West Coast EMT Final Exam Questions
with Rationales Answers
A. routine post delivery care - ANSWER-A newborn's one minute APGAR score is 8.
Which of the following EMT interventions will you provide to this newborn?
A. routine post delivery care
B. full resuscitation is needed and reassess APGAR score
C. some resuscitation assistance such as oxygen
D. continue to monitor and reassess the APGAR score in 10 minutes
AED and portable suction unit - ANSWER-If you could only take two pieces of
equipment with you to a patient's side, you should choose the:
C. A team of health care professionals who are responsible for providing emergency
care and transportation to the sick and injured - ANSWER-Which of the following
descriptions MOST accurately portrays emergency medical services (EMS)?
A. A system composed exclusively of emergency medical responders (EMRs) and
emergency medical technicians (EMTs) who are responsible for providing care to sick
and injured patients
B. A team of paramedics and emergency physicians who are responsible for providing
emergency care to critically injured patients
C. A team of health care professionals who are responsible for providing emergency
care and transportation to the sick and injured
D. A vast network of advanced life support (ALS) providers who provide definitive
emergency care in the prehospital setting
B. Automated external defibrillator - ANSWER-Which of the following interventions is
used by all levels of EMS providers?
A. Automatic transport ventilators
B. Automated external defibrillator
,C. Needle decompression
D. Multilumen airways
C. report the incident to your supervisor after the call. - ANSWER-After assessing a
patient's blood glucose level, you accidentally stick yourself with the contaminated
lancet. You should:
A. discontinue patient care and seek medical attention.
B. immerse your wound in an alcohol-based solution.
C. report the incident to your supervisor after the call.
D. get immunized against hepatitis as soon as possible.
C. requests sexual favors in exchange for something else. - ANSWER-Quid pro quo, a
type of sexual harassment, occurs when the harasser:
A. makes rude remarks about a person's body parts.
B. touches another person without his or her consent.
C. requests sexual favors in exchange for something else.
D. stares at certain parts of another person's anatomy.
B. There is no vaccine against HIV infection. - ANSWER-Which of the following
statements regarding HIV is correct?
A. HIV is far more contagious than hepatitis B.
B. There is no vaccine against HIV infection.
C. HIV is easily transmittable in the EMS field.
D. HIV is transmitted exclusively via blood.
D. Indirect contact - ANSWER-While providing care to a patient, blood got onto the
ambulance stretcher. Because the stretcher was not properly cleaned afterward, a virus
,was transmitted to another emergency medical technician (EMT) several days later.
Which route of transmission does this scenario describe?
A. Vector-borne transmission
B. Airborne transmission
C. Direct contact
D. Indirect contact
A. acknowledge that she is scared and tell her that you will take good care of her. -
ANSWER-You are transporting an elderly woman who has possibly experienced a
stroke. She is obviously scared but is unable to talk and cannot move the entire right
side of her body. In addition to providing the medical care that she needs, you should:
A. acknowledge that she is scared and tell her that you will take good care of her.
B. reassure her that after proper treatment in the hospital, she will regain her speech in
time.
C. tell her that you understand why she is scared and that everything will likely be okay.
D. maintain eye contact at all times and tell her that there is no need for her to be
scared.
A. medical director. - ANSWER-The EMT's scope of practice within his or her local
response area is defined by the:
A. medical director.
B. state EMS office.
C. EMS supervisor.
D. local health district.
A. have your partner check for a pulse to confirm that the patient is deceased. -
ANSWER-You and your partner arrive at the scene of a major motor vehicle crash. The
driver, a young male, is severely entrapped in his car. He has an open head injury and
massive facial trauma. He is unresponsive, is not breathing, and does not have a
palpable carotid pulse. You should:
, A. have your partner check for a pulse to confirm that the patient is deceased.
B. ventilate the patient for 5 minutes and then stop if there is no response.
C. stop any active bleeding and advise dispatch to send a paramedic crew.
D. request the fire department to extricate the patient so you can begin CPR.
D. Transport the child immediately and have the parents meet you at the hospital. -
ANSWER-You arrive at the scene of a motor vehicle-versus-pedestrian accident. The
patient, a 13-year-old male, is unconscious and has multiple injuries. As you are treating
the child, a law enforcement officer advises you that the child's parents will be at the
scene in approximately 15 minutes. What should you do?
A. Treat the child at the scene and wait for the parents to arrive and give consent.
B. Begin transport at once and have the parents meet you en route to the hospital.
C. Withhold treatment until the parents arrive and give you consent for treatment.
D. Transport the child immediately and have the parents meet you at the hospital.
A. bind his legs together on the backboard, keep him warm, and transport without delay.
- ANSWER-A 21-year-old male was thrown over the handlebars of his motorcycle when
he rear-ended a car that was stopped at a red light. He was wearing a helmet, which he
removed prior to your arrival. He is conscious, but restless, and has closed deformities
to both of his femurs. His skin is pale, his heart rate is rapid and weak, and his
respirations are rapid and shallow. You should:
A. bind his legs together on the backboard, keep him warm, and transport without delay.
B. apply traction splints to both of his legs, keep him warm, and transport without delay.
C. splint each of his deformed femurs with long board splints and transport without
delay.
D. splint each of his deformed femurs with air splints, elevate his lower extremities, and
transport.
ensure that he is aware of the risks of refusing medical care. - ANSWER-You are
dispatched to an office building for a 49-year-old male with chest pain. When you arrive
at the scene, you find the patient to be conscious and alert, but in obvious pain. He tells
with Rationales Answers
A. routine post delivery care - ANSWER-A newborn's one minute APGAR score is 8.
Which of the following EMT interventions will you provide to this newborn?
