EMT Practice: Systems, Safety and Care Part 5
Designed for EMT certification exam prep, this flashcard set includes vital facts on EMS systems, patient privacy, emergency care, and workplace safety.
The secondary assessment of a medical patient:
- is not practical if the patient is critically ill or your transport time is short
- should routinely include a comprehensive examination from head to toe
- is typically limited to a focused exam for patients who are unconscious
- should be performed at the scene, especially if the patient is critically ill
is not practical if the patient is critically ill or your transport time is short
Key Terms
The secondary assessment of a medical patient:
- is not practical if the patient is critically ill or your transport time is short
- should routinely include a comprehensive examination from head to toe
- is typically limited to a focused exam for patients who are unconscious
- should be performed at the scene, especially if the patient is critically ill
is not practical if the patient is critically ill or your transport time is short
Which of the following medications would the EMT be LEAST likely to administer to a patient with a medical complaint?
- Oral glucose
- Aspirin
- Albuterol
- Ibuprofen
Ibuprofen
Which of the following assessment findings is MOST indicative of a cardiovascular problem?
- Jugular venous distention
- Unequal breath sounds
- Use of the accessory muscles
- Palpable pain to the epigastrium
Jugular venous distention
When caring for a patient who takes numerous medications, it is best to:
- let the hospital staff retrieve the patient's medical records, which should show a list of his or her current medications
- take all of the patient's medications with you to the hospital and document them on your patient care report
- send the patient's medications to the hospital with a family member or other person who will safeguard them
- document the medications on your patient care report, but leave them at home so they do not get misplaced
take all of the patient's medications with you to the hospital and document them on your patient care report
Reassessment of a patient with a medical complaint should begin by:
- taking another set of vital signs.
- reassessing the nature of illness.
- reviewing all treatment performed.
- repeating the primary assessment.
repeating the primary assessment.
The BEST way to prevent infection from whooping cough is to:
- get vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis.
- routinely place a surgical mask on all respiratory patients.
- wear a HEPA mask when treating any respiratory patient.
- ask all patients if they have recently traveled abroad.
get vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis.
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| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
The secondary assessment of a medical patient: | is not practical if the patient is critically ill or your transport time is short |
Which of the following medications would the EMT be LEAST likely to administer to a patient with a medical complaint? | Ibuprofen |
Which of the following assessment findings is MOST indicative of a cardiovascular problem? | Jugular venous distention |
When caring for a patient who takes numerous medications, it is best to: | take all of the patient's medications with you to the hospital and document them on your patient care report |
Reassessment of a patient with a medical complaint should begin by: | repeating the primary assessment. |
The BEST way to prevent infection from whooping cough is to: | get vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis. |
In 2009, the H1N1 virus accounted for over 200,000 deaths worldwide in the form of the swine flu. In 1919, a similar outbreak of the H1N1 occurred in the form of the Spanish flu. Starting in Kansas City, the virus spread rapidly worldwide, claiming up to 50 million lives. These are both examples of: | pandemics |
When performing a secondary assessment on a conscious patient with nontraumatic abdominal pain and stable vital signs, you should: | focus on his or her chief complaint. |
After sizing up the scene of a patient with a possible infectious disease, your next priority should be to: | take standard precautions. |
In addition to looking for severe bleeding, assessment of circulation in the conscious patient should involve: | checking the radial pulse and noting the color, temperature, and condition of the skin. |
In contrast to viral hepatitis, toxin-induced hepatitis: | is not a communicable disease. |
You and your EMT partner arrive at the residence of a 50-year-old man who complains of weakness. Your primary assessment reveals that he is critically ill and will require aggressive treatment. The closest hospital is 25 miles away. You should: | manage all threats to airway, breathing, and circulation and consider requesting an ALS unit. |
When forming your general impression of a patient with a medical complaint, it is important to remember that: | the conditions of many medical patients may not appear serious at first. |
