Chapter 4 - Prep & Exam Practice - short answers

Question 0

What are the components required to prove negligence?

Answer 0

A finding of negligence requires that all of the following circumstances be proved:
The EMT had a duty to the patient (duty to act)
The EMT did not provide the standard of care (committed breach of duty), and by not be providing the standard of care, the EMT caused harm to the patient (proximate causation) (The harm can be physical or psychological)

Question 1

Explain the difference between expressed and implied consent.

Answer 1

The difference between expressed and implied consent is significant because a patient offering expressed consent is a adult that is mentally competent to make decisions, is informed of the risks associated with the care he or she is about to receive , and is making an expressed decision to receive the care. In implied consent, patients are typically unconscious or incapacitated in some way such that you must assume they would agree to be treated if they were conscious.

Question 2

What is your first priority at a crime scene: Preserving evidence or patient care? Why?

Answer 2

Your first priority is always patient care, but it is still possible to preserve evidence and minimize your impact on the scene during the course of your actions. Remember how you found the scene, avoid unnecessarily moving or touching things, remember what you touch, do not cut through holes left in clothing by gullets or knives, and avoid moving or wandering around the scene whenever possible. Work closely with law enforcement.

Question 3

You bring a patient to the hospital and the nurse tells you “ put the patient in bed #5—I’ll be right there.” The nurse doesn’t come over, and you leave. Is this abandonment? Why or why not?

Answer 3

If an EMT has initiated care and then leaves the patient without ensuring that the patient has been turned over to someone with equal or greater training, it constitutes abandonment. The fact that this patient was left in the hospital bed doesn’t matter; there must still be a transfer of care.

Question 4

You have a patient who weighs 400 pounds. You want other EMT’s at your squad to know this so they can be prepared. Can you leave a copy of your run report on the bulletin board at the station to notify the others.

Answer 4

Leaving a copy of the run report on the bulletin board at the station for everyone to review is a violation of the law (HIPPA). Any information you obtain about a patient’s history, condition, or treatment is considered confidential and must not be shared with anyone else. Sharing the information with another caregiver involved with the continuing care of the patient ( like the nurse receiving the patient at the hospital) is allowed, but taking a run report up on a bulletin board for all crews ( and potentially the cable guy) to see is illegal