AEMT Quiz Questions - Ops

Which of the following patients would not be a good candidate for aeromedical transport?

19-year-old female in PEA with an ETCO2 of 30 mmHg and CPR in progress 59 year-old male with a dissecting abdominal aortic aneurysm 34-year-old female with a rectal temperature of 90.4 degrees Fahrenheit 26-year-old male with full-thickness burns to 75% of his body Answer: 19-year-old female in PEA with an ETCO2 of 30 mmHg and CPR in progress Although many factors are incorporated into making a transport decision, injury severity can be a factor. However, cardiac arrest is a clear contraindication. Despite the 19-year-old female having a near normal ETCO2 level, CPR is in progress.

Which of the following patients can refuse care?

24-year-old male involved in an MVC, not oriented to person 69-year-old male, conscious, alert, and oriented, with a severe arm bleed 17-year-old male with a wrist fracture 38-year-old intoxicated female who fell and hit her head answer: 69-year-old male, conscious, alert, and oriented, with a severe arm bleed Minors, intoxicated patients, and altered patients can't refuse.

A general rule for deciding whether or not to use aeromedical transport is: transport by helicopter will decrease transport time by _____ minutes or more.

5 10 30 1 answer: 10 If the helicopter transport will not reduce transport time by 10 minutes or more, ground transport is probably the most necessary means of patient transportation to the hospital.

Based on GCS alone, which of the following patients would be considered a candidate for aeromedical transport?

9 15 13 11 Answer: 9, A GCS of <10 may mean that a patient would benefit from aeromedical transport.

_____________ is used to stabilize cars involved in motor vehicle crash while extrication is occurring.

A chock A rope system Cribbing A winch answer: Cribbing While a chock may be used to stop a car from moving, immobilization of the car will be done with cribbing.

You are assessing a male adult patient you suspect was exposed to nerve gas. When assessing this patient, which pneumonic will help you determine if the symptoms match your suspicion of injury?

AEIOU-TIPS DUMBELS OPQRST BURP answer: DUMBELS DUMBELS: defecation, urination, miosis, bradycardia, emesis, lacrimation, salivation. These symptoms are all consistent with nerve agent poisoning, which inhibits acetylcholinesterase from the breakdown of acetycholine. This leads to over-stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system.

Termination of care without assuring continuity of care is known as?

Abandonment Negligence Battery Assault Answer: Abandonment

You are called to an unknown injury that occurred during a domestic dispute. You arrive to find a woman severely wounded by a blunt object. The police are talking to the man who assaulted the patient. As you are about to leave, you turn and punch the man in the face. What type of legal charges could you face from your actions?

Battery Negligence Assault Abuse Answer: Battery Battery is the actual, intentional striking of someone, with intent to harm. Assault is carried out by a threat of bodily harm.

While performing triage during a MCI, you encounter the following adult patient: unconscious/unresponsive, pulseless and apneic with warm skin. You reposition the patient's airway but the patient remains apneic and pulseless. What should you do next?

Begin chest compressions Triage the patient as "IMMEDIATE" and move to the next patient Give two rescue breaths Triage the patient as "DECEASED" and move to the next patient answer: Triage the patient as "DECEASED" and move to the next patient During MPS' or MCIs, it is not an appropriate use of resources to perform CPR. The START triage system has developed an assessment/limited interventions matrix to follow when performing triage. This patient should be triaged as "DECEASED" and you should proceed to your next patient.

Which of the following types of Weapon of Mass Destruction would cause the most immediate impact?

Biological Viral Chemical Radioactive answer: Chemical Biological agents take time to release

Standard precautions, or body substance isolation precautions, are required for exposure to all of the following except?

Blood Avulsed skin Vaginal secretions Sweat answer: Sweat

Loading a patient into a helicopter while the engine is off and the rotors are not in motion is known as a?

