TNCC STUDY GUIDE 2025 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
What roles are vital to a trauma team? - (answer)1. Patient
2. Team leader
3. Core team
4. Contingency and support services
What are the characteristics of an effective team? - (answer)1. Clear roles and responsibilities
2. Shared mental model
3. Optimize resources
4. Strong team leadership
5. Engage in regular discipline of feedback
6. Strong sense of collective trust and confidence
7. Create mechanisms to cooperate and coordinate
8. Manage and optimize performance outcomes
9. Interdependent and adaptive
What are the key foundations to successful teamwork in the care of the trauma patient? - (answer)1.
Communication
2. Cooperation
3. Coordination
What tools can be used to promote communication within a team member? What are the benefits of
each? - (answer)1. *SBAR:* Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendations-To provide a
framework for communication among members of the healthcare team
2. *DESC:* Describe the specific situation or behavior, Express your concerns or how the situation
makes you feel, Suggest alternatives and seek agreement, state Consequences in terms of impact on
,TNCC STUDY GUIDE 2025 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
performance goals-Used in conflict management, paraphrasing the other person's comments is an
important technique that should be done throughout the DESC support
3. *CUS:* I am Concerned, I am Uncomfortable, This is a Safety issue/I am Stressed-Used to "stop the
line" if a team member senses or discovers an essential safety breach
Kinematics - (answer)The study of energy transfer as it applies to identifying actual or potential
injuries
Biomechanics - (answer)The general study of forces and their effects
Mechanism of Injury - (answer)How external energy forces in the environment are transferred to the
body
Newton's First Law of Motion - (answer)A body rest will remain at rest, and a body in motion will stay
in motion
Newton's Second Law of Motion - (answer)Force = mass x acceleration
Newton's Third Law of Motion - (answer)For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction
Law of Conservation of Energy - (answer)Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, but can change
form
Describe how Newton's Laws of Motion and the Law of Conservation affect energy transfer in
traumatic injury, and give an example - (answer)-1st: weight and speed are reasonable substitutions
for mass and velocity, higher mass and/or higher speed delivers greater energy
-2nd: an object's velocity changes when it is subjected to an external force; heavier objects require
more force to accelerate (or decelerate) them
,TNCC STUDY GUIDE 2025 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
-3rd:
-Conservation:
Ex: pot vs. child
-1st: the force of gravity holds the pot on the flat stovetop until energy is transferred to the pot, such
as by a toddler, grabbing the handle.Once the pot is in motion, it will sustain its motion until
interrupted by another force. As the pot strikes the child in the head, the strength of bone imposes a
force of resistance upon impact, thereby changing the directional path of the pot. The stationary head
stays in a fixed position until a volume of energy adequate to move the head is transferred to it. This
concept of movement-energy transfer-countermovement applies to all mechanical traumas
-2nd: the pot continues to fall at a steady rate unless it is acted on by an outside force (a hand pushing
it out of the way or catching it)
-3rd: the transfer causes a redirection of the pot and movement of the head, as well as energy
absorption causing anatomic changes to the tissue that received the energy transfer
-Conservation: energy is not created, nor it is destroyed at the site where the pot impacts the head.
Instead, energy is transferred from the kinetic (moving) object to the object being impacted
What are the five forms in which energy exist? - (answer)1. *Mechanical:* energy transfer form one
object to another in the form of motion
2. *Thermal:* energy transfer of heat in the environment to the host
3. *Chemical:* heat energy transfer from active chemical substances, chlorine, drain cleaner, acids, or
plants
4. *Electrical:* energy transfer from light socket, power lines, or lightning
5. *Radiant:* energy transfer from blast sound waves, radioactivity such as a nuclear facility, or rays
of the sun
Differentiate between internal and external forces of energy transfer in the context of trauma -
(answer)*External forces:*
-Can be exerted on the body by deceleration, acceleration, compression forces
, TNCC STUDY GUIDE 2025 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
-Deceleration forces include those applied in falls and collisions where injuries are cause by a sudden
stop in the body's motion
-Acceleration forces are not as common as deceleration forces and result from a sudden and rapid
onset of motion, like a parked car that is hit y vehicle traveling at the high rate of speed
-Compression force is an external force applied at time of impact, like stationary objects-dashboards
or steering wheels that collide with or push up into a person. Objects in motion-bullets, stabbing,
bats, balls, fists and feet, or heavy falling objects
-Blast forces
*Internal forces:*
-Stress describes the internal force that resists the applied external force
-Stress is exerted on the body as tissues and organs change their dimensions
-Body tissues respond differently to energy impact, and the capacity to withstand energy transfer is
based on the characteristics, combined with biomechanics and MOIs
-The strength of bone varies and can be augmented by adjacent muscle systems
-Solid organs tolerated pressure-wave energy better than air-filled organs
-Air-filled organs can often resist shear forces better than solid organs
How do internal forces protect the body from injury? - (answer)-*Compression strength:* ability of
tissue to resist crush injury or force
-*Tensile strength:* ability to resist being pulled apart when stretched
-*Shear strength:* ability to resist a force applied parallel to the tissue
The various strengths of tissue, especially bone, can be augmented or diminished by the pre-event
circumstances. The muscle density surrounding bone absorbs energy of compressing and shearing
forces. Tensile strength is augmented by the strength of opposing muscles. The tissue most proximal
to the point of impact is affected by the maximum amount of energy from the object striking the
What roles are vital to a trauma team? - (answer)1. Patient
2. Team leader
3. Core team
4. Contingency and support services
What are the characteristics of an effective team? - (answer)1. Clear roles and responsibilities
2. Shared mental model
3. Optimize resources
4. Strong team leadership
5. Engage in regular discipline of feedback
6. Strong sense of collective trust and confidence
7. Create mechanisms to cooperate and coordinate
8. Manage and optimize performance outcomes
9. Interdependent and adaptive
What are the key foundations to successful teamwork in the care of the trauma patient? - (answer)1.
