Which sequence is listed for the Order of Secondary Assessment?

• A. OPQRST-I; SAMPLE; V-FITD
• B. SAMPLE; OPQRST-I; V-FITD
• C. V-FITD; OPQRST-I; SAMPLE
• D. OPQRST-I; V-FITD; SAMPLE

Answer: (A)

In the secondary assessment, you first seek a clear understanding of the patient’s current problem from their own words. Using OPQRST-I helps you quickly capture how the issue began, what provokes or relieves it, the quality and location, how severe it is, and when it started, which guides your focused questions and helps you triage potential causes. After you have that symptom story, you gather a broader medical history with the SAMPLE approach to uncover factors like allergies, medications, past medical history, last oral intake, and events leading up to the incident. This background information can influence treatment decisions and reveal contraindications or risk factors that aren’t evident from symptoms alone. Finally, you collect objective data with vital signs and a focused physical exam to quantify status and corroborate the patient’s report. This order ensures you understand the problem first, fill in essential background context, and then confirm the clinical picture with objective findings. Starting with history or with the objective data first can lead to gaps in understanding or slower, less efficient assessment.