and oxygen saturation, which are the core vital signs routinely assessed in a pre-hospital setting.

Heart rate gives insight into cardiac function and can indicate stress, pain, or a medical emergency if it is abnormally high or low. Blood pressure reflects the overall circulatory status and helps assess the patient's perfusion. Respiratory rate provides information about the patient's breathing and potential respiratory distress, while oxygen saturation indicates how well oxygen is being delivered to the body's tissues. Together, these vital signs are essential for ongoing assessment and management during patient care and help guide treatments and interventions.

The other options include vital signs that are also important but may not be routinely monitored in every situation. For example, temperature can be an indicator of infection but is not always prioritized in emergency care. Blood glucose is crucial for certain patient populations, particularly diabetics, but is not considered a standard monitoring parameter for all patients. The pain scale is important for understanding a patient's comfort level but does not directly measure physiological stability like the vital signs listed in the correct