WorksheetsEMT Chapters 16-17 Gen. Pharmacology and Respiratory Emergencies
Total questions: 30
Worksheet time: 15mins
The symptoms or circumstances for which a medication is given are called:
contraindications
indications
side effects
untoward effects
Which of the following BEST describes a contraindication to a medication?
An unintended action of the drug
The way in which a drug causes its effects
A reason why you should a never giving a medication to a patient
A reason why you should give a medication to a patient
Why should EMTs study pharmacology?
As an EMT, you will be trusted to administer medications in emergency situations; many of these may be lifesaving, but there is potential to do harm.
An EMT must know the manufacturer, sources, characteristics, and effects of every medication that has been prescribed to the patient.
As an EMT, you will be trusted to administer medications in emergency situations, although many of these may do nothing but give the patient false hope.
An EMT must know the sources, characteristics, and effects of each medication that the physician may prescribe.
What medication is given when a patient suffers from a medical or traumatic condition called hypoxia?
Oxygen
Oral glucose
Epinephrine
Aspirin
Which of the following is a commonly accepted list of medications an EMT can assist the patient in taking or administer under the direction of the Medical Director?
Prescribed bronchodilator inhalers, prescribed nitroglycerin, and prescribed epinephrine auto-injectors
Any over-the-counter medication, oral glucose, and oxygen
Aspirin, acetaminophen, oral glucose, insulin, prescribed bronchodilator inhalers, nitroglycerin, and epinephrine auto-injectors
Aspirin, oral glucose, oxygen, prescribed bronchodilator inhalers, nitroglycerin, and epinephrine auto-injectors
Why would an EMT give aspirin to a patient?
Aspirin reduces the heart's ability to beat fast and works to prevent rapid heart rate.
Aspirin reduces the pain level in patients who are in pain.
Aspirin reduces the blood's ability to clot and works to prevent further clot formation in patients suffering chest pain.
It is given to calm the patient by reducing the pain because stress is the real killer.
Nitroglycerin is indicated for which of the following chief complaints?
Decreased level of consciousness
Chest pain
Headache
Difficulty breathing
What is the reason for giving an epinephrine auto-injector in a life-threatening allergic reaction?
It will help raise the patient's blood pressure and slow the heart rate.
It will constrict the patient's airway passages and blood vessels.
It will help constrict the patient's blood vessels and relax the airway passages.
It will help dilate the patient's blood vessels and relax the airway passages.
Which of the following is an example of a medication's trade name?
Epinephrine
Nitrostat
4 dihydroxyphenyl acetate
Oxygen
You respond to a medical call for a 59-year-old female complaining of tightness in her chest. You place her on a high concentration of oxygen and prepare for a short 5-minute transport to the hospital. The patient tells you she is on nitroglycerin, which she has not taken. Your partner tells you that you can give aspirin per protocol. Should you delay the patient transport to give the medication and why?
No, any delay will cause the patient more heart damage; each delay weakens the myocardium.
Yes, the nitroglycerin will cause the blood vessels to dilate and restore some blood flow, and the aspirin will slow the clotting process.
Yes, the nitroglycerin will cause the heart to beat stronger and restore some blood flow, and the aspirin will ease the pain.
No, any delay will cause the patient more stress; she needs to be in a definitive care facility.
What is the first medication that should be administered to a patient experiencing chest pain with difficulty breathing?
Oxygen
Aspirin
Nitroglycerin
Albuterol
You are on the scene of a 68-year-old patient with a history of COPD who is breathing 44 times per minute and has a diminished level of consciousness. His wife states he has an Albuterol inhaler and nitroglycerin tablets for angina. What is the most important drug you can administer to the patient?
Oxygen by bag-valve mask
Oxygen by nonrebreather mask
Albuterol
Nitroglycerin
Albuterol and epinephrine both have bronchodilation properties that improve the amount of oxygen that a person can inhale and absorb. However, Albuterol is administered only for asthma, whereas epinephrine is administered for both asthma and anaphylaxis. Why is epinephrine, and not Albuterol, the first choice for anaphylaxis?
Albuterol makes the heart rate increase too much.
Albuterol slows down the heart rate too much.
Albuterol drops the blood pressure too low.
Albuterol is not a vasoconstrictor.
How does aspirin actually reduce the chances that a patient suffering a heart attack will die?
It reduces the amount of pain in the heart.
It prevents a deadly fever from developing
It reduces the inflammation in the heart.
It reduces the ability of the blood to form clots.
You have just administered nitroglycerin to a 68-year-old patient. Within a few minutes, she complains of feeling faint and lightheaded, but states that she is still having some chest pain. Which of the following would be the BEST sequence of actions?
Lower the head of the stretcher and take the patient's blood pressure.
Administer activated charcoal to prevent further absorption of the nitroglycerin and closely monitor the patient's blood pressure.
