1.0 Introduction and Chain of Survival CPR/AED Practice Quiz
24 exam-style questions covering 8% of the CPR/AED exam. Instant feedback on every answer, progress tracking, no signup required.
This domain is part of the CPR / AED Certification practice test. Each question is tagged by exam objective and difficulty so you can drill exactly the areas you need.
Sample Questions
A coworker asks why bystander CPR matters when EMS will arrive in a few minutes anyway. Which statement best summarizes the impact of immediate high-quality CPR combined with early defibrillation on survival from cardiac arrest?
- A. It can double or triple the chances of survival
- B. It improves survival by less than five percent in any setting
- C. It only matters when the arrest happens inside a hospital
- D. It has no effect until advanced life support arrives
AHA states that high-quality CPR started immediately after cardiac arrest combined with early defibrillation can double or triple the chances of survival.
An instructor draws the AHA Chain of Survival on the board and asks the class to identify the very first link a rescuer acts on when someone collapses. Which link is it?
- A. Recognition and emergency activation
- B. Advanced resuscitation
- C. Defibrillation
- D. Post-cardiac arrest care
Recognition and emergency activation is the first link, the rescuer recognizes the arrest and activates the emergency response system.
Your training partner says that almost everyone who has a cardiac arrest outside the hospital survives if EMS is called. According to the BLS Provider Manual, what is the approximate survival-to-discharge rate for adult nontraumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest treated by EMS?
- A. Roughly 50 percent
- B. Nearly 90 percent
- C. Approximately 75 percent
- D. About 10 percent
The BLS Provider Manual reports that only about 10 percent of adults with nontraumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest treated by EMS survive to hospital discharge.
An AHA fact sheet states that one element underlies the entire Chain of Survival rather than appearing as a single link. Which element does it describe in this way?
- A. Cardiac catheterization availability
- B. Public access defibrillation
- C. Rapid response team activation
- D. Prevention of cardiac arrest
Per AHA Part 2, prevention of cardiac arrest is the foundation of the Chain of Survival, supported by public awareness, training, and emergency response system development.
A daycare worker finds an unresponsive-appearing infant in a crib. After verifying the scene is safe, where should they tap to check the infant's responsiveness according to the AHA approach?
- A. On both shoulders, the same as for an adult
- B. On the heel of the foot
- C. On the forehead between the eyes
- D. On the abdomen near the navel
AHA Part 2 specifies tapping the infant's heel while shouting to assess responsiveness.
Your colleague argues you should always check breathing first and only then move on to the pulse. According to the AHA approach to minimize delays in starting CPR, what is the recommended way to assess these two findings?
- A. Check breathing first for thirty seconds, then start a separate pulse check
- B. Skip the pulse check entirely for any adult
- C. Assess breathing and pulse simultaneously for at least 5 but no more than 10 seconds
- D. Check the pulse for 60 seconds before assessing breathing
AHA Part 2 instructs rescuers to assess breathing and pulse at the same time for at least 5 but no more than 10 seconds.
After a long, unsuccessful resuscitation attempt at a worksite, the team leader is reviewing AHA recovery and survivorship guidance with the rescuers. Which statement most accurately reflects that guidance?
- A. Psychological support and debriefing benefit rescuers and caregivers as well as survivors
- B. Recovery support is only relevant for the patient, never for rescuers
- C. Cardiac rehabilitation should be skipped to reduce health care costs
- D. Family members of survivors should not be involved in recovery
AHA Part 2 explicitly notes rescuers and caregivers may benefit from psychological support, resiliency, burnout prevention, and effective debriefing.
You are reviewing the six AHA Chain of Survival links to teach a community CPR class. Which sequence places the links in the correct order from first to last?
- A. High-quality CPR, recognition, defibrillation, advanced resuscitation, recovery, post-arrest care
- B. Recognition and activation, high-quality CPR, defibrillation, advanced resuscitation, post-cardiac arrest care, recovery and survivorship
- C. Defibrillation, recognition, CPR, recovery, advanced resuscitation, post-arrest care
- D. Recognition, defibrillation, CPR, post-arrest care, advanced resuscitation, recovery
The AHA chain runs recognition and activation, high-quality CPR, defibrillation, advanced resuscitation, post-cardiac arrest care, then recovery and survivorship.
Key Terms in This Domain
- Chain of Survival (out-of-hospital): Recognition and activation of EMS → immediate high-quality CPR → rapid defibrillation → advanced resuscitation → post-cardiac-arrest care → recovery
- Activate EMS (911): Send someone to call 911 and get an AED; if alone with an unresponsive adult, call 911 first; for a child or infant, give 2 minutes of CPR before calling if alone
- Agonal breathing: Slow, irregular gasping or snorting that may occur in the first minutes of cardiac arrest, treat as no breathing and start CPR
- Pulse check (lay rescuer): Lay rescuers do NOT check for a pulse; healthcare providers may check for ≤10 seconds (carotid in adult/child, brachial in infant)
- Carotid pulse: Pulse felt on the side of the neck, used by healthcare providers to assess adults and children
- Cardiac arrest in children: Most pediatric arrests are caused by respiratory failure rather than primary cardiac problems, emphasize ventilation
- Witnessed vs unwitnessed arrest: A witnessed sudden collapse in an adult is likely cardiac (shockable); a child found unresponsive is more often respiratory
- Post-resuscitation care: Once spontaneous circulation returns, monitor breathing and pulse, place in recovery position if breathing, and prepare for the AED to reanalyze if breathing changes
- Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA): Sudden, unexpected loss of heart function: most often caused by an electrical disturbance such as ventricular fibrillation
- Heart attack vs cardiac arrest: A heart attack is a circulation problem (blocked artery); cardiac arrest is an electrical problem causing the heart to stop pumping, only cardiac arrest needs CPR
Link to this quiz
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Other CPR/AED Domains
- 2.0 Assessment and Recognition
- 3.0 Adult CPR
- 4.0 Child and Infant CPR
- 5.0 AED Operation
- 6.0 Choking and Airway Obstruction
- 7.0 Special Situations and Recovery
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