EEG - Electroencephalography Patient Safety and Ethics Questions and Answers

Question 1

An 82-year-old patient with severe dementia is brought from a nursing home for a routine EEG.
The patient is unable to state their name or understand the procedure.
Who is the most appropriate individual to provide informed consent for the EEG?

Accepted Answer

The patient's legally authorized representative or next of kin.

Answer

The patient, after the technologist explains in very simple terms.

Answer

The registered nurse who accompanied the patient from the facility.

Answer

The ordering neurologist who determined the procedure was necessary.

Question 2

Which of the following actions by an EEG technologist is a direct violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)?

Accepted Answer

Looking up the medical records of a celebrity who is a patient in another part of the hospital out of curiosity.

Answer

Discussing a complex EEG record with the interpreting neurologist in a private reading room.

Answer

Using a hospital-provided, encrypted tablet to review a patient's prior EEG report.

Answer

Calling the patient's nurse to confirm their current list of medications.

Question 3

During a portable EEG in the ICU, the patient experiences a generalized tonic-clonic seizure. After ensuring the patient is safe and calling for nursing assistance, what is the technologist's primary responsibility related to the recording?

Accepted Answer

Continue recording and meticulously document all clinical manifestations and the exact time they occur.

Answer

Immediately stop the recording to prevent movement artifact from obscuring the data.

Answer

Protect the EEG machine from being damaged by the patient's movements.

Answer

Administer stand-by medication as ordered in the patient's chart.

Question 4

An alert and oriented adult patient provides consent for an EEG but adamantly refuses the hyperventilation (HV) activation procedure due to a history of panic attacks. Which of the following is the most appropriate course of action for the technologist?

Accepted Answer

Respect the patient's refusal, document it on the record, and proceed with the remainder of the EEG.

Answer

Insist that the patient attempt HV, as it is a required part of the standard procedure.

Answer

Cancel the entire EEG study because it will be incomplete without the activation.

Answer

Ask a family member to convince the patient to perform the procedure.

Question 5

To minimize the risk of electrical shock to the patient, what is the single most important electrical safety practice in the EEG laboratory?

Accepted Answer

Plugging all patient-connected equipment into the same properly grounded, hospital-grade outlet cluster.

Answer

Using a notch filter to remove 60 Hz interference.

Answer

Ensuring all electrodes have an impedance below 1 kOhm.

Answer

Applying a separate ground electrode for each piece of monitoring equipment.

Question 6

What is the standard infection control practice for disinfecting non-disposable surface cup electrodes after use on a patient with an intact scalp and no known infectious diseases?

Accepted Answer

Mechanically cleaning the electrodes, then immersing them in an appropriate intermediate-level disinfectant.

Answer

Soaking the electrodes in hot, soapy water for 30 minutes.

Answer

Wiping the electrodes with a 70% isopropyl alcohol pad.

Answer

Placing the electrodes in an autoclave for steam sterilization.