BCLS Practice Quiz

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1: While at work in a hospital, you find an adult victim who has collapsed. No one is available to help. After you ensure that the scene is safe, what should you do next?

Check for unresponsiveness; if the victim is unresponsive, activate the emergency response system (or phone 911) and get the AED if available
Phone 911 (or activate the emergency response system) , then wait outside to direct the emergency responders
Open the airway with a tongue-jaw lift and perform 2 finger sweeps to check if food is blocking the airway
Perform CPR for 1 minute, then phone 911

2: You work with an overweight 55-year-old dentist with no known history of heart disease. He begins to complain of sudden, severe, "crushing" pain under his breatsbone, in the center of his chest. The pain has lasted more than 5 minutes. What problem should you think of right away, and what should you do?

Heartburn; tell his to take an antacid
Angina; phone his personal physician
Heart attack; phone 911
Arrhythmia; drive him to an Emergency Department

3: You witnessed the collapse of a 45-year-old man. You are now performing CPR after sending someone to phone 911. You have done your best to ensure that the first 2 links in the Chain of Survival have been completed immediately. What is the third link in the chain, which will have the greatest effect on increasing this man's chance of survival?

Arrival of paramedics who will administer drugs
Transportation of the man to a hospital
Arrival of a rescuer with a defibrillator
Arrival of EMS personnel who can do CPR

4: You have been talking with a 60-year-old man. He is alert and has been conversing normally. All at once he complains of a sudden weakness on one side of his face and in one arm. He is also having trouble speaking. What is the most likely cause of his problem?

A Seizure
A heart attack
A stroke
Diabetic comma

5: You remove a 3-year-old from the bottom of the shallow end of a swimming pool. You find that she is limp and unresponsive. No other person is available to help. When should you phone 911?

After you have given the child 2 minutes of CPR
As soon as you remove the child from the pool
When you see that after several minutes of CPR there is no response
After giving a few ventilations and before beginning chest compressions

6: According the the 2005 AHA guidelines, a child is considered to be

Between the ages of 1 and 8 years old
Between the ages of 1 and puberty
Between the weight of 20 and 50 pounds
Between the weight of 25 and 50 pounds

7: You are responding to an emergency call for a child who was found unresponsive in her bed with no sign of trauma. How should you open her airway?

Place your fingers in her mouth an pull forward on the lower jaw
Do the jaw-thrust maneuver
Tilt her head and lift her chin
Pull her tongue forward

8: Before providing rescue breathing for an unresponsive victim, you must check for breathing. You do this by listening and feeling for airflow through the victim's nose or mouth and by....

Looking into the victim's mouth to see if anything is blocking the airway
Shaking or tapping the victim's shoulders to stimulate him to breathe
Checking the pupils
Looking to see if the chest rises (and falls) as the victims breathes

9: Healthcare providers are cautioned to look for "adequate" breathing when they open the airway and check for breathing in an unresponsive victim. What is the best explanation for the requirement that the healthcare provider looks for more than just the presence or absence of breathing?

Healthcare providers often mistake effective breaths for absence of breaths and they start rescue breathing unnecessarily
Most adult victims of cardiac arrest actually stop breathing before the cardiac arrest, and the respiratory arrest precipitates the cardiac arrest
Many victims of sudden cardiac arrest actually have a foreign body in the airway, which will require that you check and confirm that breathing is adequate
Some victims may continue to demonstrate agonal or gasping breaths for several minutes after cardiac arrest, but these breaths and breaths that are too slow or too shallow will not maintain oxygenation

10: You are in the hospital cafeteria, where a woman appears to be in distress. She is grasping her throat with both hands. What should you do to find out if she is choking?

Give her 5 back blows
Give her 5 abdominal thrusts
Ask her "Are you choking?" and look for any response
Shake her and shout "Are you OK?"

11: You are providing rescue breathing for a child using a bag-mask device. What action will confirm that each of your rescue breaths are adequate?

Determining the child's weight, calculating the tidal volume, and delivering that amount of air
Observing the child's chest rise with each rescue breath
Choosing the correct size bag-mask device, which will ensure delivery of adequate resuce breaths
Delivering breaths quickly with high peak inspiratory pressures

12: A 3-year-old child is eating in the hospital playroom. She suddenly begins coughing repeatedly. Her cough then quickly becomes soft and weak. She is making high pitched noises while breathing in and seems to be in respiratory distress. Her skin is a bluish color. What is the most likely cause of her distress?

An asthma attack causing swelling of airway
Severe or complete airway obstruction with inadequate air exchange
Infected and swollen vocal cords
A seizure from a possible head injury

13: You are performing rescue breathing with a bag-mask device and oxygen for a nonbreathing child with signs of circulation. How often should you provide rescue breaths for the child?

