Patient Assessment Flashcards
Which of the following describes scene size-up?
a. It is a quick evaluation of the entire scene.
b. It begins with taking information on the patient history.
c. It begins with patient care.
d. It begins when you ask for additional resources.
a. It is a quick evaluation of the entire scene.
Which of the following hazards would you expect to find at a medical emergency?
a. Infectious disease
b. Broken glass
c. Traffic hazards
d. Unreleased air bags
a. Infectious disease
You arrive on the scene and find a motor vehicle crash with a spider web crack in the
windshield. You should suspect which of the following injuries?
a. Head and neck injuries
b. Abrasions from airbag deployment
c. Clavicle fractures
d. Lower extremity injuries
a. Head and neck injuries
You respond to a 16-year-old victim of a low-speed motorcycle crash. The victim was
wearing a helmet. Which of the following injuries should you consider for this victim?
a. Lower extremity injuries
b. Severe head injuries
c. Major upper extremity injuries
d. Significant multisystem trauma
a. Lower extremity injuries
Which of the following is a TRUE statement regarding the general impression of a
patient?
a. It is useful when determining the severity of a patient.
b. It is useful only when assessing a critical patient.
c. It is primarily used to triage patients.
d. It is useful only when deciding which patients require advanced care
a. It is useful when determining the severity of a patient.
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
a. A 3-year-old child who opens his eyes and watches you, but does not
move when you ask, would be considered unresponsive.
b. An 82-year-old man who knows his name and the date, but not what
happened, would be considered alert and oriented.
c. A 3-month-old child with a dull stare who does not respond to her parents would be considered to have an altered level of consciousness.
d. A 24-year-old person who yells and screams at you, but will not
answer questions or obey commands, is considered alert.
c. A 3-month-old child with a dull stare who does not respond to her parents would be considered to have an altered level of consciousness.
Which of the following is true when assessing the level of consciousness?
a. A sleeping infant who cried when you touched her would be
unresponsive to painful stimuli.
b. A child who did not wake up or move when you called his name or pinched him would be unresponsive.
c. An infant who opens her eyes and watches you but does not move
when you talk to her would be disoriented.
d. An adult who was awake and talking when you entered the room
would be verbal on the AVPU scale.
b. A child who did not wake up or move when you called his name or pinched him would be unresponsive.
Which of the following statements indicates that the patient has an adequate airway?
a. A 2-month-old child with stridor when she breathes
b. A 16-year-old male with wheezing on expiration
c. An 86-year-old man with snoring respirations
d. A 4-year-old child with a respiratory rate of 22
d. A 4-year-old child with a respiratory rate of 22
Which of the following patients is breathing normally?
a. A 1-year-old female with symmetrical equal chest movement and no use of accessory muscles
b. A 54-year-old female with symmetrical chest movement at a
respiratory rate of 30 breaths per minute
c. A 3-month-old child with nasal flaring and grunting
d. A 59-year-old man with intercostal muscle use who is cyanotic
a. A 1-year-old female with symmetrical equal chest movement and no use of accessory muscles
Which of the following is the correct way to measure a pulse?
a. Use your thumb to feel the pulse in the wrist.
b. Press hard with two fingers to feel the carotid pulse.
c. Use two fingers to check the pulse in the wrist.
d. Count the beats in 30 seconds and multiply by 4.
c. Use two fingers to check the pulse in the wrist.
You find a patient with external bleeding. Which of the following describes the best
action you should take?
a. Ignore it until the detailed assessment regardless of the severity.
b. Identify it, but recognize bleeding is not considered life threatening.
c. Treat it immediately if severe, as it may be a life-threatening condition.
d. Treat all bleeding as life threatening and a priority for advanced level
care.
c. Treat it immediately if severe, as it may be a life-threatening condition.
Which of the following is TRUE of prioritizing patients for transport?
a. Patients should be transported based on the injury that looks the most severe.
b. Patients should be transported based on life-threatening airway, breathing, or
bleeding emergencies.
c. Patients are difficult to prioritize so all patients should be rapidly transported to the
emergency department by advanced life support crews.
d. First Responders cannot determine how severe a patient’s condition is and the need
for transport.
b. Patients should be transported based on life-threatening airway, breathing, or
bleeding emergencies.
