10 free EMT practice questions: Scene Safety & Hazard Assessment

Apply high-flow oxygen to the patient before moving them: High-flow oxygen is good care once you can reach the patient. Putting a mask on means touching the patient. If the patient is still energized, the same current goes through you.

Check for a carotid pulse on both sides of the neck: A carotid pulse check is part of the primary assessment. The primary assessment starts only after the scene is safe. Reaching for the neck of a patient who may still be energized puts you in danger.

Move the patient off the outlet using a dry wooden object: Moving the patient with a wooden object is old first aid advice. You are still reaching into a scene that is not safe. Wood and other materials that should not conduct can still carry current when they are damp or dirty. Unplug the device or shut off the breaker before anyone gets close.

Exit through the doors nearest the patient: The doors nearest the patient might be the fastest way to the patient. Depending on how the ambulance is parked, those doors can open right into the travel lane. Being close to the patient does not protect you from traffic.

Exit and walk along the traffic side to the rear doors: Walking along the traffic side puts you in the path of moving cars. Getting out on the safe side does not help if you then walk down the traffic side to the rear doors.

Exit only after the warning lights are switched off: Switching off the warning lights is not a real option on an active highway call. Waiting on the lights also does not tell you which side of the ambulance is safe to get out on.

Enter the residence and ask the parent to hold the dog: Having the parent hold the dog works once the dog is already caught and held. Right now the dog is loose. Asking the parent to catch the dog puts you inside the house while the dog is still free.

Enter the residence with the stretcher between the crew and the dog: A stretcher can block some animals. A loose dog that has already bitten can run around or under a stretcher. The stretcher does not take the place of shutting the dog in another room before you go in.

Enter the residence after confirming the dog is vaccinated: Vaccine status matters for rabies risk and for treatment after the bite. Knowing the dog's shots are current does not tell you whether the dog is shut away. This dog is still loose, and the loose dog is the danger to your crew right now.

Directly in front of the door with a flashlight raised: A raised flashlight does help you see who answers the door at night. Standing directly in front puts you in line with anything that comes through the door. With no information on who is inside, you do not want to be there if the door opens fast.

In front of the door with the partner standing behind: A partner standing behind you is real teamwork, with one person making contact and one person covering. Here both of you are still lined up with the door, and the person in front takes the full exposure. Cover only works when the person in front is off to the side too.

In the stairwell until an occupant opens the door: Waiting in the stairwell keeps you away from the door completely. Nothing on this call is a reason to back off that far. The hallway is quiet, and dispatch gave no report of a threat. Waiting in the stairwell only delays patient contact, and standing to the side protects you just as well.

Clear the call and return to service: Clearing the call fits a scene that has already been confirmed as a false call. Nothing here shows the call is fake. You have a 10-year-old with abdominal pain and a problem with the address. Leaving before dispatch even checks the address abandons that child.

Knock on apartment doors to find the patient: Knocking on doors works when you know you are at the right building and only need the apartment number. Here the apartment number does not exist at this address, so you do not even know you are at the right building. Going door to door wastes time on the wrong search.

Wait at the entrance for someone to come out: Waiting at the entrance makes sense if someone told dispatch they were coming out to meet you. No one has answered, and no one is waiting. Standing at the entrance only delays patient contact, and a radio call to dispatch can fix the address right away.

It occurs only once, immediately after patient contact: Checking for safety when you first reach the patient is part of size-up. That quick check is only one moment in a process that starts at dispatch. Size-up does not stop once you are at the patient's side.

It occurs only after the primary assessment is complete: The primary assessment does come after scene size-up. Option C puts them in the wrong order. Size-up comes first, so you know the scene is safe, what the mechanism is, and how many patients there are before the primary assessment starts.

It occurs only when dispatch specifically reports a hazard: A hazard reported by dispatch does change what you expect and where you stage. You still size up every scene, whether dispatch reported a hazard or not. Dispatchers cannot always know what is waiting for you, and skipping size-up can miss a hazard you only find when you arrive.

Gloves and eye protection only: Gloves and eye protection cover your hands and eyes. Neither one covers your nose and mouth. This patient is coughing up secretions often, so you need a mask too.

Standard precautions only, with no respiratory protection: Standard precautions alone fit a patient with no signs of a respiratory infection. This patient has suspected pneumonia and a frequent productive cough. A cough like this calls for a mask and eye protection.

Gloves, gown, and a surgical mask: A gown is for large splashes of body fluid, like a delivery or major trauma. Nothing like that is described here. This set also leaves out eye protection while the patient is coughing toward your face.

Delay hand hygiene until returning to the station: Waiting until you get back to the station leaves germs on your hands the whole time. Those germs can spread before you ever clean your hands. Hand hygiene happens right after patient contact, not later.

Wash with bottled water from the medical supplies: Bottled water by itself does not remove germs well. You need soap and water, or an alcohol-based sanitizer when soap and running water are not available.

Wipe the hands on the uniform as a temporary measure: Wiping your hands on your uniform does not get rid of the germs. The germs move onto your uniform, and the uniform can spread them to whatever it touches next.

Black (expectant): Black is for a patient who still is not breathing after you open the airway, or who is clearly dead. This patient started breathing on their own once the airway was repositioned. A patient who breathes after repositioning can still be saved.

Yellow (delayed): Yellow, or delayed, is for a patient who is hurt badly but is stable. This patient is breathing over 30 a minute, has no radial pulse, and does not follow commands. Each of those calls for immediate care.

Green (minor): Green is for the walking wounded. This patient is unresponsive and was not breathing until the airway was repositioned.

Introduce themselves and obtain consent to treat: Introducing yourself and getting consent happen when patient contact begins. Patient contact does not begin until the scene is confirmed safe.

Begin a primary assessment on the closest patient: A primary assessment on the closest patient starts after the scene is confirmed safe, not before.

Determine the number of patients: Counting patients is part of the scene size-up. Counting comes after safety is confirmed. You do not walk into an unsafe scene to count patients.