Which of the following conditions is NOT categorized as a psychiatric condition? | Substance abuse |
Most patients with an infectious disease will have _________. | a fever |
Ten days after treating a 34-year-old patient with tuberculosis, you are given a tuberculin skin test, which yields a positive result. This MOST likely indicates that: | you were exposed to another infected person prior to treating the 34-year-old patient. |
Assessment of a patient's blood pressure with an automatic BP cuff reveals that it is 204/120 mm Hg. The patient is conscious and alert and denies any symptoms. The EMT should: | obtain a manual blood pressure. |
Your primary assessment of an elderly woman reveals that she is conscious and alert, but is experiencing difficulty breathing. She has a history of emphysema, hypertension, and congestive heart failure. As you assess the patient's circulatory status, you should direct your partner to: | administer oxygen with the appropriate device. |
It is especially important to assess pulse, sensation, and movement in all extremities as well as pupillary reactions in patients with a suspected ___________ problem. | neurologic |
An infectious disease is MOST accurately defined as: | a medical condition caused by the growth and spread of small, harmful organisms within the body. |
Which of the following medications can be used for the treatment of an acute asthma attack? | Albuterol |
What is the most appropriate method for oxygen delivery to an adult patient experiencing breathing difficulty? | Nonrebreathing mask at 15 L/min |
When assisting an asthmatic patient with a small-volume nebulizer attached to oxygen, what is the appropriate flow rate for the oxygen? | 6 L/min |
In addition to asthma, which of the following conditions is associated with wheezing? | Bronchitis |
What is atelectasis? | Collapse of the alveolar air spaces of the lungs |
Which type of breath sound are you more likely to hear in a person with congestive heart failure? | Crackles |
You arrive at a residence where you find a woman in her early 60s. She is anxious, tachycardic, and her fingertips and lips are blue. As you assess her, she coughs up frothy sputum, and you hear crackles and some wheezing as you check for breath sounds. What condition do these findings indicate? | Congestive heart failure |
Congestive heart failure | Sputum |
CPAP is generally used for which condition? | Acute pulmonary edema |
Which of the following statements is true regarding asthma? | Asthma involves excessive mucus production. |
Your patient has a chronic respiratory condition. His stimulus to breathe is triggered by low oxygen levels in the blood. This is known as the ___________. | hypoxic drive |
You are assisting an asthma patient with his prescribed metered-dose inhaler. After the patient takes a deep breath and depresses the inhaler, you should: | instruct him to hold his breath for as long as he comfortably can. |
Crackles (rales) are caused by _________. | air passing through fluid |
When auscultating the lungs of a patient with respiratory distress, you hear adventitious sounds. This means that the patient has: | abnormal breath sounds. |
Treatment with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) would MOST likely be contraindicated in which of the following situations? | Shortness of breath and a blood pressure of 76/56 mm Hg |
His parents tell you that their son has had a chest infection for the past two days and when they took him to their family doctor, they were told it was likely due to the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). They have kept him well hydrated, but the infection seems to have gotten worse. On auscultation, you hear decreased air entry bilaterally with fine expiratory wheezes and the occasional coarse wet crackle. Based on this information, your patient is most likely suffering from: | bronchiolitis. |
A 30-year-old male presents with acute shortness of breath, widespread hives, and facial swelling. He denies any past medical history and takes no medications. During your assessment, you hear wheezing over all the lung fields. His blood pressure is 90/50 mm Hg and his heart rate is 110 beats/min. In addition to giving him high-flow oxygen, the MOST important treatment for this patient is: | epinephrine. |
Which of the following must be assessed in every respiratory patient? | Lung sounds |
Asthma is caused by a response of the: | immune system. |
A pleural effusion is MOST accurately defined as: | fluid accumulation outside the lung. |
Which of the following conditions would be LEAST likely to result in hypoxia? | Severe anxiety |
Which of the following is MOST characteristic of adequate breathing? | 24 breaths/min with bilaterally equal breath sounds and pink skin |
"PASTE" is an alternate assessment tool for ___________. | respiratory patients |
