Damn you, NR!

[fm_emt]

Ok, I took a NR prep class the other day. There were 10 people in the class. 9 of them have taken it & failed it. Some have failed it multiple times. I was the only one there that has not taken it. NOW I am farkin' nervous. :-|

One of the things the teacher said was that they often throw in questions with a patient, respiratory distress, etc and then they give you a cannula & an NRM as your o2 choices. He said that since O2 is a medication, to start off with a little bit and see if it helps them. if not, then go to the NRM.
So, in my Kaplan NR-EMT prep book, a similar question came up. I remembered what I heard in the NR prep class and picked "cannula @ 6lpm" over my gut feeling of "NRM @ 15lpm." (75yr old female, short of breath, able to speak short sentences, emphysema, Rhonci audible..) - and the book said that I was wrong! I should have picked the NRM @ 15lpm!
ARGH! That's what I thought, but in this class, I heard the exact opposite.

Now I'm really confused and worried. My gut feeling was right, but I have heard many folks say "don't think about 'in the field' when taking the NR!"

What do YOU guys think? Anyone taken it recently? Any unexpected types of questions pop out at you?

/stressed

 

[MMiz]

As a teacher and student, I'm telling you to always go with your instinct, unless you're 100% sure you're wrong.

Don't over-think the question. Take a deep breath, take the test, and then you'll be fine

 

[ffemt8978]

I agree with MMiz, and would just like to add,

O2 good...give lots.

 

[fm_emt]

That's what I was thinking, but... argh, darn these tests! It's like.. it's not WHAT you know, but how they word the question sometimes.

ugh!

 

[MedicPrincess]

Go with your gut.


The majority of the time, it won't lead you wrong.

 

[joemt]

I'll give you the same advice I give my students...

1. Read the question
2. Read it again (sometimes our eyes skip those all so important words like "except" or "always".)
3. close your eyes, and think of the answer
4. (open your eyes) Read the choices
5. Find the choice that is closest to what you thought about
6. Mark that choice, and DON'T CHANGE IT!
7. If you just don't know the answer, it's ok to skip that question and come back to it. It's possible that you may find a similiar question somewhere else on the test that will help you answer the one you skipped. If you do this though, be SURE to go back and answer the question.
8. Don't leave anything blank... A guess at least gives you a 20% chance.

Best of luck, and let us know if you have any other questions!

 

[Wingnut]

ALAWYS GO WITH YOUR GUT!!! You know more than you think you do!!

I never check my answers anymore, the minute I second guess myself it ends up wrong.

I think personally that the instructors made a bigger deal out of the NREMT questions than it really is. When I went into my test I was wracked with nerves and thought for sure I was going to fail the first time. It's good that they emphasize that the test can be tricky, but it's really not THAT bad.

My best advice for passing it is remember your order of treatment, that's where it's going to get you. Don't over study either, what happened above is a result of that.

Good Luck, try to relax and you'll do fine.

 

[Ridryder911]

First, try to remain calm.. it has a high pass rate. Second as others has suggested, read the question with no affect at least three times. Remember it was not field medic who usually designed the question. Mark the most APPROPIATE choice.. that is the clincher.. if it appears to be text book, chances are the most correct.

Don't read anything into the question...

AGain, like others have described, go with your first impressions.. never change andanswer, unless you are 100% sure, you made a mistake.

Good luck,
R/r 911

 

[fm_emt]

I know this one is gonna be on there..

Techniques of Artificial Ventilation
A. In order of preference, the methods for ventilating a patient by the EMT-
Basic are as follows:
1. Mouth-to-mask
2. Two-person bag-valve-mask
3. Flow restricted, oxygen-powered ventilation device
4. One-person bag-valve-mask


---

That is from the EMT-Basic: National Standard Curriculum. A 681 page PDF file that I have been pawing over.

I wouldn't think that the #1 preferred method would be mouth-to-mask, but I guess that I was thinking wrong.

--
edit: Oh, it says that the mask should have high flow O2 @ 15lpm plugged into it too. I guess that would make a difference. heh.

 

[fm_emt]

I think that class I took was a waste of $100. Arrgh.

----

D. Equipment for oxygen delivery
1. Nonrebreather
a. Preferred method of giving oxygen to prehospital patients.
b. Up to 90% oxygen can be delivered.
c. Nonrebreather bag must be full before mask is placed on
patient.
d. Flow rate should be adjusted so that when patient inhales,
bag does not collapse (15 lpm).
e. Patients who are cyanotic, cool, clammy or short of breath
need oxygen. Concerns about the dangers of giving too
much oxygen to patients with history of chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease and infants and children have not been
shown to be valid in the prehospital setting. Patients with
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and infants and
children who require oxygen should receive high
concentration oxygen.
f. Masks come in different sizes for adult, children and infants.
Be sure to select the correct size mask.
2. Nasal cannula - rarely the best method of delivering adequate
oxygen to the prehospital patient. Should be used only when
patients will not tolerate a nonrebreather mask, despite coaching
from the EMT-Basic.

----
Teacher said "start off with a little" (meaning: cannula)

The DOT curriculum says that's a load of horse puckey. I knew that my gut was right.