Emergency Care
Emergency care questions test recognition and sequence. Know the chain of survival: recognize the emergency and activate help, start CPR, use an AED, and hand off to advanced care. Understand basic life support priorities: scene safety, check responsiveness and breathing, call for help, and begin CPR for an unresponsive person who is not breathing normally. Know the compression rate (100 to 120 per minute) and the role of an AED in shockable rhythms.
Recognize the emergencies most likely to appear: chest pain, stroke signs (facial droop, arm weakness, speech difficulty, time to call), severe bleeding, choking, anaphylaxis, syncope, and seizure. Know the office response: stay with the patient, call emergency services, provide the care within your training, and document the event. Understand that a medical assistant does not diagnose or prescribe in an emergency but acts within training and provider direction.
Traps: moving a patient who may have a spinal injury; giving food or drink to a patient with altered consciousness; delaying the emergency call to finish intake paperwork; and assuming a seizure patient should be restrained (they should not; protect them from injury).
Rule of thumb: when in doubt, call for emergency help. Time lost to hesitation is the most common error.
Worked example: a patient becomes unresponsive in the waiting room. The correct sequence is to ensure the scene is safe, check responsiveness and breathing, call for help and an AED, and begin CPR if trained and needed.