Which of the following is a primary duty of First Responders?

• A. Stabilize the scene, perform life-saving actions, and provide patient care, triage, transport, and decontamination procedures
• B. Stabilize the scene and perform life-saving actions only
• C. Coordinate shelter management
• D. Direct medical examiner investigations

Answer: (A)

The main duty of a First Responder is to act quickly to preserve life and safety on the scene by ensuring the area is safe, stabilizing victims, providing immediate life-saving care, and handling triage, transport decisions, and decontamination when needed. This full set of actions addresses the urgent needs that arise at the outset of an incident: stopping further harm, keeping patients alive while more advanced care is arranged, sorting patients by how urgently they need care, deciding who to move first, and applying any necessary decontamination in hazardous environments.

Coordinating shelter management goes beyond the immediate medical priority and is typically handled by incident management or public health teams, not the frontline duties of a first responder. Direct medical examiner investigations are specialized post-incident tasks; first responders may preserve the scene and gather basic information, but the formal investigation is conducted by ME personnel.