Communication
2. Cooperation
3. Coordination
What tools can be used to promote communication within a team member? What are the benefits of
each? - (answer)1. *SBAR:* Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendations-To provide a
framework for communication among members of the healthcare team
2. *DESC:* Describe the specific situation or behavior, Express your concerns or how the situation
makes you feel, Suggest alternatives and seek agreement, state Consequences in terms of impact on
,TNCC STUDY GUIDE 2025 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
performance goals-Used in conflict management, paraphrasing the other person's comments is an
important technique that should be done throughout the DESC support
3. *CUS:* I am Concerned, I am Uncomfortable, This is a Safety issue/I am Stressed-Used to "stop the
line" if a team member senses or discovers an essential safety breach
Kinematics - (answer)The study of energy transfer as it applies to identifying actual or potential
injuries
Biomechanics - (answer)The general study of forces and their effects
Mechanism of Injury - (answer)How external energy forces in the environment are transferred to the
body
Newton's First Law of Motion - (answer)A body rest will remain at rest, and a body in motion will stay
in motion
Newton's Second Law of Motion - (answer)Force = mass x acceleration
Newton's Third Law of Motion - (answer)For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction
Law of Conservation of Energy - (answer)Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, but can change
form
Describe how Newton's Laws of Motion and the Law of Conservation affect energy transfer in
traumatic injury, and give an example - (answer)-1st: weight and speed are reasonable substitutions
for mass and velocity, higher mass and/or higher speed delivers greater energy
-2nd: an object's velocity changes when it is subjected to an external force; heavier objects require
more force to accelerate (or decelerate) them
,TNCC STUDY GUIDE 2025 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
-3rd:
-Conservation:
Ex: pot vs. child
-1st: the force of gravity holds the pot on the flat stovetop until energy is transferred to the pot, such
as by a toddler, grabbing the handle.Once the pot is in motion, it will sustain its motion until
interrupted by another force. As the pot strikes the child in the head, the strength of bone imposes a
force of resistance upon impact, thereby changing the directional path of the pot. The stationary head
stays in a fixed position until a volume of energy adequate to move the head is transferred to it. This
concept of movement-energy transfer-countermovement applies to all mechanical traumas
-2nd: the pot continues to fall at a steady rate unless it is acted on by an outside force (a hand pushing
it out of the way or catching it)
-3rd: the transfer causes a redirection of the pot and movement of the head, as well as energy
absorption causing anatomic changes to the tissue that received the energy transfer
-Conservation: energy is not created, nor it is destroyed at the site where the pot impacts the head.
Instead, energy is transferred from the kinetic (moving) object to the object being impacted
What are the five forms in which energy exist? - (answer)1. *Mechanical:* energy transfer form one
object to another in the form of motion
2. *Thermal:* energy transfer of heat in the environment to the host
3. *Chemical:* heat energy transfer from active chemical substances, chlorine, drain cleaner, acids, or
plants
4. *Electrical:* energy transfer from light socket, power lines, or lightning
5. *Radiant:* energy transfer from blast sound waves, radioactivity such as a nuclear facility, or rays
of the sun
Differentiate between internal and external forces of energy transfer in the context of trauma -
(answer)*External forces:*
-Can be exerted on the body by deceleration, acceleration, compression forces
, TNCC STUDY GUIDE 2025 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
-Deceleration forces include those applied in falls and collisions where injuries are cause by a sudden
stop in the body's motion
-Acceleration forces are not as common as deceleration forces and result from a sudden and rapid
onset of motion, like a parked car that is hit y vehicle traveling at the high rate of speed
-Compression force is an external force applied at time of impact, like stationary objects-dashboards
or steering wheels that collide with or push up into a person. Objects in motion-bullets, stabbing,
bats, balls, fists and feet, or heavy falling objects
-Blast forces
*Internal forces:*
-Stress describes the internal force that resists the applied external force
-Stress is exerted on the body as tissues and organs change their dimensions
-Body tissues respond differently to energy impact, and the capacity to withstand energy transfer is
based on the characteristics, combined with biomechanics and MOIs
-The strength of bone varies and can be augmented by adjacent muscle systems
-Solid organs tolerated pressure-wave energy better than air-filled organs
-Air-filled organs can often resist shear forces better than solid organs
How do internal forces protect the body from injury? - (answer)-*Compression strength:* ability of
tissue to resist crush injury or force
-*Tensile strength:* ability to resist being pulled apart when stretched
-*Shear strength:* ability to resist a force applied parallel to the tissue
The various strengths of tissue, especially bone, can be augmented or diminished by the pre-event
circumstances. The muscle density surrounding bone absorbs energy of compressing and shearing
forces. Tensile strength is augmented by the strength of opposing muscles. The tissue most proximal
to the point of impact is affected by the maximum amount of energy from the object striking the
