Primary Assessment Chapter 12

A-B-Cs

Airway, Breathing, Circulation

AVPU

A memory aid for classifying a patient's level of responsiveness or mental status. The letters stand for Alert, Verbal response, Painful response, Unresponsive.

Chief complaint

In emergency medicine, the reason EMS was called, usually in the patient's own words.

General impression

Impression of the patient's condition that is formed on first approaching the patient, based on the patient's environment, chief complaint, and appearance.

Interventions

Actions taken to correct or manage a patient's problems.

Mental status

Level of responsiveness

Primary assessment

The first element in a patient's assessment: steps taken for the purpose of discovering and dealing with any life-threatening problems.

Priority

The decision regarding the need for immediate transport of the patient versus further assessment and care at the scene.

Manual stabilization

Using one's hands to prevent movement of the patient's head and neck until a cervical collar can be applied.

Spinal motion restriction

The use of specific procedures and equipment for limiting movement of the head, neck, and spine when spinal injury is possible or likely.

Obtain the patient's blood pressure

You are treating a 22-year-old male who is responsive and has a medical complaint. Which of the following steps is not part of the primary assessment for this patient?

Past medical history

The general impression is based on an evaluation of all of the following except:

Chief complaint

When a 45-year-old female tells you, in her own words, why she requested an ambulance, this is called the:

Provide positive pressure ventilations

If your patient is not alert and breathing is inadequate due to an insufficient minute volume, you should:

Alert

You are assessing a 25-year-old male cyclist who was racing and fell off his bike, landing on his right shoulder. First you determine his mental status using AVPU. What does the "A" in AVPU stand for?

Verbal response

You have determined that your patient is a "V" as far as mental status is concerned. What does the "V" in AVPU stand for?

The unresponsive patient is a higher priority for immediate transport

One major decision outcome between the primary assessment of a responsive trauma patient and the primary assessment of an unresponsive trauma patient is:

Provide positive pressure ventilations with 100% oxygen

You are assessing a 35-year-old female patient who was involved in a serious car crash. She is not alert, and her breathing rate is less than 8 per minute and shallow. As the EMT in charge, you should:

High-concentration oxygen via nonrebreather mask

During your primary assessment of a 42-year-old female patient, who is alert and has a breathing rate that is greater than 28 with signs of respiratory distress and SPO2 of 93%, you should provide her with:

Good circulation

You are evaluating a 29-year-old male patient. If his skin is warm, dry, and a normal color, it would indicate:

Poor circulation

Your 38-year-old male patient has no life-threatening external hemorrhage, but his skin is cool, pale, and moist. This could indicate:

Evaluate the tissues of the lips or nail beds

To evaluate skin color in a dark-skinned patient, the EMT should also:

The C-A-B approach per AHA guidelines

When doing an assessment on a patient who appears lifeless, the approach is adapted to include:

Life threatening conditions; spinal motion restriction

In the early part of your patient assessment of a trauma patient, your primary concern is to treat the patient's ____ ___________ __________ while providing:

Shout a verbal stimulus

If an infant is not initially alert you should _____ _ ______ ________ to stimulate responsiveness or crying.