SAMPLE QUESTIONS
WITH ANSWER RATIONALE
Mrs. T is an 80-year-old client
admitted to your nursing unit with a diagnosis of weakness, status
post fall. The admission face sheet indicates that she is widowed and
lives alone. As you work through your nursing admission assessment,
which of the following would be the least priority concern?
-
Ask Mrs. T about the details of her
fall.
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Does Mrs. T like to read?
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Ask Mrs. T about her ability to
shop and cook for herself.
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What medications has she been
taking?
(2) Mrs. T's reason for admission is
weakness and a fall. Priority concerns in assessment would be to
identify any intrinsic or extrinsic factors that lead to her fall. Her
interest in reading, although it be important in determining possible
activities to incorporate into her care plan while in the hospital, is a
lesser priority.
In communicating a delegated task to a
nursing assistant (UAP), an example of optimal direction is:
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"Let me know if you see any
signs of a heart attack."
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"Please offer the patient the
bedpan every two hours on the even hours. Let me know the total
urine output at 2:00 p.m."
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"Let me know whether anything
happens with this confused patient. "
-
"Keep an eye on this hallway
while I'm at lunch."
(2) When delegating, the use of specific,
behavioral directions will be most likely to obtain desired results.
All of the following tasks may be delegated to the LPN
except:
-
developing a patient teaching plan regarding
the patient's diet, exercise, and medications.
-
monitoring Mrs. B's blood sugars via accucheck.
-
performing dressing changes in the infected foot.
-
administering the patient's pain medication.
(1) Developing a patient teaching plan is a professional
nursing function that is in the scope of RN responsibilities. RN's may
delegate specific teaching activities to an LPN in order to execute the
plan using the same five rights of delegation. Accuchecks, dressing
changes, and medication administration are tasks within the role of
the LPN (in most states).
On the third day during which you are caring for
Mrs. B., she complains of chills. Checking her temperature, the
nursing assistant comes to you and reports that it is 101.8.
As you assess Mrs. B., you discover that her wound
looks more inflamed, feels hot to touch, and is oozing some
yellow/green drainage. The patient tells you that it's been like that
the last two days. Checking the chart, you see that the LPN who
had done the dressing changes documented a similar appearance two days
ago. Who is responsible?
-
the nursing assistant who checked her temperature.
-
the LPN who did the dressing changes.
-
you are, as the RN.
-
you, as the RN, and the LPN.
(4) Both the RN and the LPN are responsible in this
situation. The LPN who performed the dressing changes did not recognize
signs of infection, and/or if she did, she failed to bring them to the
attention of the RN. As the RN, you are also responsible for the
care that you delegated to this LPN. The RN retains responsibility for
tasks that are delegated and must perform necessary supervision.
Referral to a home care agency requires:
-
a physician's order.
-
a client need for skilled nursing or therapy.
-
consent of the client.
-
all of the above.
(4) Home care referral requires a consenting
client, a client with a skilled nursing or therapy need, and a written
order by a physician.
Informed consent involves all the following requirements
except:
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The client must be capable of making decisions.
-
When informed consent is given, it cannot be
revoked.
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The decision must be made voluntarily without
coercion.
-
The client must understand the potential risks and
benefits that might result from consenting to a procedure.
(2) Informed consent can be revoked by the client at any
time. Choices 1, 3, and 4 are requirements of informed consent.
Which statement is incorrect regarding obtaining
informed consent from a client for a nursing research study?
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An individual participating in a study must give
informed consent to participate in the study.
-
Informed consent for nursing research occurs after
the study begins and can occur any time before study completion.
-
Obtaining informed consent is the responsibility
of the principal investigator.
-
Informed consent must be documented in writing.
(2) Informed consent for participation in research must
occur prior to the initiation of the study or research activity
involving a client. Choices 1, 3, and 4 are true and therefore incorrect
as the answer. Informed consent is required for research participation.
The principal investigator is responsible for obtaining consent from
study subjects, and that consent must be documented in writing.
A post-myocardial infarction client has an order for
cardiac rehabilitation. When discussing this order with the client,
the client responds, "I thought rehab was only for
people who had stokes." The nurse should explain that:
-
rehab involves only physical and occupational
therapy.
-
any service outside an acute care hospital is
termed rehab.
-
rehab is just a term used by insurance companies
for post-hospital care.
