Skip to content
Free NREMT practice questionsFree AEMT practice questions · EMS Operations

10 free AEMT practice questions: Specialized Transport Considerations

These are real questions from the same bank the app draws from. Each one is written to the NREMT AEMT content specifications and kept inside the AEMT scope of practice. Pick an answer and you get the full rationale, including why the other three options are wrong.

Work through all 10, then move on to the next topic. When you want the full picture, the free AEMT diagnostic covers every topic in one sitting. No account needed for any of it.

Question 1 of 10

A car has come to rest against a utility pole after a motor vehicle collision, and one patient is still seated inside. The utility company has confirmed that the pole and its wires are not energized, and there is no fire. What must be completed before the AEMT enters the vehicle?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · Stabilizing the vehicle so it cannot move

Stabilize the vehicle before anyone goes inside. Extrication runs in a set order, and stabilization comes before gaining access. A car resting against a pole can shift the moment you add weight to it. Cribbing, step chocks, and wheel chocks hold the car so it cannot move in any direction. Until the car is held, anyone who climbs in is working on an unsecured load. Once the vehicle is stable, the crew moves on to gaining access and then disentanglement.

Why the others are wrong

Removing a door to widen the opening: Removing a door is part of gaining access, which is a real phase of extrication. Gaining access comes after hazard control and stabilization. Widening the opening first puts a crew member next to a car that can still move.

Disconnecting the positive battery cable first: Disconnecting the battery is a real step, done with the negative cable first and the positive cable second. Powering down the vehicle also comes after stabilization, and powering down does not replace stabilization.

Cutting the orange high-voltage cabling: Orange cabling on a hybrid marks high voltage, and knowing the color can make cutting it look like the way to remove the hazard. Orange high-voltage cabling is never cut. You recognize it and leave it alone, and leaving it alone is not a step you complete before entry.

Question 2 of 10

An AEMT is driving an ambulance with warning lights and siren and approaches an intersection where the traffic signal is red. Traffic is stopped in three lanes ahead, and the cross street is busy. What should the AEMT do at the intersection?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · Stop completely and clear each lane separately

You are coming up on a red light with three lanes of stopped traffic and a busy cross street. Each lane has its own driver. You cannot assume every one of those drivers saw you or heard you. Come to a complete stop. Then clear lane one, then lane two, then lane three, each one as its own decision. Due regard requires this at a red light or a stop sign, even with lights and siren on. The driver in the far lane may never have seen or heard you. Clearing each lane on its own is how you keep from getting hit by that driver.

Why the others are wrong

Slow to a roll and proceed once the siren is heard: The law does let an ambulance go through a red light, as long as the driver uses due regard. That exemption covers whether you may cross. The exemption does not let you skip the stop. With three lanes stopped and a busy cross street, rolling through means you never clear each lane on its own.

Hold the siren tone steady while crossing: A siren held on one steady tone sounds like the strongest warning you can give. Drivers get used to a steady wail and stop reacting to it. At a busy cross street, you need their attention right now. Change the siren tone as you come up on the intersection instead.

Pass the stopped traffic on the right shoulder: The right shoulder looks like open road when three lanes are stopped. A driver who yields correctly pulls to the right to clear a lane. The yielding car ends up in the same shoulder space you are driving into.

Question 3 of 10

A rural hospital asks an AEMT crew to transport a 58-year-old patient to a regional center. The sending nurse reports normal saline running through a forearm catheter, a cardiac monitor in place, and a low dose norepinephrine infusion started an hour ago. Which action should the crew take before accepting this transport?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · Request a paramedic or nurse to ride along and manage the infusion

The norepinephrine infusion is outside your scope, so you need a paramedic or a nurse on board. Go through each part of this patient's care. Normal saline is a non-medicated fluid, and keeping it running is an AEMT skill. The cardiac monitor is yours too. Norepinephrine is a medicated infusion. The National Scope Model puts keeping a medicated infusion running at the Paramedic level. A short trip does not change the rule. Tell the sending facility you cannot manage the norepinephrine, and ask for a paramedic or a nurse to ride along. With a paramedic or nurse managing the drip, you can handle the saline and the monitor and stay inside your certification.

