EMT Test Prep Can Make You A Better Critical Thinker
Critical thinking is a skill every healthcare professional should possess. However, did you also know that this is a skill that will help you on your EMT test? Many of the questions on the EMT exam require you to use critical thinking to determine the correct answer. However, as you are likely already aware, critical thinking is not a skill you automatically possess, it is one you must build. Test prep can help you practice this skill so that you do better on your test and help you become a more confident and efficient healthcare professional. Learn how test prep can help you become a better critical thinker.
Problem Isolation
Test prep means that you have the opportunity to be introduced to the question format that is typically used throughout the test. With practice, this exposure can help you with a helpful critical thinking tool, which is problem isolation. For example, a test question might provide a listing of the patient's vital signs along with a list of symptoms they have presented with. As a critical thinker, you will understand that not everything listed has the same importance or is even a contributor to the problem.
When you participate in test prep, exposure to this question style helps you learn how to look at a question and more readily identify the pertinent information, or problem, so that you can process what needs to happen in order to determine the correct answer.
Connecting the Dots
Another element of critical thinking is the ability to connect the dots. Remember, not every piece of information presented to you about a patient in a question on the exam is important, but you do need to be able to extract the data and connect it all together.
For example, consider a question about a patient who has called for emergency services because they have excruciating pain in the leg, and their leg has become discolored. Within the question, there is also mention that the patient had hip surgery a few weeks ago and has been bedridden in every sense.
As a critical thinker, you will be able to make a connection between the patient's lack of mobility and their leg discomfort as a possible indication of a blood flow problem. Test prep helps with this process because for each question, a flowchart, of sorts, is created that highlights how the data listed in each question is related so that you know how to better approach each question.
If you are beginning to prepare to complete your EMT test, do not overlook the benefit that test prep can afford you for both your test and future career.
Contact a local EMT test prep service to learn more.