Cold load Hot load Slow load Fast load Answer: Cold Load This is a much safer way to load the patient. It should be attempted if the patient's condition will allow for the extra time that is required to turn the helicopter off and then start it again once the patient is loaded.

911 calls indicate that there are at least 25 patients in a college campus shooting. SWAT teams are engaged in a heavy fire fight with two gunmen in one of the residence halls. What type of incident is this?

Contained Active Evacuated Explosive answer: Active An active incident is one in which the events that led to the mass casualty incident are still present (fire, weather, shooter at large, etc.).

You arrive on scene of a 48-year-old male in cardiac arrest. After 35 minutes of ALS resuscitation efforts, the patient remains in asystole. There is no indication that further efforts will be successful. At least ten family members are gathered in an adjacent room and are very emotional. How should you proceed?

Continue the resuscitation Stop resuscitation and inform the family that the patient has died Transport the patient to the ED Call for police and continue with minimal resuscitation efforts answer: Stop resuscitation and inform the family that the patient has died A patient should not be transported if they are dead and there is no chance of survival. There is no such thing as "minimal resuscitation efforts", which allows you to eliminate that as an answer.

Triage this patient: A 63-year-old female with severe hip pain after a bus crash. She has obvious bilateral femur fractures. Her respiratory rate is 26 breaths per minute and she has a rapid radial pulse. She follows your commands but is unable to move her legs. The passenger next to her is dead.

DELAYED (yellow) GREEN (minor) IMMEDIATE (red) DECEASED (black) Answer: DELAYED (yellow) The patient's respiratory rate is less than 30, she has a radial pulse, and follows your simple commands. She is unable to move her legs though so she should be triaged as DELAYED (yellow).

A process that involves removing, preventing, or reducing the spread of hazardous materials is referred to as:

Decontamination Hazard prevention Detoxification Flushing Answer: Decontamination Decontamination is an important process at any hazardous materials incident and should be performed prior to placing patients in emergency apparatus.

A patient with a grossly deformed right humerus who is following your verbal commands should be triaged as?

Delayed Immediate Minor Deceased Answer: Minor Any walking wounded that can follow commands should be directed to move to the treatment area and will be triaged as "Minor" (green).

You are triaging a 34-year-old pregnant female who is trapped in her car due to her legs being pinned underneath the dash. She is conscious, alert, and has a strong radial pulse. She is following your commands but is complaining of abdominal pain and she has a slightly elevated respiratory rate (26/minute). How should this patient be triaged?

Delayed Minor Immediate Deceased answer: delayed She meets no RPM (respirations, pulse, mental status) for Immediate but cannot walk. Therefore, she should be triaged as "Delayed" (yellow). Although she is pregnant and complaining of abdominal pain, this does not immediately qualify her to be triaged as "Immediate" (red).

Of the following, which unit has initial command upon arriving at an incident?

EMS The first in unit Fire Police answer: The first in unit

A bariatric ambulance is a specialized ambulance meant for what patient population?

Elderly patients Infant or child patients Obese patients Critically ill patients answer: Obese patients

You arrive to a car into a pole accident on a side street. You notice there are wires down on the ground & the patient's car. You see one patient who appears unconscious in the vehicle. Bystanders have begun to gather around the scene wondering what is going on. What is your top priority?

Extricate your patient immediately. Assess your patient who is in the vehicle Keep the bystanders back and secure the scene Attempt to wake up the patient by yelling answer: Keep the bystanders back and secure the scene

While responding to the report of a diabetic problem, your ALS ambulance is waiting for a red light at a busy highway intersection. A head-on motor vehicle crash occurs in the intersection in front of you. You turn on the lights and sirens and block the intersection. You and your partner immediately begin to provide medical care to the severely injured driver who is entrapped. A BLS ambulance is dispatched to replace you for the diabetic call. In regards to the diabetic call, what possibly has just occurred?

False imprisonment Misfeasance Negligence Abandonment answer: Abandonment If the diabetic patient requires ALS care, the patient could argue that abandonment occurred when a care provider who was less qualified assumed patient care and responsibility.