Which of the following is the goal of a focused history?
a. Ruling out life-threatening injuries
b. Assessing the body thoroughly for injuries
c. Identifying past or additional medical problems
d. Associating the mechanism of injury with patient findings
c. Identifying past or additional medical problems
Which of the following describes the purpose of the focused physical examination?
a. Ruling out life-threatening injuries
b. Assessing the body thoroughly for injuries
c. Identifying past or additional medical problems
d. Associating mechanism of injury with patient findings
b. Assessing the body thoroughly for injuries
The mnemonic DOTS may be used during your assessment. What does DOTS stand
for?
a. Deformities, Open injuries, Tenderness, Swelling
b. Disability, Obstruction, Trauma, Severity
c. Difficulty breathing, Onset, Time of incident, Severity of complaint
d. Distal pulses, Original time of incident, Thorough palpation, Symptoms
a. Deformities, Open injuries, Tenderness, Swelling
Constricted pupil response often indicates which of the following?
a. Hypoxia
b. Drug exposure
c. Death
d. Head injury
b. Drug exposure
You respond to a scene and arrive shortly after the first unit. When you get on the scene, you notice that one of the responders has applied an occlusive dressing to the patient’s neck. Which of the following assessment findings would the responder be treating?
a. Possible cervical spine injury
b. Swelling of the neck tissue
c. Open wound to the neck
d. Shifted trachea
c. Open wound to the neck
You respond to a skiing incident. The patient is complaining of difficulty breathing. To assess the chest, you should do which of the following?
a. Compare the two sides of the chest.
b. Palpate only the side of the chest on which the patient complains of pain.
c. Identify open wounds and notify advanced providers so they can manage the wound.
d. Inspect and palpate the anterior chest as wounds to the back are rare.
a. Compare the two sides of the chest.
Your patient was involved in a crash while riding an all-terrain vehicle. Which of the following should you consider as you assess the pelvis and lower extremities?
a. Crepitus on palpation of the pelvis is a normal finding.
b. Pelvic injuries are usually mild and not life threatening.
c. Distal pulses such as pedal or radial pulses should be palpated to evaluate the circulation.
d. Extremity injuries may be dramatic and should always be a treatment and assessment
priority.
c. Distal pulses such as pedal or radial pulses should be palpated to evaluate the circulation.
You are giving a report to the on-coming crew. They ask you for the patient’s vital signs. You would report on which findings?
a. The patient’s respirations, pulse, skin signs, blood pressure, and pupils
b. The patient’s airway, breathing, and disability
c. The patient’s allergies, last oral intake, and events leading up to the
problem
d. The patient’s primary complaint, breathing and circulation status
a. The patient’s respirations, pulse, skin signs, blood pressure, and pupils
Your patient is a 12-year-old boy with asthma. You ask the patient if he has any medication allergies. You are asking which of the following?
a. A––on the SAMPLE assessment
b. M––on the SAMPLE assessment
c. S––on the DOTS assessment
d. A––on the AVPU assessment
a. A––on the SAMPLE assessment
You respond to a 7-year-old boy who crashed his scooter. He is awake and has a laceration to his right leg with minimal bleeding. He denies pain in his neck and shoulder. Respirations are unlabored and equal. Assessment for this patient would include which of the
following?
a. Completing only an initial assessment with frequent reassessments
b. Assessing for other injuries before treating his laceration
c. Direct pressure to control the bleeding and packaging for transport
before further assessment
d. Treating his laceration and then assessing for other injuries that may be
life threatening
b. Assessing for other injuries before treating his laceration
You respond to the scene of a patient with difficulty breathing. On arrival you find a
cyanotic patient with a weak pulse and no breathing. Which of the following actions should
you take?
a. Open the airway and complete an initial assessment.
b. Assess for other problems before managing his airway and breathing.
c. Open the airway and assist breathing, reassessing his airway and breathing and circulation frequently.
d. Complete a thorough head-to-toe assessment before you open the
airway and initiate breathing.
c. Open the airway and assist breathing, reassessing his airway and breathing and circulation frequently.
You respond to the scene of a child who fell from a rock-climbing wall. She fell about 12 feet and landed on her back. You hear snoring respirations. You stabilize the cervical spine and do which of the following?
a. Use a jaw thrust to prevent further injury due to the mechanism of
injury.
b. Use a head-tilt jaw-thrust to open the airway due to the mechanism of
injury.
c. Monitor the patient until ALS care arrives, since other maneuvers are
outside your scope of practice.
d. Apply oxygen and place the patient in the recovery position as you
continue your initial assessment.
a. Use a jaw thrust to prevent further injury due to the mechanism of
injury.
