Clinical Skills Flashcards

Which of the following findings would indicate orthostatic hypotension?

Answer: Blood pressure drops 20 mmHg or more when moving from lying to standing

Orthostatic hypotension is defined as a drop of ≥20 mmHg systolic or ≥10 mmHg diastolic upon standing from a supine position.

When documenting a wound, the term 'serous drainage' refers to which type of exudate?

Answer: Clear or pale yellow watery fluid considered normal

Serous drainage is thin, clear to pale yellow fluid that is normal in the early healing phase of a wound.

A provider orders a 12-lead ECG. How many electrodes (leads) are placed on the patient's body?

Answer: 10 electrodes

A 12-lead ECG uses 10 electrodes (4 limb leads + 6 precordial leads) to produce 12 different views of the heart's electrical activity.

What is the correct way to dispose of a used lancet after a fingerstick blood glucose test?

Answer: Place uncapped directly into a sharps container

Used sharps, including lancets, must be placed immediately and uncapped into an approved puncture-resistant sharps container to prevent needlestick injuries.

Which of the following best describes the 'chain of infection' link that a medical assistant breaks by performing proper hand hygiene?

Answer: Mode of transmission

Hand hygiene interrupts the mode of transmission by removing pathogens from the hands before they can be transferred to a new host.

A patient weighs 176 lbs and is 5 feet 8 inches tall. Their BMI is approximately:

Answer: 26.7 (overweight)

BMI = (weight in lbs × 703) ÷ (height in inches)²; for this patient: (176 × 703) ÷ 68² ≈ 26.7, which falls in the overweight category (25–29.9).

Which technique is used to confirm correct placement of a nasogastric (NG) tube before use?

Answer: Aspirating gastric contents and checking pH

Aspirating gastric contents and checking pH (typically ≤5.5) is a reliable bedside method to confirm NG tube placement in the stomach.