Chapter 1: EMS Systems

Which of the following agencies is the source of the EMS Agenda for the Future, the multidisciplinary national review of all aspects of EMS delivery?

(a) Department of Health and Human Services

(b) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

(c) Federal Emergency Management Agency

(d) Department of Transportation

(b) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Which of the following is an example of secondary prevention?

(a) Providing cervical spine immobilization

(b) Administering vaccines

(c) Legislating the use of seat belts

(d) Teaching safety in schools

(a) Providing cervical spine immobilization

Which of the following is the process in which a person, institution, or program is evaluated and recognized as meeting predetermined standards to provide safe and ethical care?

(a) Continuous quality improvement

(b) Medical control

(c) Licensure

(d) Certification

(d) Certification

At what level is an individual who has training in basic life support, including automated external defibrillation, use of a definitive airway adjunct, and assisting patients with certain medications?

(a) EMR

(b) EMT

(c) AEMT

(d) Paramedic

(b) EMT

What is the primary feature of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)?

(a) It enables patients to travel without losing health insurance.

(b) It requires insurance companies to justify denying health care.

(c) It prevents an emergency department from refusing to care for a critically ill patient.

(d) It limits the availability of a patient's health care information.

(d) It limits the availability of a patient's health care information.

Which organization developed and published the first curriculum that served as the guideline for EMT training?

(a) Department of Transportation (DOT)

(b) Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)

(c) National Academy of Sciences

(d) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

(a) Department of Transportation (DOT)

Which of the following entities controls licensure of EMTs?

(a) Community health organizations

(b) The state in which the EMT practices

(c) The federal government

(d) The medical director

(b) The state in which the EMT practices

Which of the following statements about health care in the United States is true?

(a) The United States spends more money per capita on health care than most other countries, but the level of care is superior.

(b) The average life expectancy in the United States is the highest in the world due to advances in health technologies.

(c) Health care in the United States is expensive but does not necessarily provide better health outcomes.

(d) The United States has low health care costs as compared to other wealthy nations.

(c) Health care in the United States is expensive but does not necessarily provide better health outcomes.

Public health examines the health needs of entire populations. In the United States, public health focuses on education and what else?

(a) Prevention

(b) Treatment

(c) Surveillance

(d) Evaluation

(a) Prevention

The responsibility of the medical director to ensure the appropriate medical care standards are met by EMTs on each call is called what?

(a) Medical control

(b) Quality control

(c) Continuous quality improvement

(d) Primary prevention

(b) Quality control

EMRs such as firefighters, law enforcement officers, and park rangers are an integral part of the EMS system because:

(a) they are usually trained to assist paramedics with certain procedures.

(b) they often arrive at the scene before the ambulance and EMTs.

(c) the average response time for the EMT crew is approximately 15 minutes.

(d) they can initiate certain ALS procedures before EMS arrival.

(b) they often arrive at the scene before the ambulance and EMTs.

Which of the following is a nationally recognized component of an EMS system?

(a) Containment of hazardous materials

(b) Swift water rescue

(c) Public education

(d) Containment of a crime scene

(c) Public education

If a defibrillator manufacturer claims that its device terminates ventricular fibrillation on the first shock 95% of the time, you should:

(a) avoid purchasing the device because this claim is unrealistic.

(b) recognize that this does not mean the device will save more lives.

(c) purchase the device based solely on the manufacturer's claim.

(d) determine which device the American Heart Association suggests.

(b) recognize that this does not mean the device will save more lives.

The ____________ deals with the well-being of the EMT, career progression, and EMT compensation.

(a) human resources department

(b) office of the medical director

(c) EMS administrator or chief

(d) local public health department

(a) human resources department

Dressing and acting properly while on duty are examples of ___________.

(a) professional attributes

(b) legal obligations

(c) contractual duties

(d) professional diplomacy

(a) professional attributes

Which of the following is an example of a primary prevention strategy?