-
rehab is any long-term care service for additional
therapy or treatment to assist a client in recovery from an
illness or injury.
(4) Rehabilitation involves many professional
disciplines including nursing, physical therapy, medicine, occupational
therapy, speech therapy, social work, and others. Rehabilitation
services are provided as part of an organized plan to assist a client in
recovering from an illness or injury. Rehabilitation services can be
delivered in a long-term care facility, through a home care agency, or
in an outpatient care setting.
A newly diagnosed 68-year-old diabetic client is being
discharged from the hospital. The home care referral can include all
the following services except:
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a nutritional consult for diet education and
follow-up.
-
a podiatry consult for foot care.
-
a nursing consult for glycemic monitoring
instruction.
-
all of the above.
(2) Foot care for diabetics is an important issue, but
the podiatrist is not usually a member of the home care agency team. A
nurse and a dietician should be on the home care agency team
A 14-year-old first-time mother is going home from the
hospital with her newborn. An appropriate referral for support of this
mother-infant dyad might be:
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a home care agency with maternal-infant services.
-
an adoption agency.
-
Planned Parenthood.
-
a nurse midwife.
(1) Referral to a home care agency with maternal-infant
services for education and initiation of community services is the best
choice. A nurse midwife might be appropriate prior to delivery, but does
not initiate care in the postpartum period. An adoption agency is only a
referral choice if the mother is giving the child up for adoption.
Referral to Planned Parenthood for family-planning services for a
minor child necessitates consent of a parent or guardian.
At 11:00 a.m. a client is brought to the unit from the
Emergency Department for admission. Lying on the transport cart, the
client complains of severe nausea and vomits into an emesis basis. The
client's family is with him. Which action is the most appropriate for
the nurse to take at this time?
-
Help get the client into bed and orient him to the
bed controls.
-
Help get the client into bed and begin to fill out
the detailed admission assessment form.
-
Ask the client whether he has valuables for the
safe.
-
Help get the client into bed, properly positioned
for comfort, and begin focused abdominal assessment targeting his
nausea.
(4) Although the process for admission is an important
one, in this instance the priority for the nurse becomes intervening on
behalf of the client's comfort. After the symptoms are alleviated,
the client can participate in the admission process.
A client comes to the nurses' station asking to read
her chart. The nurse's best response is:
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to supply the chart and answer any questions.
-
to ask the client to wait until the doctor comes.
-
to call the doctor for permission.
-
to ask the client why she wants to read the chart,
write down the reasons, and any questions the client has and pass
them along to the nursing supervisor.
(1) A client legally owns her medical record and should
have access to it. Because the client might not understand some of the
material contained within the chart, a professional should be available
to explain and interpret. The physician should be notified as a courtesy
so that he or she can arrange to participate in the chart review with
the client; however, the physician does not need to give permission for
the chart review. Note: The client must have access to and/or copies of
the medical record on request, but the original documents are the
property of the facility.
A 35-year-old female patient on your hospital unit is
awaiting a liver transplant. All the following statements about organ
donations are true except:
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More than 85% of adult Americans approve of organ
donation.
-
Organ recipients are matched to donors by age and
sex.
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More than 17,000 people were awaiting liver
transplants in 2004.
-
Less than 6,000 liver transplants were performed
in 2003.
(2) Organ recipients and donors are matched for tissue
types and organs needed, but not by age and sex. It is true that more
than 85% of adult Americans approve of organ donation. In 2003, 25,640
persons received organ transplants; liver transplants accounted for
5,671 of these. In 2004, more than 17,000 people were awaiting liver
transplants.
You are the emergency nurse on duty when a young man
is brought in after an auto accident with massive head injuries. You
know that if he is judged to be brain dead, organ donation is
suggested. Which of the following statement is true about organ
donation?
-
The family of a donor is not charged for the
cost of organ donation.
-
Organ donation disfigures the donor and
potentially alters the funeral arrangements.
-
The family is not asked for organ donation when a
client has massive head injuries.
-
The donor's name and personal information is
given to the organ recipient to facilitate communications after
the transplant.
(1) The family or donor's estate is not charged for
organ donation. Organ donation does not disfigure the donor. Funeral
arrangements, such as open caskets, do not have to be altered because
of donation. Often families of clients with massive head injuries
who become brain dead are given the opportunity to donate organs because
the other organs are still functional. The donor's information is
confidential and not communicated to the recipient under normal
circumstances.
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