| Question | Answer |
| What does CFR stand for? | Community First Responder. |
| What are the CFR's duties? | - Attend appropriate emergency calls.
- Provide necessary treatment.
- Accurately document, record and inform the attending ambulance resource.
- Provide continuing care.
- Remain at scene until released by an ambulance resource. |
| What does SCAS stands for? | South Central Ambulance Service |
| What does EOC mean? | Emergency Operations Centre |
| What type of incidents a CFR can attend? | - Collapse
- Cardio-respiratory arrest
- Respiratory emergencies
- Cardiac emergencies
- Neurological
- Accidents (home, work etc)
- Other medical emergencies |
| Incidents NOT attended... | - Fire
- Known violence
- Mental health
- Road traffic accidents
- Maternity and gynaecological incidents
- Prison, detention centre, police cell |
| What is CAD and what is it ised for? | - Computer Aided Despatch
- All phones receive pre-alert messages which are generated by CAD within the EOC. |
| What must you consider whilst responding to an emergency incident? | - Fast Text to EOC
- Adhere to all road traffic rules
- Parking safety (ensuring ambulance access)
- Patient report form (PRF)
- Clothing/Shoes
- No alcohol or drugs prior or during the shift
- Patient consent
- Safety/ Danger |
| What does PRF stand for? | Patient report form |
| As a CFR you must make every effort to keep safe. Give 3 examples of how this can be achieved. | 1. Introduce yourself (check for danger)
2. Follow/Do NOT lead (mental note of exits)
3. Claim you need equipment from car if situation requires it |
| As a CFR you may experience something that might affect you personally when attending an incident. Whom may you consider seeking support from? | - Family/Friends
- Scheme coordinator/member of ambulance service
- Trained councilor
- GP
- CFR welfare officer |
| When you need to find out information from your patient, list three possible communication skills you can use. | - Calm approach/Introduction
- Respect personal space/Culture
- Use non verbal techniques (smiling)
- Give time to answer
- Use open questions, e.g. So what you are saying is... |
| Give 3 examples of what must be present in both adults ad children for you to judge they are competent to make decisions. | Patient must be:
- Able to understand and retain information
- Able to use the information
- Able to communicate their answers |
| Who may legally be classed as having parental responsibility? | - Mother always
- Father if married to mother/acquired legal responsibility
- Legal guardian
- Residence order
- Local authority
- Emergency protection order |
| If at any time there are any issues regarding consent for assessment or treatment for any patient, regardless of age, who must you contact? | EOC for advice and assistance |
| As a CFR we must respect patient confidentiality at all times and follow a few simple rules. Provide 3 people to whom it may not be appropriate to disclose confidential details to: | - Relatives/Neighbours
- Bystanders
- Press |
| To whom may you safely handover patient information to? | To the next person who will be directly responsible for the patient, e.g. ambulance crew |
| As a CFR you are a vital link in 'keeping it clean'. What simple rules must you adhere to? | - Keep cuts and grazes covered at all times
- Good personal hygiene
- Nails short and clean
- Wash hands afterwards
- Clinical waste disposed of in the yellow bag
- Do not re-use consumables |
| What does T.I.L.E help you remember? | - Task (is it necessary?)
- Individual (can I do it?)
- Load (how heavy is it?)
