Test 3 Flashcards
Example of a symptom?
Headache
Does not involve the presence of a symptom
A 61-year old female who us unconscious with facial cyanosis
Would not be performed during scene size up
rapidly assessing patients respiratory status
While en route to the scene of a shooting, the dispatcher advises you that the caller states that the perpetrator has fled the scene. You should
confirm this information with law enforcement personnel at the scene
Upon arriving at a potentially unsafe scene you should
ensure that you are safe
As you are talking to the pt your partner directs your attention to a handgun which is located on a nearby table. You should
position yourself in between the patient and the gun and ask your partner to request law enforcement assistance
True statement regarding the MOI is correct
the MOI may allow you to predict the severity of a patient’s injuries
Most effective way to determine whether your patient’s problem is medical or traumatic in origin is to
perform a careful and thorough assessment
During an EMS call you should take standard precautions
upon exiting the ambulance but before pt contact
Treatment and transport priorities at the scene of a mass casualty incident should be determined after
all of the patients have been triaged
When is it most appropriate to consider requesting additional ambulances at an accident scene
When you determine there are multiple patients
Goal of primary assessment
identify and rapidly treat all life-threatening conditions
Observations made when forming a general impression of a patient would include all of the following except
pulse and strength
When approaching a 32 y/o male who is complaining of traumatic neck pain you should
ensure that the patient can see you approaching him
Least level to cause an altered LOC
acute anxiety
Patient who does not have AMS
pt with an acute allergic reaction and dizziness
Pt who does not respond to questions but moves or cries out when his or her trapezius muscle is pinched is also said to be
responsive to painful stimuli
An elderly patient has fallen and hit her head. You assess her LOC as unresponsive using AVPU. Initial care should focus on
airway breathing and circulation (ABC’s)
What is AVPU?
means of assessing LOC - Alert Verbal Pain Unresponsive
Pt short term memory is most likely intact if they correctly answer questions regarding
date and event
29-y/o male w/ head injury opens his eyes when you speak to him, is confused as to the time and date, and is able to move extremities on command. GCS score is
13
Injured patient gets 9 on GCS. He is assigned a score of 2 for eye opening, 3 for verbal response, and 4 for motor. What clinical findings are consistent with GCS score?
opens eyes in response to pain, used inappropriate words, and withdraws from pain
When inspecting pt pupils with penlight, the pupils should normally react to light by
constricting
When you shine light into one pupil, the normal reaction of the other pupil should be to
become smaller
Most likely cause the pupils to remain significantly constricted
overdose of an opiate drug
Open airway of unresponsive pt with suspected trauma?
jaw-thrust maneuver
Most correct statement regarding stridor
high-pitched, crowing upper airway sound
Indicates that pt has a patent airway
forceful coughing
Pt is unconscious, has ineffective breathing and has bloody secretions. Partner is holding c-spine. I should?
immediately suction the oropharynx
40 y/o crashed motorcycle, semiconscious, has snoring respirations, has laceration to the forearm with minimal bleeding. You should
open his airway with the jaw-thrust maneuver
After performing a head tip-chin lift to open the airway of an unresponsive pt with pulse, you should
suction as needed and insert airway adjunct
pt with spontaneous respirations is breathing
without assistance
supplemental O2 via nonrebreathing mask should be administered to pt
with difficulty breathing and adequate tidal volume
33 y/o male unresponsive. Patent airway and respirations are rapid and shallow. Initial action should be to
provide assisted ventilations
If a patient develops difficulty breathing after primary assessment you should immediately
reevaluate airway status
normal adult respiratory range
12-20 breaths per minute
Normal respiratory rate should not increase ____ Breaths/min in children and ___ BPM in infants
30, 50
Most effective method of assessing the quality of air movement in lungs
auscultating breath sounds with stethoscope
Abnormal breath sound that indicates obstruction of the upper airway
stridor
clinical signs of labored breathing do not include
shallow chest movement
When pt respirations are shallow
tidal volume will be easily noticeable
Sign of respiratory distress seen most commonly in peds pt’s
seesaw breathing
Adult pt who is not experiencing difficulty breathing will
be able to to speak in complete sentences without unusual pauses
You should suspect that a patient is experiencing respiratory failure if he/she
has bradycardia and diminished muscle tone
During the primary assessment circulation is evaluated by assessing
pulse quality, external bleeding, and skin condition
Palpable pulse is created by
pressure waves through the arteries caused by cardiac contractions
Most accurate guide to palpating a pulse
tips of index and long fingers over the pulse point
In responsive pt that are over 1 y/o you should palpate the pulse at the
radial artery
Carotid pulse not recommended in infants because
you may inadvertently compress the trachea
When palpating carotid pulse of a responsive older pt you should
avoid compressing both carotid arteries simultaneously
Call to daycare for unresponsive 8 m/o. Arrive and perform an assessment and determine infant isn’t breathing. Next action should be
assess for a brachial pulse for 5-10 seconds
If you can’t palpate pulse in an unresponsive pt, you should
immediately begin CPR
Unresponsive 62 y/o. Primary assessment = apneic and pulseless, you should
start CPR and attach AED ASAP
Most likely cause pt pulse rate to be slower than normal
beta-blocker meds
When palpating pt pulse you notice it is grossly irregular. You should
count the pulse rate for a full minute to obtain an accurate reading
normal resting adult pulse
60 and 110 BPM
bradycardia - pulse less than ____
tachycardia - heart rate grater than ____
60 BPM/100 BPM
Pulse with constant pattern is
regular
You notice that there is a short interval between pulsations. This indicates the pulse is
rapid
62 y/o with crushing chest pain, pulse is rapid and irregular. In addition to administering O2 you should
transport at once and consider requesting medics
black people, changes in color are apparent in certain areas such as
lips or oral mucosa
In infants and small children, skin color should be assessed on
palms and soles
poor peripheral circulation will cause the skin to appear
ashen
Bluish tint to skin
cyanosis
cyanosis is caused by
decreased blood O2
normal skin color, temperature, and condition should be
pink warm and dry
Pt with HTN would be expected to have skin thats
flushed and red
40 y/o
pain in RUQ
conscious and alert with stable vitals - skin and sclera are jaundiced - what do you suspect
liver dysfunction
Cap refill
2 secs
6 m/o male
vomiting and diarrhea
cap refil - 4 secs
peripheral circulation is decreased
cap refill time is most reliable in
children who are younger than 6
external bleeding from an extremity can usually be controlled by a combination of
direct pressure and elevation
39 y/o
stab wound to the groin
conscious - screaming in pain - attempting to control the bleeding which is bright red and spurting
apply direct pressure to the wound
full body scan should take no longer than
60-90 secs
after primary assessment, a rapid scan of the body should be performed in order to
identify less obvious injuries that require immediate treatment
Gently palpate a pt pelvis only if
pt does not complain of pelvic pain
Warrants immediate transport
severe chest pain and cool, pale skin
When performing a full body scan, what part of the body is assessed last?
Posterior
As you assess the head of a pt with suspected spinal injury, your partner should
maintain stabilization of the head
50 y/o male - AMS
wife says he had a “small stroke” 3 years ago but otherwise in good health - responsive but unable to follow commands. After administering O2, you should
prepare for immediate transport