Why the others are wrong

Accept the transport and titrate the norepinephrine to the ordered pressure: Titrating norepinephrine is a job for a paramedic crew, because titrating a vasopressor is a Paramedic skill. The sending physician's order does not change the scope rule. Accepting the transport does not stretch your scope to cover the drip.

Accept the transport after the sending nurse stops the norepinephrine infusion: Stopping the drip would leave only the parts of care you can manage. Stopping a drip a physician started is a treatment decision, and that decision belongs to the sending facility. This patient is on norepinephrine because the blood pressure needs it during the ride.

Ask the sending nurse to write the infusion rate on the transfer paperwork: The infusion rate does belong on the transfer paperwork. A number written on paper does not change who is legally allowed to manage the infusion. Once you leave the hospital, the norepinephrine is still a Paramedic level drip.

Question 4 of 10

An AEMT is asked to set up a landing zone for a light helicopter in an open field. Which dimensions should the crew mark off?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · 100 feet by 100 feet on firm ground, with the corners marked by cones

A light helicopter needs a landing zone 100 feet by 100 feet. When a larger aircraft is coming, 120 feet by 120 feet is preferred. Pick firm ground that is close to level, within about 5 degrees of slope. Keep the zone clear of wires and trees, because wires and trees are the real hazards for a landing helicopter. Mark the corners with weighted cones instead of flares. Rotor wash can turn a flare into a fire and throw a cone that is not weighted. The 100 foot number is the length of each side of the square, not a radius. You mark the zone at its corners. The distances for holding back bystanders and vehicles make sense once you picture that square.

Why the others are wrong

50 feet by 50 feet on firm ground, with the corners marked by cones: Fifty feet is a real landing zone number. Fifty feet is the distance from the center of a 100 foot square out to one edge. The full zone is 100 feet on each side.

75 feet by 75 feet on firm ground, with the corners marked by cones: A 75 foot square falls between two numbers you will hear about landing zones. A zone that size puts the rotor blades closer to the edge than the standard allows.

120 feet by 120 feet on firm ground, with the corners marked by cones: A 120 foot square is used when a larger aircraft is coming. This question names a light helicopter, and a light helicopter needs the standard 100 foot square.

Question 5 of 10

An AEMT is managing a landing zone while a helicopter is inbound. Where should bystanders and parked vehicles be held?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · Bystanders at least 200 feet back and vehicles at least 100 feet back

Hold bystanders at least 200 feet back and vehicles at least 100 feet back. Personnel who are not needed at the landing zone stay at least 100 feet back too. A standard landing zone is a 100 foot square, so the edge is only 50 feet from the center. A truck parked 50 feet away is sitting inside the landing zone. Vehicles at 100 feet are outside the zone with room to spare. People get the bigger distance because a person can walk into the zone, and a parked truck cannot. Rotor wash reaches farther than most crews expect. Secure loose objects before the aircraft gets close.

Why the others are wrong

Bystanders at least 100 feet back and vehicles at least 50 feet back: Both of these numbers are real landing zone figures, and both are set too low here. Vehicles at 50 feet would be inside the edge of a 100 foot square. Vehicles belong at least 100 feet back, and bystanders belong at least 200 feet back.

Bystanders at least 150 feet back and vehicles at least 150 feet back: One distance for everyone is easier to enforce on a busy scene. Bystanders and vehicles get different distances on purpose. A person can walk into the zone, and a parked vehicle stays put.

Bystanders and vehicles both at least 50 feet back from the center: Fifty feet from the center is exactly the edge of the landing zone. Standing at the edge of the landing zone is the same as standing in it. The 100 foot distance for vehicles is there to keep anything off that edge.