Your elderly patient is complaining of shortness of breath and has an oxygen saturation of 86%. You attempt to apply a nasal cannula, but she states that she doesn't want oxygen. Your patient is conscious, alert, and oriented to person, place, time and event. You should?

Have her sign a refusal Apply the oxygen anyway based on implied consent Attempt to convince her of her need for oxygen Have police respond to assist in treating this patient answer: Attempt to convince her of her need for oxygen

Which of the following factors is responsible for the majority of air medical transport crashes?

Human error Controlled flight plans that fly into terrain Mechanical problems Weather issues answer: Human error Human error causes 68% of all air medical transport crashes.

After directing the walking wounded to a safe location, what should you do next when utilizing the JumpSTART triage system?

Immediately begin triage Begin transport of the walking wounded so the patient's parents can pick them up at the designated hospital Begin treatment of the walking wounded in the treatment area Move infants and young children (who cannot understand verbal commands) to the treatment area answer: Move infants and young children (who cannot understand verbal commands) to the treatment area Although triage is important, it is necessary to quickly move the infants and young children to the treatment area for secondary triage. These patients cannot provide basic needs for themselves so they need to be moved to a place that can provide basic needs for them.

Your 69-year-old male patient is complaining of crushing chest pain, that he rates a 10/10. Halfway to the hospital, the patient begins to yell, "save me, please, I'm going to die." This type of speech is termed?

Impending doom Anxiety talk Dramatic overreaction Sporatic answer: Impending doom

Which of the following is not one of the three steps of decontamination?

Increase in excess toxin break down Reduction of absorption of toxin by the body Increase in elimination of toxin Reduction of toxin intake Answer: Increase in excess toxin break down After ABC stabilization of the patient, treatment for a toxic exposure focuses on decontamination. The three steps of decontamination are: reduction of toxin intake, reduction of absorption of toxin by the body, and increase in elimination of the toxin.

What is the most common route for exposure to a hazardous material?

Inhalation Injection Absorption Ingestion Answer: Inhalation

You are treating a 38-year-old female who is adamantly refusing transport. She is conscious, alert, and oriented appropriately. However, there are no witnesses available to sign the patient refusal form. How should you proceed?

Insist that she must go to the hospital for evaluation without a witness signature Have her call someone who can come over to be a witness Have the patient sign the refusal form without a witness signature Do no use the patient refusal form, but be sure to document thoroughly why it wasn't used Answer: Have the patient sign the refusal form without a witness signature Although an extra layer of legal protection, the witness signature on a refusal form is not necessary for a patient to refuse services.

At a hazardous material incident, all is true of the 'hot' or 'red' zone, except?

Life-saving emergency care and decontamination are performed Personnel must wear appropriate protective gear Contamination is actually present Only a limited amount of rescuers are allowed answer: Life-saving emergency care and decontamination are performed The 'hot' or 'red' zone can also be called the contamination zone. Any victims needing rescue would be moved to the 'warm' or 'yellow' zone before receiving care or decontamination.

You and a partner are dispatched on a non-emergent fall patient. However, on arrival, you surprisingly find an unconscious 52-year-old male that fell from a second-story window. How should you first proceed?

Load and go Call for additional ALS units Perform a full trauma assessment Obtain a quick history of what happened answer: Call for additional ALS units At some point in call, you would perform all of the answers, but you're asked for which one you would do first. Calling for additional unit as quickly as possible is crucial to get help coming your way. When you load and go, obtain a history, or do a full assessment, you are delaying the help you need.

Triage this patient: A 49-year-old female involved in a single vehicle crash with four other patients. Your patient was partially ejected when the vehicle rolled. She has an airway and is breathing at 40 times per minute. She has a weak radial pulse and is going in and out of consciousness. One of the other patients has been triaged as DECEASED (black).