While auscultating an elderly woman's breath sounds, you hear low-pitched "rattling" sounds at the bases of both of her lungs. This finding is MOST consistent with which of the following conditions? | Aspiration pneumonia |
In what area of the lungs does respiration occur? | Alveoli |
A 59-year-old male with a history of emphysema complains of an acute worsening of his dyspnea and pleuritic chest pain following a forceful cough. Your assessment reveals that he has a barrel-shaped chest, unilaterally diminished breath sounds, and tachycardia. What is the MOST likely cause of this patient's condition? | Spontaneous pneumothorax |
You are attending to a 54-year-old female patient in a homeless shelter. The patient tells you that she had the flu a couple of weeks ago, and she has not gotten over it. She has been tired and keeps waking up at night, sweating. She has been coughing up green sputum occasionally and has been experiencing episodes of chest pain that get worse when she breathes. Based on this information, your patient is most likely suffering from: | tuberculosis. |
You are attending to a 3-year-old male patient who is presenting with severe shortness of breath. His parents report that he has had a cough and cold with a low grade fever for the past two days. They became worried today, as his level of distress has increased dramatically. On assessment, the patient is sitting upright and making high-pitched noises with each breath. Based on this information, the patient is most likely suffering from: | viral infection of the upper respiratory tract. |
Which of the following is a genetic disorder that predisposes the patient to repeated lung infections? | Cystic fibrosis |
In order for efficient pulmonary gas exchange to occur: | oxygen and carbon dioxide must be able to freely diffuse across the alveolar-capillary membrane. |
You are dispatched to a 60-year-old man reporting chest pain and shortness of breath. The patient has angina and is taking nitroglycerin, furosemide, and atorvastatin. You hear crackles when listening to his breath sounds. The patient's difficulty breathing and crackles are due to blood backing up in which part of the body? | The lungs |
What is cardiac output? | The amount of blood pumped out of the left ventricle in 1 minute |
Most often, low blood flow to heart tissue is caused by what? | Atherosclerosis |
What is the most effective way to assist a person with CHF to breathe effectively and prevent an invasive airway management technique? | CPAP |
You are treating a 50-year-old woman who has just finished a 10k run. She is complaining of crushing pain in the chest radiating down her left arm and nausea, which came on suddenly. She is sweating profusely. What condition should you suspect? | Angina pectoris |
Which dysrhythmia is the most common cause of sudden death in a cardiovascular emergency? | Ventricular fibrillation |
You are treating a 63-year-old patient whose vital signs are as follows: pulse, 140 beats/min and irregular; respiratory rate, 28 breaths/min; and blood pressure, 90/50 mm Hg. He is complaining of chest pain. Given this information, why would nitroglycerin be contraindicated? | His blood pressure is too low. |
You are transporting a patient with angina and he loses consciousness on the way to the hospital. When you check, you cannot feel a pulse. What should you do? | Have your partner pull over the ambulance and come back to help you with CPR and the AED. |
Which of the following represents the MOST appropriate method of assisting a patient with his or her prescribed nitroglycerin tablet? | Administer the medication sublingually and allow it to dissolve or absorb. |
Acute coronary syndrome is a group of symptoms caused by what? | Ischemia |
Most AEDs are set up to adjust the voltage based on the impedance, which is the: | resistance of the body to the flow of electricity. |
Nitroglycerin is contraindicated in patients: | who have experienced a head injury. |
Risk factors for AMI that cannot be controlled include: | family history. |
A patient with atherosclerotic heart disease experiences chest pain during exertion because: | the lumen of the coronary artery is narrowed and cannot accommodate increased blood flow. |
A 49-year-old male presents with an acute onset of crushing chest pain and diaphoresis. You should: | assess the adequacy of his respirations. |
When preparing to obtain a 12-lead ECG, the "LL" and "RL" electrodes should be placed: | on the thighs or ankles. |
Angina pectoris occurs when: | myocardial oxygen demand exceeds supply. |
Which of the following signs is commonly observed in patients with right-sided heart failure? | Dependent edema |
A 66-year-old female with a history of hypertension and diabetes presents with substernal chest pressure of 2 hours' duration. Her blood pressure is 140/90 mm Hg, her pulse is 100 beats/min and irregular, her respirations are 22 breaths/min, and her oxygen saturation is 92%. The patient does not have prescribed nitroglycerin, but her husband does. You should: | administer oxygen, give her 324 mg of aspirin, and assess her further. |
