Am I going crazy?

medichopeful

medichopeful

Flight RN/Paramedic
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Hi all,

Quick question. Recently, I was taking an online quiz for my EMT class, and I ran across this question:


With regard to anatomical locations, which of the following is NOT true?:
a) The mouth is proximal to the nose
b) The umbilicus is located on the ventral aspect of the body
c) The ears are located on the lateral aspect of the head
d) The foot is distal to the knee.

I answered "B", because that was the only one I wasn't sure if it was correct or not (I looked up the definition of the word "ventral," and I can see that "B" would, in fact, be true). But the test said that the correct answer was "A." But last time I checked, the mouth IS proximal to the nose. Is this correct? Or am I missing something?

By the way, if I am not crazy, what would the correct answer be? Because it would seem (unless I'm missing something again) that this question would not have a valid answer...

Thanks!
Eric
 
head ≠ arm/leg

The head is not considered in the same manner as an arm or leg. Proximal and distal is generally used to explain whether something is closer or farther from a structure (point of attachment), respectively.

In this case the structure is the head. The correct way to say this would be the nose is superior to the mouth, or the mouth is inferior to the nose. Similar to saying the arms are superior to the legs. While I see how you are getting confused, I think superior/inferior is more appropriate.
 
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I agree. Superior and inferior would be more appropriate terms in this case. Correct me if I am wrong, doesn't distal and proximal usually use on the extremity and rarely on the core of the body or head?
 
thats a stupid question b c and d are both true. in a way a is true the mouth is closer to the point of attachment than the nose. we had alot of screwy questions on the tests in our emt class that you could bring up with the instructor, and he would often throw out. for example

which of the following can an EMTB not help a patient to administer?
a. the patients epinephrine PO
b. the patients nitro glycerin tablets
c. oxygen
d. Atropine

I do not remember the exact question but it was something similiar. Made whoever wrote the test question bank to look pretty bad
 
Lifeguards For Life said:
thats a stupid question b c and d are both true. in a way a is true the mouth is closer to the point of attachment than the nose. we had alot of screwy questions on the tests in our emt class that you could bring up with the instructor, and he would often throw out. for example

which of the following can an EMTB not help a patient to administer?
a. the patients epinephrine PO
b. the patients nitro glycerin tablets
c. oxygen
d. Atropine

I do not remember the exact question but it was something similiar. Made whoever wrote the test question bank to look pretty bad
Click to expand...

Yeah, I agree it was a stupid question. Thanks for the help everybody!
 
Err... A, C, and D are all correct answers.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist epi PO.

EMT-Bs administer O2, we don't help a patient to administer O2.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist with atropine.

Now if the question did not include the term "not" it would make perfect sense.


As far as the original question, I wouldn't use proximal/distal for point on the head. Superior/inferior, medial/lateral, ventral/dorsal, deep/superficial would be more appropriate designations for the head, neck, and body.
 
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JPINFV said:
Err... A, C, and D are all correct answers.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist epi PO.

EMT-Bs administer O2, we don't help a patient to administer O2.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist with atropine.

Now if the question did not include the term "not" it would make perfect sense.


As far as the original question, I wouldn't use proximal/distal for point on the head. Superior/inferior, medial/lateral, ventral/dorsal, deep/superficial would be more appropriate designations for the head, neck, and body.
Click to expand...

Alright, thanks for the information. I must have missed that in the book.
 
JPINFV said:
Err... A, C, and D are all correct answers.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist epi PO.

EMT-Bs administer O2, we don't help a patient to administer O2.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist with atropine.

Now if the question did not include the term "not" it would make perfect sense.


As far as the original question, I wouldn't use proximal/distal for point on the head. Superior/inferior, medial/lateral, ventral/dorsal, deep/superficial would be more appropriate designations for the head, neck, and body.
Click to expand...

yes. i know. some questions in the brady? test bank our class used were really that screwy. some literally had no correct answer
 
medichopeful said:
Yeah, I agree it was a stupid question. Thanks for the help everybody!
Click to expand...

Actually, I do not find the question stupid. It is anatomy 101. Distal/Proximal is used primarily in regards to limbs (in which you are using the point of attatchment as a reference point), while superior/inferior are used for the entire body, but particulaly the head and torso (as in, which anatomical feature is higher)...

It may seem like a small issue... but it will be questions like that that screw you up on tests and in the real world writing PCRs with actual medical terminology makes you look like you know what you are talking about...

Anatomical%20Position.gif
 
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JPINFV said:
Err... A, C, and D are all correct answers.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist epi PO.

EMT-Bs administer O2, we don't help a patient to administer O2.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist with atropine.

Now if the question did not include the term "not" it would make perfect sense.


As far as the original question, I wouldn't use proximal/distal for point on the head. Superior/inferior, medial/lateral, anterior/posterior, deep/superficial would be more appropriate designations for the head, neck, and body.
Click to expand...

...fixed that for me.
 
+1 on it being a stupid question. I agree that superior/inferior in the more correct term.

I wish uneducated teachers would stop using multi choice questions as an easy way for examination. There's really an art to writing them. You can do post graduate courses in MCQ writing - its not a simple matter.
 
JPINFV said:
Err... A, C, and D are all correct answers.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist epi PO.

EMT-Bs administer O2, we don't help a patient to administer O2.

EMT-Bs don't administer/assist with atropine.

Now if the question did not include the term "not" it would make perfect sense.
Click to expand...

That can be a really iffy question, depends on where you live. In my state we can assist with epi.
 
RuralEMT said:
That can be a really iffy question, depends on where you live. In my state we can assist with epi.
Click to expand...

Really? Epi PO? I highly doubt that any basic, anywhere, is helping administer epi by mouth. Come to think of it, are there any oral epi medications to begin with?
 
RuralEMT said:
That can be a really iffy question, depends on where you live. In my state we can assist with epi.
Click to expand...

I dont think you are allowed to give them epi per oral. I don't even know if they make an oral epe, and do not see much of a need for one
 
It's 2019 and I just came across this exact same question. Thanks to
medichopeful for creating this thread! The statement that the head is not classified the same as the rest of the body was not covered anywhere in the subject matter
 
dijiwhit92 said:
It's 2019 and I just came across this exact same question. Thanks to
medichopeful for creating this thread! The statement that the head is not classified the same as the rest of the body was not covered anywhere in the subject matter
Click to expand...
Really? A ten year old revive with nothing new to really add to it.
 
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