MMEDIATE (red) DECEASED (black) DELAYED (yellow) MINOR (green) answer: IMMEDIATE (red) She is breathing over 30 times per minute which automatically puts her in the IMMEDIATE (red) category.

You have been assigned to triage patients involved in a seven vehicle crash. All walking wounded have been directed to a safe area away from the scene. You are currently triaging a teenage male with bilateral femur fractures who is unconscious and has a thready radial pulse. What triage level should you assign this patient?

Minor Delayed Immediate Deceased answer: Immediate START triage utilizes RPM (respirations, pulse, and mental status) to evaluate triage patients. If a patient has altered mental status, an absent radial pulse, capillary refill time greater than two seconds, or a respiratory rate greater than 30/minute, they should be triaged as "Immediate" (red).

You are dispatched emergent to a car accident to find a patient sitting on the curb holding her wrist. You begin to treat her and just before you put her into the ambulance, your partner finds the driver is still trapped inside the car and is in need of immediate transport. You leave the patient with the arm injury in the care of a first responder on the scene. What type of lawsuit could the paramedic be at risk?

Negligence Abandonment Assault Battery answer: Abandonment Leaving care of your patient to someone of lower certification is a prime example of abandonment. This is a tough question, but like on the NREMT, you must find the best answer.

You are the landing zone supervisor for a multiple vehicle pile up on the interstate. You have directed your crew to set up a 100'x100' landing zone. The crew has cleared the landing zone of any debris and ensured that the emergency vehicles are parked clear of the landing zone. The landing zone is marked by four cones. You direct the crew to place a fifth cone where?

North of the landing zone South of the landing zone Upwind of the landing zone Downwind of the landing zone answer: Upwind of the landing zone The fifth cone should be placed on the upwind side of the landing zone. The pilot will use this fifth cone as a reference for his final approach and landing.

You are the incident commander at a mass casualty incident. Two passenger trains have collided inside a tunnel that is one mile in length. Initial casualty reports are in the hundreds. What type of incident is this?

Open Extended Closed Shut answer: Closed A closed incident is an incident that is limited by the physical structures surrounding it. The physical limitations reduce the ability of emergency responders to easily access, treat, and transport patients.

Your ambulance is the first to arrive at the scene of a multiple-vehicle accident that spreads across both lanes of a 2-lane freeway. What is the best position for your ambulance?

Park behind the accident and block all lanes of travel Park in front of the accident and block all lanes of travel Park in front of the accident for easy egress from the scene Park behind the accident, but allow vehicles to get by on the shoulder Answer: Park behind the accident and block all lanes of travel As the first responder on scene, you have the responsibility of scene safety. All you know from the question is that the accident spreads across both lanes of traffic. It may be safe to open up the shoulder for traffic to get through at a later time, but initially, all lanes should be blocked by positioning your ambulance behind the accident.

When parking your emergency vehicle to block oncoming traffic at the scene of a crash, how should you park your apparatus?

Park in the center median Perpendicular to traffic, taking up multiple lanes Parallel to traffic, taking up one lane At a 45 degree angle to traffic, taking up multiple lanes answer: At a 45 degree angle to traffic, taking up multiple lanes

You are responding as a part of a strike team to a bombing at a college stadium. You are driving a type III ambulance with lights and sirens on. What type of apparatus would be responding with you in your strike team?

Police cars Fire engines Ambulances Special rescue teams Answer: Ambulances A strike team is organized to include the same kind and type of resource. Each strike team should have a designated leader and have the ability to communicate between all single resources in the team. A strike team may be a part of a task force.

When ambulances are designated a staging location that is a known high call volume area, this is called?

Primary areas of responsibility (PAR) Stationing Demographic staging Deployment answer: Primary areas of responsibility (PAR)

While you are on scene with a patient, you decide to consult a physician over the telephone regarding patient care. Which of the following has occurred?