- Environment (do I have space?) |
| The skeleton has several key functions. What are they? | - Support
- Protection
- Movement
- Mineral storage
- Blood cells |
| The skeleton is made up of how many bones? | 206 |
| What two causes of injury are likely to fracture a bone? | - Direct force
- Indirect force (e.g. during a fall land on outstretched arm -> fractures the shoulder joint) |
| The respiratory system has four principle functions. What are they? | - Extract oxygen
- Excrete water vapour, CO2, other waste gases
- Maintain acidity of blood
- Ventilation of lungs |
| What is the approximate percentage of oxygen within atmospheric air? | ~21% |
| What factors may lead to an increase in our breathing rate? | - Exercise
- Asthma
- Emphysema (COPD)
- Bronchitis |
| What is COPD? | COPD = Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
- e.g. emphysema
- chronic bronchitis |
| Breathing rates may increase due to: | - Exercise
- Fever
- Shock
- Medical (i.e. pneumonia, bronchitis etc) |
| Breathing rates may decrease due to: | - Control problems i.e. CVA, brain injury
- Mechanical problems, i.e. chest injury
- Drug overdoses |
| What is CVA? | Stroke (Cardio Vascular Accident) |
| How long does it take for "Brain Death" to occur and why? | Brain Death will start to occur after just 3 minutes without oxygen |
| Give 3 potential indications for use of oxygen. | - Cardiac / Respiratory arrest
- Stroke
- Chest pain
- Trauma
- Seizure (prolonged)
- Toxic syndromes |
| What does insufficient oxygen lead to: | Hypoxia |
| What is hypoxia? | The condition which the level of oxygen in the body becomes too low to meet the cell's needs. |
| What are the most common causes of hypoxia? | - Blood loss (severe)
- Head injuries (chest)
- Heart disease
- Respiratory illness
- Shock |
| How is oxygen administered? | Delivery via:
- A non-rebreather oxygen mask
- BVM device |
| What does BVM stand for? | Bag Valve Mask |
| What is a BVM and what is it used for? | A Bag Valve Mask is a hand-held device used to provide positive pressure ventilation to a patient who is not breathing or who is breathing inadequately. |
| What is the recommended oxygen administration rate? | Should always be the max of 15 litres per min to achieve the desired SPO2 level (recommended is in between 10-15 lt/min) |
| What is Pulse Oximetry? | A simple non-invasive method of measuring the level of oxygen saturation of the patient's haemoglobin within arterial blood. |
| Pulse Oximetry: What is the range of a normal reading for oxygen saturation? | 94% - 98% |
| Pulse Oximetry: What is the range of reading for evidence of hypoxia? | 90% - 93% |
| Pulse Oximetry: What is the range which represents CRITICAL hypoxia? | 85% or less |
| Pulse Oximetry: What is the range of SPO2 for a COPD patient? | - Normally between 88% - 92%
- Usually have oxygen administration warning cards |
| Is oxygen administration good for children? | - Children are NOT excluded from SPO2 monitoring
- ALL children with significant illness and/or injury must receive HIGH levels of supplementary oxygen (if possible) |
| Would oxygen administration be recommended to a known carbon monoxide poisoning patient? | Known Carbon Monoxide poisoning will cause the results to be "artificially elevated", therefore SPO2 should NOT be used. |
| Give 3 reasons for inaccurate pulse oximetry SPO2 readings. | - Dirty fingers
- Bright light
- Cold extremities/shivering
- False nails/nail varnish
- Carbon Monoxide poisoning
- Irregular cardiac rhythms |
| What is the range in beats/min for a healthy heart? | Approx 60 - 100 times per minute |
| What questions should be asked for a Primary Assessment History of a patient? | (Always DRAB)
- What's the main problem?
- What are the symptoms?
- When did it start?
- How bad is the primary symptom?
- Has anything changed?
- Has this happened before?
- Do they take medication?
- Any known allergies
- Consider Mechanism of |
| What information needs to be communicated when there is a patient handover? | - Name
- Age
- Primary Concern
- Brief history of incident
- Signs & symptoms
- Any treatment provided
- Outcome of any treatment
- Past medical history
- Medication (if known)
- Any know allergies |
| What needs to be considered when making a Primary Assessment? | DRAB:
- Danger
- Response
- Airway
- Breathing |
| What is DRAB used for? | DRAB is the Primary Assessment:
- Danger (scene safety, PPE, gloves)
- Response (Alert, Voice, Pain Unresponsive)
- Airway (is it open? if not, open it)
- Breathing (yes or no? for 10sec 2+ breaths) |
| What does AVPU help us remember? | AVPU is used for assessing the response of a patient:
- Alert (eyes open?)