Question 6 of 10

A 24-year-old patient has an isolated closed forearm fracture after a bicycle crash. The vital signs are BP 128/76, P 88, R 16, and SpO₂ 99% on room air. A community hospital is 8 minutes away and a trauma center is 35 minutes away. Which destination is appropriate?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · The community hospital, because it can treat this injury and is closer

Take this patient to the community hospital. The rule is the closest appropriate facility. You only drive past a closer hospital when the patient needs something that hospital cannot do. This patient has an isolated closed forearm fracture. The vital signs are normal: BP 128/76, P 88, R 16, and SpO₂ 99%. A forearm fracture needs splinting, imaging, and reduction. The community hospital 8 minutes away can do all three. Driving 27 extra minutes to the trauma center does nothing for this patient. The long drive also keeps your ambulance out of service for most of an hour. Sending a sprained ankle to a trauma center is the same mistake.

Why the others are wrong

The trauma center, because a helicopter can shorten the transport time: A helicopter is faster over a long distance, and the trauma center is 35 minutes away. Speed only helps when the patient is headed to the right place. This patient does not need a trauma center, and a helicopter would add a landing zone and a transfer.

The trauma center, because a fracture qualifies as a trauma activation: Trauma center criteria look at the vital signs, the type of injury, and the mechanism. An isolated closed forearm fracture with normal vital signs meets none of them. A fracture by itself does not make a patient a trauma activation.

The community hospital, but only if the patient asks to go there: A stable patient's choice of hospital does matter. Preference decides between two hospitals that can both treat the patient. The community hospital is correct here because it can treat this injury and it is closer, whether or not the patient asks.

Question 7 of 10

A 39-year-old patient has deep burns across the chest and both arms after a flash fire. A community hospital is 10 minutes away and a burn center is 40 minutes away. Which destination should the AEMT crew choose?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · The burn center, because it holds a capability the closer hospital lacks

Take this patient to the burn center. This patient has deep burns across the chest and both arms. Burns this deep and this large need wound care, fluid resuscitation, and later skin grafting. A general emergency department cannot provide that care. The community hospital would stabilize the patient and then transfer the patient to a burn center anyway. The transfer costs far more time than the 30 extra minutes it takes to drive straight to the burn center. A burn center is one of the specialty centers that justify driving past a closer hospital. The others are trauma, percutaneous coronary intervention, stroke, pediatric, and hyperbaric centers. Your regional plan and medical direction set these destination rules.

Why the others are wrong

The community hospital, because it is the closest appropriate facility: Closest appropriate facility is the right rule. Appropriate means the hospital can treat the problem all the way through. A general emergency department can only stabilize burns this size and send the patient on.

The community hospital, because burn care can be started at any hospital: Burn care can start anywhere, including in your ambulance. Starting care is different from finishing it. The destination is where the patient gets definitive treatment, and for these burns the right destination is a burn center.

Whichever hospital the patient's family names on the way out of the scene: A family's choice of hospital is honored for a stable patient when that hospital can treat the problem. Deep burns over the chest and both arms need a burn center. The family naming a hospital does not give that hospital burn care.

Question 8 of 10

Law enforcement has secured a combative 28-year-old patient and an AEMT crew is applying soft restraints for transport. How should the patient be positioned and monitored?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · Supine with the airway accessible, checking distal circulation on a schedule

A restrained patient goes supine or on the side, with the airway where you can get to it. Face down positions and positions that draw the wrists and ankles together both cause positional asphyxia. Lying face down presses the chest against the surface, and the patient cannot breathe well enough. A patient with positional asphyxia can die quietly, without much warning. That's why those positions are never allowed, even with precautions. Once the restraints are on, check circulation, sensation, and movement below each restraint on a schedule, and document every check. Watch mental status the whole time. A patient who seems to settle down may be getting worse instead of calming down. Restraint is a last resort to prevent harm. Law enforcement secures the scene first, and your own safety comes before the restraints go on.

