What is the first priority in any medical patient assessment?

• A. Scene safety
• B. Check ABCs (airway, breathing, circulation) and perform a rapid assessment
• C. Perform a rapid assessment
• D. Obtain a medical history

Answer: (A)

Scene safety is the first priority because you must protect yourself and bystanders before you can do anything else. If the environment is hazardous—traffic, violence, fire, chemicals, unstable structures—you risk becoming a victim yourself or creating more victims, which makes any assessment or treatment impossible.

Once you’ve determined the scene is safe, you can move on to the rapid primary assessment to identify and address life threats. This involves checking the airway, breathing, and circulation and performing a quick survey to find immediate needs (such as opening a blocked airway, assisting ventilation, controlling severe bleeding, or initiating CPR if needed). Only after these life threats are addressed do you gather history and perform secondary assessments.