Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) Practice Exam

You are receiving a radio report from an EMS team en route with a patient suspected of having an acute stroke, but the hospital CT scanner is not operational. What should you do?

1. Divert the patient to a hospital 15 minutes away with CT capabilities

2. Continue to the original hospital

3. Transport the patient to a different facility without CT capabilities

4. Delay transport and wait for the CT scanner to be back online

The correct answer is: Divert the patient to a hospital 15 minutes away with CT capabilities

Diverting the patient to a hospital with CT capabilities is the correct course of action because timely imaging is critical in the management of an acute stroke. The immediate goal in stroke care is to quickly identify the type of stroke—ischemic or hemorrhagic—so that appropriate treatment can be initiated without delay. CT scans are essential for ruling out hemorrhagic stroke and determining eligibility for thrombolytic therapy in ischemic strokes. If the hospital originally intended for transport does not have a functioning CT scanner, the risks of delaying care by proceeding there could result in significant morbidity for the patient. While continuing to the original hospital or waiting for the CT scanner to be repaired may seem like options, they do not prioritize the urgency of stroke intervention. Transporting to a facility without CT capabilities would not provide the necessary diagnostic support either. Therefore, diverting to a nearby hospital with operational CT equipment is the action that aligns best with the standards of acute stroke care.