Emergency Care, 13e (Limmer et al.)
Chapter 5 Medical Terminology
1) What is the distinction between anatomy and physiology?
A) Anatomy is the study of physical body structures, whereas physiology is the study of
emotions and behavior.
B) The terms are synonymous.
C) Anatomy is the study of body components and systems, and physiology is the study of
injuries and disease processes.
D) Anatomy is the study of body structures, and physiology is the study of body function.
Objective: 5.1
2) With regard to medical terminology, a prefix is:
A) added to the beginnings of roots or words to modify or qualify their meaning.
B) the foundation of a word or term.
C) the combination of any two or more whole words.
D) a modifier that indicates if a term is singular or plural.
Objective: 5.1
3) The abdominal quadrants include all of the following except the:
A) right upper.
B) left lower.
C) right medial.
D) left upper.
Objective: 5.1
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4) The term lateral is best defined as:
A) under the arms.
B) toward the middle of.
C) to the back of.
D) to the side.
Objective: 5.1
5) What is the primary reason for an EMT to use specific and proper medical terminology?
A) People may think that an EMT is not intelligent or professional unless she uses medical terms.
B) Medical communication needs to be exact and consistent.
C) It will make patients and family members trust in the EMT’s abilities more.
D) EMS providers can’t bill for services unless the correct terminology is used in all
documentation.
Objective: 5.2
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6) While transporting a patient with a traumatic wound to the back, you call in report to the
receiving hospital over the radio. Due to radio static and background noise in the Emergency
Department, the physician has had to ask you twice to repeat if the wound was superior or
inferior. Why would this distinction be important?
A) The physician is just trying to determine if the wound is deep or not so she knows what to
prepare for.
B) The answer is not necessarily important. The physician is just focusing on getting her
standard questions answered while dealing with an inadequate radio system.
C) The location of the wound is important in determining which types of resources to have
available when the patient arrives.
D) It is a triage question to determine if the patient is critical or not so the hospital can prioritize.
Objective: 5.2
7) What word would be used to refer to a patient’s rapid breathing?
A) Tachycardia
B) Dyspnea
C) Tachypnea
D) Dyseffusion
Objective: 5.3
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8) A patient with bilateral femur fractures would have which of the following?
A) Two fractures in the same femur
B) A femur fracture occurring with little or no trauma
C) A femur fracture in which the bone ends have punctured the muscle and skin of the thigh
D) Fractures of both femurs
Objective: 5.3
9) You and your EMT partner are responding to a medical aid call in the rural West County area.
The dispatcher advises that the caller is reporting the patient as having a history of “plegia.” Why
would it be beneficial to have the dispatcher clarify a prefix for the word plegia?
A) Without a clarifying prefix, it is difficult for the EMTs to effectively prepare for the type of
patient they may encounter.
B) Because a dysplegiac patient generally requires an EMT-Paramedic level of care, and it may
change the level of response.
C) A patient with plegia is potentially contagious, and the EMTs need to know what precautions
are required.
D) There is actually no need to clarify the word.
Objective: 5.3
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10) Why should an EMT avoid the use of acronyms and abbreviations when communicating?
A) They should only be avoided in verbal communications, where they can be misunderstood;
they are expected in written patient care reports.
B) There is a chance that they can lead to errors in continued care for the patient.
C) The medical acronyms and abbreviations used by prehospital care providers and hospital staff
are different.
D) Using acronyms and abbreviations is considered unprofessional.
Objective: 5.4
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11) You and your newly hired EMT partner arrive on the scene of a bicycle collision at the local
community park. One cyclist stands by and says that she has no injuries. The other is lying on his
side on the bike path, guarding his ribs and holding the lower part of his left leg. Your partner
kneels next to the man, introduces herself, and asks, “Can you ambulate?” The patient looks up,
confused and in obvious pain. “Can you ambulate? You know…walk?” Your partner says, a little
louder. After transporting the patient, you discuss the call with your partner and suggest that she
avoid using medical terms unnecessarily when talking with patients. She seems insulted and
says, “Why?” What would you say?
A) Explain that using large words and medical terms can be seen as being egotistical, which can
alienate both patients and other providers.
B) Tell her that the general public isn’t smart enough to understand medical terminology and that
all communication must be “dumbed down” when talking to patients.
C) Tell her that the point of communicating with patients and other providers is so there is clear
understanding; using medical terms when not necessary can cause confusion.
D) You should say that you are an experienced EMT and since she is new, she should just take
your advice and apply it.
Objective: 5.5
12) When discussing left and right in terms of anatomic locations, what do they refer to?
A) Left and right from the patient’s perspective
B) Whoever is speaking about the anatomic location determines left and right orientation.
C) Anatomic left and right refer to the provider’s left and right orientation when facing a patient
in the anatomic position.
D) What left and right refer to anatomically is dependent on the patient’s positioning when care is
provided.
Objective: 5.6
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