2.1 Cardiac Arrest Approach

Flashcards

Q: What patient presentation is assumed in this cardiac arrest approach?
A: Unresponsive, not breathing, no pulse.

Q: What is the goal for patient positioning in cardiac arrest?
A: Achieve 360° access to the patient.

Q: Where should airway and oxygen equipment be placed?
A: On the patient’s right side (right of the airway paramedic).

Q: Where should the defibrillator be positioned?
A: On the patient’s left side (left shoulder of patient).

Q: Why should you avoid placing the defibrillator on the opposite side?
A: Prevents leaning over the patient during defibrillation, improving safety.

Q: What is the optimal team positioning for 4 paramedics in cardiac arrest?
A: Head – airway paramedic; patient’s left – responder 2; patient’s right – responder 3; foot – team leader.

Q: Target time to first defibrillation in high performance CPR?
A: Less than 2 minutes.

Q: Maximum pause allowed for rhythm analysis?
A: 3–5 seconds.

Q: Should compressions continue during defibrillator charging?
A: Yes.

Q: What is the “If in doubt, shock” principle?
A: When unsure about rhythm analysis, shock if it could be shockable (especially with monitor-based analysis).

Q: When should you perform a pulse check?
A: Only for potentially perfusing rhythms (not VF, pulseless VT, or asystole).