- Voice (their name or direct command)
- Pain (tap shoulder, pinch earlobe)
- Unresponsive |
| Name 3 causes which can cause unconsciousness. | - Faint
- Imbalance of heat
- Shock
- Head injury
- Stroke
- Heart Condition
- Asphyxia
- Poisoning (inc alcohol)
- Epilepsy
- Diabetes |
| What is the Recovery Position? | A safe position for a patient which maintains an open airway. It allows body fluids to drain from the mouth, e.g. vomit |
| Which side should pregnant women be placed when on the recovery position? | Pregnant women MUST only be put on their LEFT hand side |
| What age is safe to use pocket masks from? | Pocket Masks may be used on patients of ANY age (filters are for single patient use only) |
| Basic Life Support: What is the recommended depth of a chest compression? | 5-6cm (100-120 compressions / min) |
| What does CPR stand for? | Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation |
| What is the min age limit for using a Bag Valve Mask (BVM)? | The Bad Valve Mask (BVM) device cannot be used on any patients who are known to be under 16 years of age. |
| What is the min age limit for using a Oropharyngeal Airway? | OP airways may only be used on patients age 16 years and above
- Green : small
- Orange : medium
- Red : large |
| What does an Oropharyngeal (OP) Airway used for? | Prevents the tongue from obstructing the airway |
| What does PPE stand for? | Personal Protective Equipment, e.g. gloves etc |
| Name 3 causes for a Paediatric Cardiac Arrest. | - Respiratory problems (60%) (e.g. broncholitis, asthma, pneumonia)
- Sepsis (major infection)
- Dehydration
- Electrocution
- Heart defect (congenital)
- Hypovolaemia |
| Paediatric Basic Life Support (BLS): Which position should a small infant be placed to keep the airway open? | For babies / small infants, the head should always remain in NEUTRAL alignment. |
| Paediatric Basic Life Support (BLS): Which position should a toddler/child be placed to keep the airway open? | For toddlers / children, a small application of head tilt/chin lift should be applied to achieve a position known as "Sniffing The Morning Air" |
| What does AED stand for? | Automated External Defibrillation |
| What age range should paediatric AED pads used? | Paediatric AED (Automated External Defibrillation) pads may be used on any cardiac arrest patient between 1-8 years of age. |
| Describe the steps taken when treating a child with cardiac arrest. | - Commence CPR with 5 rescue breaths
- 30:2 for 1 minute prior to using the AED
- Paediatric AED pads should be used for children between 1-8 years of age |
| What is Hyperventilation? | A particularly high and shallow rate of breathing. |
| Name 3 causes of Hyperventilation. | - Anger
- Anxiety
- Fear
- Emotional |
| Name 3 symptoms which will indicate a Heart Attack. | - Crushing central chest pain
- Left arm, face or jaw pain
- Shortness of breath
- Sweating
- Nausea/vomiting |
| Above what age can aspirin be administered safely? | Aspirin may only be administered to patients over 16 years of age presenting with a cardiac sounding pain that is not exacerbated/eased by inspiration/expiration and who are not contra-indicated |
| Name 3 reasons that aspirin should not be administered to patients. | - Never under 16 years of age
- Known allergy
- Haemophilia
- Gastric/peptic ulcer |
| Describe what Anaphylaxis is and how can be recognised. | - A severe over-reaction of the body's normal protective defences (histamine)
- Massive drop in blood pressure
- Generalised swelling |
| Name 3 causes of Anaphylaxis. | - Insect stings/bites
- Food, e.g. nuts
- Drugs |
| What does FAST stand for? | FAST is used to recognise symptoms of stroke:
- Face
- Arms
- Speech
- Test |
| Diabetic Emergencies: What is Hypoglycaemia? | Low blood sugar level
- Rapid, shallow breathing
- Slow pulse
- Pale, sweaty
- Irritable, confused |
| Diabetic Emergencies: What is Hyperglycaemia? | High blood sugar level
- Slow, deep breathing
- Rapid pulse
- Flushed, dry skin
- Tiredness, lethargy, drowsiness |
| When should paediatric AED pads be used? | For patients under 8 years of age in need of defibrillation paediatric pads should be used if available (see exceptions) |
| State the exception for not using paediatric pads in patients under 8 years of age. | Paediatric pads should be used for all children under 8 years of age. If not available, adult pads will be used on a child/infant (of any age) if they are in a shockable rhythm;
defibrillation must still be undertaken immediately (08/06/12) |
