Adv. Patient Assessment Exam #1

Frank blood or clear, watery fluid draining from the ear canal following head trauma is MOST suggestive of a(n):

basilar skull fracture

Other than overall patient appearance, the patient's __________ is/are the MOST objective data for determining his or her status.

vital signs

Which of the following statements regarding your general survey of the patient is correct?

It is not uncommon for patients in severe pain to present with a quiet and still affect.

Flushed skin is commonly seen as a result of all the following, EXCEPT:

fever.

A conscious patient's respiratory rate should be measured:

for a minimum of 30 seconds.

To obtain a heart rate in infants younger than 1 year of age, you should:

palpate the brachial artery.

Blood pressure is the product of:

cardiac output and peripheral vascular resistance

The skin becomes _________ when red blood cell perfusion to the capillary beds of the skin is poor.

pale

When assessing visual acuity in the prehospital setting, you should:

examine each eye in isolation. 

Examination of the head is MOST important when assessing a patient who:

has an altered mental status. 

Using casual nicknames can be especially problematic when:

cultural differences exist between the patient and the paramedic.

When assessing a patient who is under the influence of alcohol, it is MOST important to remember that:

alcohol can mask any number of signs and symptoms.

Which of the following questions would be of LEAST pertinence when trying to determine a patient's current health status?

“Are your mother and father still living?”

When attempting to interview a potentially violent patient, you should:

ensure that you are positioned between the patient and the door. 

When communicating with a patient whose cultural background differs from the paramedic's, the paramedic should:

treat the patient with the utmost respect at all times.

Which of the following is MOST indicative of a patient who is about to attack you?

Clenched facial muscles

When asking a patient if he or she uses illegal drugs, you will MOST likely get accurate information if you:

remain professional and nonjudgmental.

It is appropriate to ask, “Would you say the pain is similar to or worse than with previous episodes?” when determining the _________ of a patient's pain.

severity

If a patient's family member is hostile and begins shouting at you, you should:

tell the person that if he or she continues to shout, you will not feel safe and will need to call law enforcement.

When your patient is a non-English-speaking person, his or her child is often able to function as an interpreter because:

children quickly absorb a new language in school.

What does pulse oximetry measure?

The percentage of hemoglobin saturation

Which of the following questions would be appropriate to ask a patient who has no medical training?

“Do you have any breathing or heart problems?”

In contrast to dementia, delirium is:

an acute change in mental status.

Which of the following is the most clinically significant indicator of ischemia in a limb?

Pulselessness

Which of the following statements regarding renal function in older adults is correct?

Aging kidneys respond less efficiently to hemodynamic stress.

For the first year of life, an infant has naturally acquired passive immunities because:

he or she maintains some of the mother's immunities

All of the following are adventitious breath sounds, EXCEPT:

vesicular sounds.

If the wife of a critically ill man asks you if her husband is going to die, how should you respond?

He is very sick, but we are doing everything we can to help him.”

As a result of the increase in diastolic blood pressure associated with aging:

the left ventricle works harder, becomes thicker, and loses its elasticity

Blood pressure is the product of:

cardiac output and peripheral vascular resistance.