Approximately once every 3-5 seconds.
Approximately once every 4 seconds (15 breaths per minute)
Approximately once every 5 seconds ( 10 to 12 breaths per minute)
Approximately once every 10 seconds (6 breaths per minute)

14: You are performing 2-rescuer CPR. You are positioned at the victim's head. When you initially open the unresponsive victim's airway and find that he is not breathing adequately. How many initial breaths should you give?

1
2
3
4

15: You are at your grandmother's house Your grandmother is unreponsive and has stopped breathing. You are giving her mouth-to-mouth breathing. Which of the following statements is the best explanation for the positive effects of rescue breaths?

Rescue breaths help over come any airway obstruction that may be blocking the airway
Rescue breaths will maintain a norman arterial oxygen content
Rescue breathing might help defibrillate the heart
Rescue breaths are a quick, effective way to provide oxygen to the victim

16: A 52-year-old man collapses at the fitness center after a workout. To determine whether he is in cardiac arrest, you should check for signs of circulation. Part of this assessment is the pulse check. What is the preferred site for a pulse check in this adult victim?

At the radial artery of the wrist
At the brachial artery of the arm
At the carotid artery of the neck
On the chest over the heart

17: Where should you place your hands on the chest of a victim when you are performing chest compressions?

On the top half of the breastbone
Over the heart , on the left side of the chest at the nipple line
Over the very bottom of the breastbone, on the xiphoid
On the lower halAt the nipple line in the center of the chest

18: You are performing CPR on an unresponsive man who was found in his bed. What is your ratio of compressions to ventilations?

30 compressions, then 2 ventilaitons
5 compressions , then 1 ventilation
10 compressions, then 2 ventilaitons
15 compressions, then 2 ventilations

19: What is the correct rate or speed you should use to perform compressions for an adult victim of cardiac arrest?

A rate of 60 times per minute
A rate of 80 times per minute
A rate of 100 times per minute
A rate of 120 times per minute

20: A neighbor runs to you with his limp 5-year-old child. You verify that the child is unresponsive and send the neighbor to phone 911. You open the child's airway, determine that he is not breathing, and deliver 2 effective rescue breaths. You check for signs of circulation and find that the child has no signs of circulation (including no pulse). Which of the following choices best describes the technique you should use to perform chest compressions on this child?

Always use both hands, one on top of the other
Always use the heel of one hand
Always use the tips of 2 fingers
The technique that accomplishes 1/3 to 1/2 the depth of the childs chest.

21: You and a colleague have responded to a 911 call to attempt resuscitation of an unresponsive man who was found in a chair. After positioning the victim supine on a hard surface, you open the airway and check for breathing. When you find no normal breathing you deliver 2 effective breaths. Next you check for a pulse and find none. What should you and your partner do next?

Attach an AED (if available) or begin chest compressions and cycles of compressions and ventilations.
Deliver 5 abdominal thrusts
Check for signs of circulation again
Reposition the airway and reattempt rescue breaths

22: You are alone when you see a man collapse. You confirm that he is unresponsive and phone the emergency response number. There is no AED in sight. You return to the man and perform the steps of CPR. You open the airway and find that he has only agonal respirations. You deliver 2 effective breaths and check for a pulse. There is no pulse, so you begin chest compressions. When should you recheck for signs of circulation?

After each compression-ventilation cycle
After the first compression-ventilation cycle
After about 5 minutes of CPR
When the victim shows signs of circulation by moving or breathing on their own.

23: Which of the following most accurately characterizes when you should start chest compressions?

As soon as you find that there is no pulse.
After you have reassessed the victim's breathing
After giving the 2 initial ventilations
Whenever you find an unresponsive person

24: When you perform CPR, how do your hest compressions and rescue breathing help the victim of sudden cardiac arrest?

CPR decreases the need for coronary artery bypass
CPR forces the heart in ventricular fibrillation to return to a normal heart rhythm
CPR has no effect on survival
Immediate CPR provides a flow of oxygen-rich blood to the heart and brain and "buys time" until defibrillation is available

25: The proper depth of compressions for an adult victim is?

1 to 2 inches
1.5 to 2 inches
2 to 2.5 inches
1/3 to 1/2 the depth of the chest

26: The treatment for an unconscious adult victim with an obstructed airway is best described as

After attempting 2 ventilations with no success, provide 30 chest compressions then look in the victims mouth for the obstruction before attempting the next 2 ventilations.
Attempt 5 abdominal thrust, then recheck the airway.
Roll the victim to their side and provide 5 back slaps, then recheck the airway.
Provide chest compressions until the victim starts to move or breath.