Prospective medical direction Concurrent medical direction Coexisting medical direction Retrospective medical direction answer: Concurrent medical direction Prospective medical direction includes training curricula and protocols. Concurrent medical direction occurs when the paramedic consults a MD by telephone, radio or other electronic means during patient care or transport. Retrospective medical direction refers to after patient care has been delivered, and includes improvement programs and case reviews.

Which of the following personnel on an MCI would be in charge of ensuring patients are sent to the appropriate hospitals?

Public Information Officer Liaison Officer Transport Officer Incident Safety Officer Answer: Transport Officer The transport officer is in charge of coordinating the transport of patients from an MCI scene. This includes getting ahold of regional trauma centers and other hospitals to see how many patients each can take.

You respond to the scene of a small gas explosion. The 50-year-old victim is complaining of ear pain and trouble breathing. You should suspect:

Pulmonary injury Liver damage Asthma Cardiac injury Answer: Pulmonary injury Pulmonary injury is the most common and serious trauma associated with explosions. This patient should be monitored closely as secondary blast injuries may appear over time. This is especially true if there are signs of abdominal or ear injuries.

You have been dispatched to a possible stroke. Upon arrival you find an elderly female asleep in her chair with the telephone in her hand. When awakened, she leads you back to the bedroom where her husband is lying in bed unresponsive. Suddenly, you and your partner develop a headache and begin to feel ill. You should?

Quickly, but safely extricate the patient and his wife from the building Place the patient in full spinal precautions based on unresponsiveness with an unknown cause Exit the building without the patient and ensure that additional and appropriate resources have been dispatched Check the patient's pulse, airway, and breathing answer: Exit the building without the patient and ensure that additional and appropriate resources have been dispatched

As you are arriving at the scene of a motor vehicle crash, you note the following: It is night time and there is no moonlight, a downed power line is arcing near one vehicle, it is raining out, and the roads are slick. Which of the above factors is not considered an environmental hazard?

Raining and slick roads Night time Arcing, downed power line Dark night with no moonlight answer: Arcing, downed power line

In triage, what does RPM stand for?

Regulated pain management Radial pulse measurement Rapid pressure management Respirations, Pulse, Mentation answer: Respirations, Pulse, Mentation RPM stands for respirations, pulse and mentation, which are the three criteria assessed during rapid triage

Which of the following is not an error when deciding whether or not to use air medical transport?

Requesting air transport when the patient has severe, life-threatening injuries Requesting air transport when the patient would benefit from a different means of transport Requesting air transport when the patient is about to be or is currently in cardiac arrest Requesting air transport when ground transport will be faster Answer: Requesting air transport when the patient has severe, life-threatening injuries

You have been dispatched for a "possible diabetic emergency." Upon arrival, the patient's wife meets you at the front door and tells you that the patient woke up this morning and was acting abnormal. She checked his blood sugar and it was 120 mg/dcL. She thinks her machine was wrong. Your patient is standing on his bed in his underwear. When you and your partner walk through the bedroom door, he goes into a rage and starts coming at you with raised fists. What should you do immediately?

Stay in the room and attempt to reason with the patient Retreat to the ambulance and call for police assistance Tell the patient's wife to get him under control Tackle the patient and send your partner to radio for help answer: Retreat to the ambulance and call for police assistance

When driving code 3, how should you attempt to navigate through traffic that has stopped?

Steer to the right and pass traffic on the right Tailgate traffic until vehicles pull out of the way Drive faster to avoid traffic Steer to the left and pass traffic on the left answer: Steer to the left and pass traffic on the left

The back of an ambulance is an example of what kind of environment?

Sterile Disinfected Medically clean Biohazardous Answer: Medically Clean A sterile environment means that no living bacteria or viruses exist. Despite maintains good cleaning procedures after each call, there is a possibility for living organisms to still be present in the back of the ambulance. Therefore, the ambulance would be considered medically clean.

Which of the following best describes "due regard" in relation to driving an ambulance with the lights and siren on?