Advise the patient that this is a normal occurrence and administer a second dose of nitroglycerin.
Increase the amount of oxygen you are giving to the patient before administering a second dose of nitroglycerin.
Which of the following is true concerning expiration
The chest cavity increases in size.
The diaphragm moves upward.
The intercostal muscles contract to force air out of the lungs.
The ribs move upward and outward.
Which of the following respiratory rates is considered an abnormal respiratory rate for an adult?
20 breaths/min
12 breaths/min
16 breaths/min
8 breaths/min
Which of the following respiratory rates should be cause for alarm in a 2-month-old child?
28 breaths/min
40 breaths/min
16 breaths/min
32 breaths/min
While assessing the airway of a pediatric patient, you will notice that it is different than that of an adult. Which of the following is one of those differences?
The cricoid cartilage is less developed, reducing the possibility that it can be completely occluded.
The tongue is smaller, taking up less room in the mouth and allowing larger objects to occlude the airway.
The trachea is smaller, softer, and more flexible, allowing it to be more easily obstructed.
The chest wall is softer, making it easier for the chest to expand.
Your patient is a 15-year-old male with a history of multiple prior hospitalizations for asthma. Upon your arrival the patient responds only to painful stimuli and is making very weak respiratory effort. Which of the following should you do next?
Contact medical control.
Check the patient's oxygen saturation level.
Assist the patient with his inhaler.
Assist the patient's ventilations with a bag-valve-mask device and supplemental oxygen.
Your patient is a 24-year-old woman with asthma who is struggling to breathe and is very agitated. She has cyanosis of her lips and nail beds, and is cool and clammy to the touch. When you attempt to assist her ventilations with a bag-valve-mask device, she becomes combative and repeatedly pushes the mask away from her face. Which of the following is the BEST option?
Use a nasal cannula to administer supplemental oxygen.
Have your partner restrain the patient's hands so you can ventilate her.
Begin transport immediately and contact medical control for advice.
Wait for the patient's level of consciousness to decrease so that she can no longer resist your attempts to ventilate.
What is the best way to determine that you are getting adequate ventilation with a bag-valve mask?
Look for chest rise and fall.
Push the full amount of the bag into the patient.
Ensure the pulse oximeter reads 95 to 100%.
Hyperventilate the patient until the oxygen saturation reaches 100%.
Your patient is a 60-year-old female with a sudden onset of severe difficulty breathing. She has no prior history of respiratory problems. Which of the following should be done before applying oxygen by nonrebreather mask?
Listen to the patient's breath sounds.
Obtain a history of the present illness.
Check the patient's oxygen saturation level.
None of the above
You are first on the scene of a 61-year-old female in need of assistance with her respirations. You have a pocket mask with supplemental oxygen. How can you determine that your artificial ventilation is effective?
You are assisting respirations at 10 breaths per minute.
Patient's pulse returns to normal.
You assure oxygen is being delivered at 15 liters per minute.
Patient's skin color remains the same.
Your patient is a 30-year-old female who may have overdosed on antidepressant medications. On your arrival, she is lying supine on her bed with her head on a pillow. She is unresponsive to painful stimuli and is snoring. She appears to be pale and her skin is cool and clammy. What should you do first?
Apply oxygen by nonrebreather mask.
Insert an oropharyngeal airway.
Check the patient's pulse.
Remove the patient's pillow.
Which of the following is a possible side effect of a prescribed inhaler for respiratory problems?
Tremors
Sleepiness
Trapped air in the lungs
Decreased heart rate
A ________ device works by blowing oxygen or air continuously at a low pressure to prevent a patient's alveoli from collapsing.
COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)
Nonrebreather
CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure)
FROPVD (Flow-Restricted, Oxygen Powered Ventilation Device)
What is NOT one of the symptoms of a pulmonary embolus?
sudden calmness
sudden onset of sharp chest pain
anxiety
pain and swelling in one or both legs
You are on the scene of a 3-year-old patient who is in respiratory distress. The mother states that the patient has been making a barking cough for the past 24 hours. The child is very scared and upset. He is crying inconsolably. The patient has tachypnea, but his vital signs are normal otherwise. He is leaning forward in the tripod position and is drooling profusely. What condition do you suspect?
Epiglottitis
Croup
Child abuse
Strep throat
You are on the scene of a person down. You arrive at a college dormitory and find a 21-year-old patient lying supine on the floor, unresponsive. The patient is "guppy" breathing at 5 times a minute, has a strong radial pulse at 110 beats per minute, and has vomited on himself. Friends state they went out to dinner and a party. They returned to change clothes for another party and he never came out of his room. Your partner suctions the patient, inserts an oropharyngeal airway, and ventilates the patient with a bag-valve mask with high-concentration oxygen. You listen to lung sounds and there are coarse rhonchi bilaterally. What condition do you suspect?
Aspiration
Overdose
Status asthmaticus
Severe meningitis