A. routine post delivery care
B. full resuscitation is needed and reassess APGAR score
C. some resuscitation assistance such as oxygen
D. continue to monitor and reassess the APGAR score in 10 minutes
AED and portable suction unit - ANSWER-If you could only take two pieces of
equipment with you to a patient's side, you should choose the:
C. A team of health care professionals who are responsible for providing emergency
care and transportation to the sick and injured - ANSWER-Which of the following
descriptions MOST accurately portrays emergency medical services (EMS)?
A. A system composed exclusively of emergency medical responders (EMRs) and
emergency medical technicians (EMTs) who are responsible for providing care to sick
and injured patients
B. A team of paramedics and emergency physicians who are responsible for providing
emergency care to critically injured patients
C. A team of health care professionals who are responsible for providing emergency
care and transportation to the sick and injured
D. A vast network of advanced life support (ALS) providers who provide definitive
emergency care in the prehospital setting
B. Automated external defibrillator - ANSWER-Which of the following interventions is
used by all levels of EMS providers?
A. Automatic transport ventilators
B. Automated external defibrillator
,C. Needle decompression
D. Multilumen airways
C. report the incident to your supervisor after the call. - ANSWER-After assessing a
patient's blood glucose level, you accidentally stick yourself with the contaminated
lancet. You should:
A. discontinue patient care and seek medical attention.
B. immerse your wound in an alcohol-based solution.
C. report the incident to your supervisor after the call.
D. get immunized against hepatitis as soon as possible.
C. requests sexual favors in exchange for something else. - ANSWER-Quid pro quo, a
type of sexual harassment, occurs when the harasser:
A. makes rude remarks about a person's body parts.
B. touches another person without his or her consent.
C. requests sexual favors in exchange for something else.
D. stares at certain parts of another person's anatomy.
B. There is no vaccine against HIV infection. - ANSWER-Which of the following
statements regarding HIV is correct?
A. HIV is far more contagious than hepatitis B.
B. There is no vaccine against HIV infection.
C. HIV is easily transmittable in the EMS field.
D. HIV is transmitted exclusively via blood.
D. Indirect contact - ANSWER-While providing care to a patient, blood got onto the
ambulance stretcher. Because the stretcher was not properly cleaned afterward, a virus
,was transmitted to another emergency medical technician (EMT) several days later.
Which route of transmission does this scenario describe?
A. Vector-borne transmission
B. Airborne transmission
C. Direct contact
D. Indirect contact
A. acknowledge that she is scared and tell her that you will take good care of her. -
ANSWER-You are transporting an elderly woman who has possibly experienced a
stroke. She is obviously scared but is unable to talk and cannot move the entire right
side of her body. In addition to providing the medical care that she needs, you should:
A. acknowledge that she is scared and tell her that you will take good care of her.
B. reassure her that after proper treatment in the hospital, she will regain her speech in
time.
C. tell her that you understand why she is scared and that everything will likely be okay.
D. maintain eye contact at all times and tell her that there is no need for her to be
scared.
A. medical director. - ANSWER-The EMT's scope of practice within his or her local
response area is defined by the:
A. medical director.
B. state EMS office.
C. EMS supervisor.
D. local health district.
A. have your partner check for a pulse to confirm that the patient is deceased. -
ANSWER-You and your partner arrive at the scene of a major motor vehicle crash. The
driver, a young male, is severely entrapped in his car. He has an open head injury and
massive facial trauma. He is unresponsive, is not breathing, and does not have a
palpable carotid pulse. You should:
, A. have your partner check for a pulse to confirm that the patient is deceased.
B. ventilate the patient for 5 minutes and then stop if there is no response.
C. stop any active bleeding and advise dispatch to send a paramedic crew.
D. request the fire department to extricate the patient so you can begin CPR.
D. Transport the child immediately and have the parents meet you at the hospital. -
ANSWER-You arrive at the scene of a motor vehicle-versus-pedestrian accident. The
patient, a 13-year-old male, is unconscious and has multiple injuries. As you are treating
the child, a law enforcement officer advises you that the child's parents will be at the
scene in approximately 15 minutes. What should you do?
A. Treat the child at the scene and wait for the parents to arrive and give consent.
B. Begin transport at once and have the parents meet you en route to the hospital.
C. Withhold treatment until the parents arrive and give you consent for treatment.
D. Transport the child immediately and have the parents meet you at the hospital.
A. bind his legs together on the backboard, keep him warm, and transport without delay.
- ANSWER-A 21-year-old male was thrown over the handlebars of his motorcycle when
he rear-ended a car that was stopped at a red light. He was wearing a helmet, which he
removed prior to your arrival. He is conscious, but restless, and has closed deformities
to both of his femurs. His skin is pale, his heart rate is rapid and weak, and his
respirations are rapid and shallow. You should:
A. bind his legs together on the backboard, keep him warm, and transport without delay.
B. apply traction splints to both of his legs, keep him warm, and transport without delay.
C. splint each of his deformed femurs with long board splints and transport without
delay.
D. splint each of his deformed femurs with air splints, elevate his lower extremities, and
transport.
ensure that he is aware of the risks of refusing medical care. - ANSWER-You are
dispatched to an office building for a 49-year-old male with chest pain. When you arrive
at the scene, you find the patient to be conscious and alert, but in obvious pain. He tells