A dissecting aortic aneurysm occurs when: | the inner layers of the aorta become separated. |
After the AED has delivered a shock, the EMT should: | immediately resume CPR. |
Prior to attaching the AED to a cardiac arrest patient, the EMT should: | dry the chest if it is wet. |
The EMT should use an AED on a child between 1 month and 8 years of age if: | pediatric pads and an energy-reducing device are available. |
Signs and symptoms of a hypertensive emergency would MOST likely be delayed in patients who: | have chronic hypertension. |
A patient in cardiac arrest is wearing an external defibrillator vest, which is interfering with effective chest compressions. The EMT should: | remove the battery from the monitor and then remove the vest. |
The electrical impulse generated by the heart originates in the: | sinoatrial node. |
Deoxygenated blood from the body returns to the: | right atrium. |
Which of the following is NOT a common sign or symptom associated with malfunction of an implanted cardiac pacemaker? | A rapid heart rate |
You and your partner arrive at the scene of a middle-aged man who collapsed about 5 minutes ago. He is unresponsive, apneic, and pulseless. Bystanders are present, but have not provided any care. You should: | begin high-quality CPR and apply the AED as soon as possible. |
A patient tells you that he has a left ventricular assist device (LVAD). Which of the following conditions should you suspect that he has experienced? | Acute myocardial infarction |
You are treating a patient who is exhibiting slurred speech, facial droop, and an inability to move his left arm. Which neurologic examination emphasizes these possible stroke signs? | Cincinnati Prehospital Stroke Scale |
What happens when blood flow to a particular part of the brain is cut off by a blockage, resulting in tissue damage? | Ischemic stroke |
What is the name of the condition when the patient forgets about the injured side after a stroke? | Neglect |
What criteria must be met for a patient to have status epilepticus? | A seizure lasting more than 30 minutes |
Which of the following is a metabolic cause for a seizure? | Hypoglycemia |
Which of the following mimics a stroke and also causes a seizure? | Hypoglycemia |
What is the difference between a stroke and a transient ischemic attack? | A TIA resolves completely within 24 hours of onset |
You are dispatched to a home where you find a 70-year-old man. He is exhibiting facial drooping and, when you ask him to tell you what day it us, he says "January." Which part of the brain is most likely to have been affected? | Left hemisphere |
You are examining a patient whose signs include lip smacking, jerking of the left arm, and agitation. Based on these signs, what type if seizure is this patient experiencing? | Complex partial |
You are performing a Glascow Coma Scale on a patient who opens her eyes in response to pain, is confused in her responses to questions, and has abnormal flexion. What is this patient's GCS score and corresponding state of dysfunction? | 9- moderate dysfunction |
you arrive at the residence of a 33-year-old woman who is experiencing a generalized (tonic-clonic) seizure. She has a small amount of vomitus draining from the side of her mouth. After protecting her from further injury, you should: | maintain her airway with manual head positioning, suction her airway to remove the vomitus, insert a nasopharyngeal airway, and administer high-flow oxygen |
A transient ischemic attack (TIA) occurs when: | a small clot in a cerebral artery causes temporary symtoms |
Which of the following is a metabolic cause of a seizure? | Poisoning |
You arrive at a local grocery store approximately 5 minutes after a 21-year-old female stopped seizing. She is confused and disoriented; she keeps asking you what happened and tells you that she is thirsty. Her brother, who witnessed the seizure, tells you that she takes phenytoin (Dilantin) for her seizures, but has not taken it in a few days. He also tells you that she has diabetes. In addition to applying high-flow oxygen, you should: | monitor her airway and breathing status and assess her blood glucose level |
Individuals with chronic alcoholism are predisposed to intracranial bleeding and hypoglycemia secondaryto abnormalities in the: | liver |
Febrile seizures: | are usually benign but should be evaluated |
You are caring for a 70-year-old female with signs and symptoms of an acute stroke. She is conscious, has secretions in her mouth, is breathing at a normal rate with adequate depth, and has an oxygen saturation of 96%. You should: | suction her oropharynx and transport immediately |
A patient whose speech is slurred and difficult to understand is experiencing: | dysarthria |
The spinal cord exits the cranium through the: | foramen magnum |
Which of the following symptoms would lead the EMT to believe that a patient's headache is caused by sinus congestion? | The pain is worse when bending over |