(a) Community awareness programs that emphasize the dangers of drinking and driving

(b) The construction of a guardrail on a dangerous curve following a fatal motor vehicle crash

(c) Protecting a patient's spine from further injury after a fall from a significant height

(d) Teaching a group of new parents how to perform one- and two-rescuer infant CPR

(a) Community awareness programs that emphasize the dangers of drinking and driving

Empathy requires the EMT to ___________.

(a) agree with the patient

(b) consider the needs of others

(c) share similar experiences

(d) disregard emotions while working

(b) consider the needs of others

By definition, pandemic illnesses have ___________.

(a) difficulty spreading from person to person

(b) created panic in the public

(c) been eliminated in the United States.

(d) spread throughout the world

(d) spread throughout the world

Which of the following is required to work as an EMT?

(a) Advanced training in hazardous materials

(b) A human anatomy and physiology course

(c) An associate's degree

(d) A current basic life support/CPR credential

(d) A current basic life support/CPR credential

Which of the following has training in limited advanced life support skills, such as IV therapy?

(a) Emergency Medical Responder (EMR)

(b) Advanced EMT (AEMT)

(c) Paramedic

(d) Emergency Medical Technician (EMT)

(b) Advanced EMT (AEMT)

One of the most important recent advances in prehospital emergency care is the _____________.

(a) AED

(b) small-volume nebulizer

(c) auto-injector

(d) pneumatic stretcher

(a) AED

Doing what is best for the patient is known as ________.

(a) patient advocacy

(b) duty to act

(c) standard of care

(d) scope of practice

(a) patient advocacy

Which of the following is an advantage of enhanced 9-1-1 systems over regular 9-1-1 systems?

(a) Simultaneous dispatch with law enforcement

(b) Assistance from a trained dispatcher

(c) Improved response times

(d) Potential use of GPS technology

(d) Potential use of GPS technology

EMS, as we know it today, has its origins in the 1966 __________.

(a) White Paper

(b) Red Report

(c) EMS Chronicles

(d) Prehospital Roundtable

(a) White Paper

Why are prehospital emergency care guidelines updated on a regular basis?

(a) Statistical data indicate that an increasing number of people are being diagnosed with a particular illness.

(b) EMS providers should be encouraged to actively participate in research and become familiar with data analysis.

(c) Additional information and evidence indicate that the effectiveness of certain interventions has changed.

(d) The federal government requires that changes be made to existing emergency care protocols at least every 5 years.

(c) Additional information and evidence indicate that the effectiveness of certain interventions has changed.

Roles and responsibilities of the EMT include __________.

(a) talking nonurgent patients out of using an ambulance

(b) refusing care for verbally abusive patient

(c) assisting law enforcement during tactical situation

(d) providing on-scene leadership

(d) providing on-scene leadership

Which of the following errors is an example of a knowledge-based failure?

(a) An EMT gives the correct drug to a patient, although his protocols clearly state that he is not authorized to do so.

(b) Due to an improperly applied cervical collar, a patient's spinal injury is aggravated and he is permanently disabled.

(c) A patient is given nitroglycerin by an EMT who did not obtain proper authorization from medical control first.

(d) An EMT administers the wrong drug to a patient because she did not know the pertinent information about the drug.

(d) An EMT administers the wrong drug to a patient because she did not know the pertinent information about the drug.

A proactive approach to public health focuses on _________.

(a) prevention of injury and illness

(b) decreasing response times to emergencies

(c) maintaining skills proficiency of EMS providers

(d) tracking outcomes of seriously injured patients

(a) prevention of injury and illness

Who is ultimately responsible for ensuring quality control for all EMTs at an EMS agency?

(a) The chief executive

(b) The EMS officer

(c) The medical director

(d) The senior EMT

(c) The medical director

Today's EMS providers are trained according to the __________.

(a) 2010 Federal EMS Provider Standards

(b) 1995 U.S. DOT Guidelines

(c) 2009 National EMS Education Standards

(d) 1999 National EMS Curriculum

(c) 2009 National EMS Education Standards