Chapter 5 EMS Communications

An elderly man states that he is sad and depressed because his wife recently died of cancer. Which of the following statements from the paramedic demonstrates empathy?

"I'm sorry, sir. I don't know how I would feel in your situation, but I am sure it would be similar."

When a patient thanks you, your MOST appropriate response should be

"You're welcome"

When a patient repeatedly apologizes to you because he or she is incontinent, you should say

"you don't have to apologize, that's what we're here for."

The term "frequency" as it applies to radio communications, is MOST accurately defined as

How frequently a radio wave recurs in a given time.

A ___________ receives a weak signal and retransmits it at a higher power on another frequency.

Repeater

Which of the following details is of LEAST importance for the EMD to obtain from the caller?

The patient's last known oral intake

What hand gesture is interpreted in many Arabic and some Latin American cultures as the equivalent of an extended middle finger?

The thumbs up sign

If a parent insists on monitoring your conversation with his or her adolescent son or daughter, you should

communicate the situation to the emergency department physician and document it accurately

The purpose of a closed-ended questions is to

elicit a specific response from the patient

When a paramedic encounters a patient who has difficulty communicating, he or she should

enlist the help of a family member or primary caregiver

Statements such as "please say more," or "please feel welcome to tell me about that," are examples of

facilitation

If the EMD suspects that your patient has a life threatening emergency, the EMD should make you aware of the situation and then

give pre-arrival instructions to the caller

When a panicked person calls 911 for help

he or she needs immediate confirmation of having reached the right number

The term "frequency," as it applies to radio communications, is MOST accurately defined as

how frequently a radio wave recurs in a given time

Touching a conscious elderly patient in a nursing home without his or her permission

is typically acceptable to the patient, because he or she is often frightened and desperately wants someone to help

Maintaining eye contact with a patient enables the paramedic to

rapidly gain any patient's trust

If a patient avoids answering a specific question, you should

redirect him or her to the question to elicit a response

A patient states, "I can't catch my breath," and the paramedic responds, "You say you can't catch your breath, ma'am?" This is an example of

reflection

When communicating medical information via radio, you should be

simple, brief, and direct

Islamic and Hindu cultures avoid

touching with the left hand

A base station decoder within the emergency department

translates a telemetry signal into an oscilloscope tracing