The ambulance can ignore traffic laws if it will reduce their response time The ambulance has the right of way The ambulance is exempt from following traffic laws The ambulance is requesting the right of way answer: The ambulance is requesting the right of way Driving with due regard is to make sure that all other drivers and pedestrians near you see that you are coming, understand where you are going, and are out of the way safely before proceeding.

You are on scene of a motor vehicle crash on an overpass. A truck has flipped up over the guardrail and is dangerously hanging on the guardrail, dangling over the highway below. The driver airbag has deployed but the passenger airbag appears intact. Fluids appear to be leaking from the truck onto the highway below. The trucks headlights are still on, indicating that power to the vehicle is still intact. Which of the following is not considered a vehicle hazard?

Truck hanging from guardrail Electrical system is still intact Airbag deployment Leaking fluids Answer: Truck hanging from guardrail Presence of fluids, airbag deployment, and electrical system components are all categorized as vehicle hazards. The truck hanging from the guardrail is an incident scene hazard - one that is related to the specific incident.

You are the third arriving apparatus to a motor vehicle crash with multiple vehicles involved. It is a Tuesday night with heavy traffic in both directions. Upon your arrival, what is the best safety practice in regards to your apparatus lights?

Turn off all of the emergency lights but leave the headlights on Turn on all lights to illuminate the scene and make sure all vehicles see your apparatus Turn off all of the lights to reduce the possibility that another driver will hit the apparatus Leave the emergency lights on but turn off the headlights to avoid blinding oncoming traffic Answer: Leave the emergency lights on but turn off the headlights to avoid blinding oncoming traffic Depending on when you arrive and where you park, it is important to consider the impact that your lights will have on the scene. As a later arriving unit, it is recommended to turn off the head lights during night time operation to avoid blinding oncoming traffic.

You are driving with your lights and sirens on to a motor vehicle crash. As a result of the crash, traffic has backed up and is at a standstill. While approaching an intersection, the vehicles cannot pull to the right due to congestion. Which of the following is the best safe driving practice for navigating through this intersection?

Turn off your lights and sirens and wait for traffic to clear Enter the oncoming traffic lanes slowly and proceed once clear to do so Reverse the ambulance and travel a different route that will take you a considerable amount of time Pass traffic using the right shoulder Answer: Enter the oncoming traffic lanes slowly and proceed once clear to do so The goal of your response is to respond as safely and quickly as possible with due regard to your safety and the safety of those around you. Always drive as far left as reasonable when approaching an intersection. Reduce speed and ensure that oncoming drivers see you before continuing. You should never pass on the right because drivers are taught to pull to the right when they see an emergency vehicle. This could cause a crash. Waiting for traffic to clear or taking a longer route may be safer but it will greatly reduce your response time in an emergency. Use these as a last resort and have good justification.

What is most important safety precaution to take to avoid being struck by a vehicle while you are involved in emergency operations near moving traffic?

Wear a hi-visibility traffic safety vest Utilize apparatus blocking Leave apparatus emergency lights on Place traffic cones out answer: Utilize apparatus blocking Using the apparatus to block traffic and provide a safe working environment for you and your crew is the most important safety precaution you can take when working near moving traffic. All of the other answers should be utilized as well but apparatus blocking will provide the most safety.

You are the triage officer at a large industrial accident with multiple injuries and casualties. You encounter a male patient lying on the ground with a faint carotid pulse. He is not breathing and you reposition the airway, but he still is apneic. You would triage this patient as?

Yellow Green Black Red answer: Black

You are exceeding the speed limit while driving with your lights and sirens to the report of a cardiac arrest at a local gym. Which of the following regarding your response is true?

You are responding to a life-threatening emergency and can exceed the speed limit by up to 10mph You have always have the right away because you have your lights and sirens on Regardless of lights and sirens or life-threatening emergencies, you must always drive with due regard During emergency response, you will not be at fault if an accident occurs because of your driving answer: Regardless of lights and sirens or life-threatening emergencies, you must always drive with due regard