Why the others are wrong

Prone with the wrists secured behind the back and the head turned to one side: Turning the head to one side does keep the face clear of the surface. Prone restraint still presses the chest against the surface, no matter which way the head is turned. Chest pressure is what causes positional asphyxia.

Prone with the ankles and wrists drawn together and padding under the chest: Padding under the chest sounds like it protects breathing, and drawing the limbs together looks secure. This patient would still be prone, with the wrists and ankles drawn together in the hobble position. Hobble restraint carries the same positional asphyxia risk as prone, and neither position is allowed.

Seated upright on the bench seat with the wrists secured to the cot frame: Sitting upright does keep the airway open. A patient sitting on the bench seat with the wrists tied to the cot frame is not secured for a crash. The bench seat also gives a combative patient leverage that a cot does not.

Question 9 of 10

An AEMT crew arrives for a patient who weighs about 400 pounds and is seated in a second floor bedroom. Which action should the crew take before lifting?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · Plan the route, call for more hands, and use a rated lifting device

A patient who weighs about 400 pounds needs a plan before anyone lifts. Plan the route out of the second floor bedroom while you can still change it. Call for more hands. Use a lifting device rated for the weight you are moving. Calling the fire department for a lift assist is routine. The request costs a few minutes, and a back injury can cost you your career. Patient handling is one of the three main sources of EMS injuries, along with roadway operations and violence. Protect the patient's dignity while you work. Cover the patient, keep exposure to a minimum, and keep your tone professional. A patient who has heard crews complain before is going to be listening for complaints.

Why the others are wrong

Lift with the two crew members present and move slowly down the stairs: Two providers can move a lot of weight. A load bigger than two people can control on a stairwell is how crews and patients get hurt. Moving slowly does not take any of the load off your back.

Move the patient to the floor and drag the patient out on a blanket: Pulling a patient on a blanket is a real emergency move, and it avoids a lift. Emergency moves are for danger on the scene. Pulling this patient down a flight of stairs on a blanket trades a lifting injury for a fall.

Call for a lift assist only if the first attempt at the stairs fails: Trying first and calling later sounds efficient, and sometimes the first try works. A failed attempt happens after the patient is already lifted and the crew is already holding the weight. You do not want to find out you need more hands at that point.

Question 10 of 10

An AEMT gives a radio report to the receiving hospital for a patient who received an antiemetic by the intravenous route 6 minutes earlier, with improvement in the nausea. The transport time remaining is 8 minutes. What should the report include about that medication?

Show the answer and rationale

Correct answer · The name, dose, route, time, and the patient's response

The radio report should give the name, dose, route, and time of the antiemetic, and how the patient responded. The radio report gives the hospital time to get ready before the patient arrives. Anything that changes how the hospital gets ready belongs in the report. A medication you already gave tells the team what has been tried, so they do not give a second dose by mistake. The time tells them when a repeat dose would actually be due. A dose given 6 minutes ago and a dose given 60 minutes ago lead to very different next steps. The response is the part that gets left out most often. In this patient, the nausea improved, and only your crew knows that. A medication that worked and a medication that did nothing tell the hospital two different things.

Why the others are wrong

The name and dose, since the written report carries the rest: The name and dose alone leave out the route and the time. Without the route and time, the hospital cannot tell how the drug was given or when a repeat dose would be due. The written report shows up with the patient, not ahead of the patient, so the written report cannot help the team get ready.

The name only, with the details given at the bedside: Details given at the bedside come after the hospital has already decided what to have ready. Getting the team ready ahead of time is the reason for the radio report.

Nothing, since the written report will list the medication: Leaving the medication out could lead to a second dose from a team that does not know one was given. Skipping the medication also hides the only information anyone has about how the patient responded.

Find out which AEMT topics are costing you points

Ten questions on one topic tell you about that topic. The free diagnostic covers every AEMT topic and breaks your results down by topic, so you know what to drill next. No card, no signup to try it.

Take the free AEMT diagnostic

More free AEMT practice questions by topic