First Responder Flashcards

A patient is found unresponsive and not breathing normally. After activating EMS, what is the FIRST action an EMR should take?

Answer: Begin chest compressions

Current AHA guidelines prioritize immediate chest compressions (C-A-B) before airway maneuvers for unresponsive, non-breathing adults.

Which personal protective equipment (PPE) is considered the MINIMUM standard when treating a bleeding patient?

Answer: Gloves and eye protection

Gloves protect against bloodborne pathogens and eye protection guards against splatter — both are minimum standard for bleeding emergencies.

An EMR arrives on scene where a patient has an impaled object in the abdomen. The correct management is to:

Answer: Stabilize the object in place with bulky dressings

Impaled objects should never be removed; they are stabilized in place to prevent further injury and hemorrhage.

During a two-rescuer CPR, the compression-to-ventilation ratio for an adult patient is:

Answer: 30:2

The standard two-rescuer adult CPR ratio remains 30 compressions to 2 ventilations per AHA guidelines.

A construction worker is found with a large open chest wound that makes a sucking sound with breathing. The EMR should:

Answer: Cover with a vented (three-sided) chest seal

A vented or three-sided chest seal covers the wound while allowing air to escape, preventing tension pneumothorax.

When using a bag-valve-mask (BVM) device alone, the correct volume to deliver per breath is enough to:

Answer: Produce visible chest rise

Ventilations should be just enough to produce visible chest rise, avoiding excessive tidal volume that causes gastric inflation.

An EMR is treating a patient with severe external bleeding from the thigh. Direct pressure has not controlled the hemorrhage after 5 minutes. The next best step is:

Answer: Apply a tourniquet proximal to the wound

When direct pressure fails on extremity hemorrhage, a tourniquet applied proximal to the wound is the next standard of care.