Arthur Hsieh

This Cheat Sheet is a quick summary of facts you should know about becoming a certified emergency medical technician (EMT), including certification steps, computer adaptive testing, and exam preparation.Getting and maintaining an EMT certificationThe requirements for becoming a certified emergency medical technician (EMT) vary from state to state.

The requirements for becoming a certified emergency medical technician (EMT) vary from state to state. However, several steps are common to the EMT certification process. They include the following steps: Enroll in an EMT course. Search on the web or go to your local emergency medical services (EMS) or fire station to find out where reputable EMT training programs are offered.

Toxicology is the study of toxic or poisonous substances and their effects on the body and a topic you should know for the EMT exam. The signs and symptoms associated with toxic exposure and poisoning range very widely, from simple annoyances to life-threatening conditions. As an EMT, your primary goals are to ensure your own safety and identify the possibility of a toxic exposure while preserving the patient’s airway, breathing, and circulation.

You may decide that the best way to prepare for your EMT exam is to take a preparation course. You have several options for finding an EMT course in your neck of the woods: Perhaps the easiest way to find a course is to perform a web search. Entering “EMT training” and the name of your town, city, or county in your browser of choice often brings up programs that are available in your area.

You will need to know all about blood pressure for the EMT exam. You will encounter situations with blood pressure frequently as an EMT. One way of talking about blood pressure is with this formula: Blood pressure (BP) = Cardiac output (CO) × systemic vascular resistance (SVR) (the size of the vasculature) Before you panic, rest assured — you won’t be calculating BP this way!

The following practice questions are similar to the EMT exam’s questions about medical fundamentals. Read each question carefully, and then select the answer choice that most correctly answers the question. Sample questions A 50-year-old female is alert but has difficulty speaking clearly and is unable to sit up by herself.

The EMT exam will ask questions about managing large incidents. Incidents that overwhelm local, immediately available resources are commonly called mass casualty incidents (MCI). These can take the form of a major vehicle crash with multiple patients, a fire or hazardous materials incident that sickens many people, or a weather-related event such as a tornado or flash flood.

The National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) began using computer adaptive testing (CAT) in January 2007. Prior to then, NREMT exams were paper based; an NREMT representative had to administer the test to a group of candidates. Answers were recorded by test-takers onto Scantron forms, which were collected by the NREMT representative and mailed to the NREMT.

One responsibility that you have as an emergency medical technician (EMT) is to document your assessment and management of the patient. Such documentation can take time to complete if you write out everything that you found and performed. Medical abbreviations can help speed up the process. You can use literally dozens of abbreviations; here are ten (or so) that are commonly used when documenting your assessment and care, plus a few symbols that you can use as shorthand for common words.