FANZCA Safety and Compliance 4

Question 1

Under the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) framework, mandatory reporting applies when a registered practitioner has a reasonable belief that a colleague:

Accepted Answer

Is practising while intoxicated or has an impairment placing the public at risk

Answer

Has made a single minor documentation error

Answer

Has taken unplanned sick leave on more than three occasions

Answer

Has expressed disagreement with hospital policy

Question 2

Which of the following best describes 'procedural sedation' as distinct from general anaesthesia under ANZCA standards?

Accepted Answer

Procedural sedation maintains spontaneous ventilation and protective airway reflexes without loss of consciousness

Answer

Procedural sedation requires intubation and full monitoring

Answer

Procedural sedation does not require IV access

Answer

Procedural sedation can only be administered by non-anaesthetists

Question 3

The Anaesthesia Non-Technical Skills (ANTS) framework is primarily used to assess:

Accepted Answer

Cognitive, social, and personal resource management skills of anaesthetists

Answer

Pharmacokinetic calculation speed under pressure

Answer

Technical manual dexterity for intubation and IV insertion

Answer

Speed of anaesthesia induction and emergence

Question 4

During a difficult airway scenario, the anaesthetist declares 'cannot intubate, cannot oxygenate' (CICO). The next step according to ANZCA guidelines is:

Accepted Answer

Proceed immediately to emergency front-of-neck airway (eFONA)

Answer

Attempt laryngoscopy for a fourth time with a video laryngoscope

Answer

Administer high-dose rocuronium and wait

Answer

Attempt blind nasotracheal intubation

Question 5

Regarding diathermy safety in the operating theatre, which precaution is most important for a patient with a cardiac pacemaker?

Accepted Answer

Use bipolar diathermy where possible and place the return electrode to keep current path away from the device

Answer

Bipolar diathermy is absolutely contraindicated in pacemaker patients

Answer

Monopolar diathermy at lower power settings is safe without any special precautions

Answer

Pacemakers automatically switch to asynchronous mode when diathermy is used

Question 6

The 'sterile cockpit' concept applied to anaesthesia practice means:

Accepted Answer

During critical phases of anaesthesia, non-essential communication and tasks should be minimised

Answer

The anaesthesia workspace must be physically sterile at all times

Answer

Only board-certified anaesthetists may enter the operating room during induction

Answer

All anaesthetic drugs must be drawn up inside a laminar flow cabinet

Question 7

Which of the following is the primary purpose of the Australian Incident Monitoring Study (AIMS) database?

Accepted Answer

To aggregate de-identified incident reports and identify system-level safety patterns

Answer

To track individual anaesthetist error rates for credentialling purposes

Answer

To provide real-time intraoperative alerts to anaesthetists

Answer

To replace the need for individual hospital incident reporting