Exam 1 Sample Questions

1) After completing an initial assessment on a patient, the nurse has charted that his respirations
are eupneic and his pulse is 58. This type of data would be:
A) Objective
B) Reflective
C) Subjective
D) Introspective

Answer: A

Objective data are what the health professional observes by inspecting, percussing, palpating, and
auscultating during the physical exam. Subjective data is what the person says about himself or herself
during history taking. The terms “reflective” and “introspective” are not used to describe data.

2) After a class on culture and ethnicity, the new graduate nurse reflects a correct understanding
of the concept of ethnicity with which statement?
A) “Ethnicity is dynamic and ever-changing”
B) “Ethnicity is the belief in a higher power”
C) Ethnicity pertains to a social group within the social system that claims shared values and
traditions”
D) Ethnicity is learned from birth through the process of language acquisition and socialization”

Answer: C

Ethnicity pertains to a social group within the social system that claims to have variable traits, such as a
common geographic origin, migratory status, religion, race, language, values, traditions, symbols, or
food preferences. “Culture” is dynamic, ever-changing, and learned from birth through the process of
language acquisition and socialization; “religion” is the belief in a higher power.

3) The nurse makes which adjustment in the physical environment in order to promote the success
of the interview?
A) Reduces noise by turning off televisions and radios
B) Reduces the distance between the interviewer and the patient to 2 feet or less
C) Provides a dim light that makes a room cozier and will help the patient relax
D) Arranges seating across a desk or table to allow the patient some personal space

Answer: A

The nurse should reduce noise by turning off the television, radio, and other unnecessary equipment
because multiple stimuli are confusing. The interviewer and patient should be about 4 to 5 feet apart,
the room should be well-lit so that the interviewer and patient can see each other clearly. Having a table
or desk in between the two people creates the idea of a barrier, equal-status seating, at eye level, is
better.
 4) The nurse is preparing to conduct a health history. Which of these statements best describes the
purpose of a health history?
A) To provide an opportunity for interaction between patient and nurse
B) To provide a form for obtaining the patient’s biographic information
C) To document the normal and abnormal findings of a physical assessment
D) To provide a data base of subjective and objective information about the patient’s past and
current health

Answer: D

The purpose of the health history is to collect subjective data – what the person says about himself or
herself. The other options are not correct.

5) When assessing aging adults, the nurse knows that one of the first things that should be
assessed before making judgments about their mental status is:
A) The presence of phobias
B) Their general intelligence
C) The presence of irrational thinking patterns
D) Their sensory-perceptive abilities

Answer: D

Age-related changes in sensory perception can affect mental status. For example, vision loss may result
in apathy, social isolation, and depression. Hearing changes are common in older adults. This problem
produces frustration, suspicion, and social isolation and makes the person look confused.

6) When performing a physical assessment, the technique the nurse will always use first is:
A) Palpation
B) Inspection
C) Percussion
D) Auscultation

Answer: B

The skills required for the physical examination are inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation.
The skills are performed one at a time and in this order (with the exception of the abdominal
assessment, where auscultation takes place before palpation and percussion). The assessment of each
body system begins with inspections. A focused inspection takes time and yields a surprising amount of
information.

7) When measuring a patient’s weight, the nurse keeps in mind which of these guidelines?
A) Always weigh the patient with only his or her undergarments on
B) It does not matter what type of scale is used, as long as the weights are similar from day to
day
 C) The patient may leave on his or her jacket and shoes as long as this is documented next to
the weight
D) Attempt to weigh the patient at approximately the same time of day, if a sequence of
weights is necessary

Answer: D

A standardized balance scale is used to measure weight. The patient should remove his or her shoes and
heavy outer clothing. If a sequence of repeated weights is necessary, then the nurse should aim for
approximately the same time of day and type of clothing worn each time.

8) When evaluating a patient’s pain, the nurse knows that an example of acute pain would be:
A) Arthritic pain
B) Fibromyalgia
C) Kidney stones
D) Low back pain

Answer: C

Acute pain is short-term and dissipates after an injury heals, such as with kidney stones. The other
conditions are examples of chronic pain where the pain continues for 6 months or longer and does not
stop when the injury heals.

9) The nurse is reviewing a patient’s nutritional assessment. Which statement is true concerning
the nutritional assessment?
A) It is only useful in patients who are overweight
B) It identifies patients who are at risk of malnutrition
C) This assessment can only be thoroughly done by a dietician
D) It provides the nurse with physical findings related to all the systems

Answer: B

The purposes of the nutritional assessment are to (1) identify individuals who are malnourished or are at
risk for development of malnutrition, (2) provide data for designing a plan of care that will prevent or
minimize the development of malnutrition, and (3) establish baseline data for evaluating the efficacy of
care.

10) The nurse is bathing an 80-year-old man and notices that his skin is wrinkled, thin, lax, and dry.
This finding would be related to which factor?
A) Increased vascularity of the skin in the elderly
B) Increased numbers of sweat and sebaceous glands in the elderly
C) An increase in elastin and a decrease in subcutaneous fat in the elderly
D) An increased loss of elastin and a decrease in subcutaneous fat in the elderly

Answer: D
An accumulation of factors place the aging person at risk for skin disease and breakdown: the thinning
of the skin, the decrease in vascularity and nutrients, the loss of protective cushioning of the
subcutaneous layer, a lifetime of environmental trauma to skin, the social changes of aging, the
increasingly sedentary lifestyle, and the chance of immobility.

11) A patient is being assessed for range of movement. The nurse asks him to move his arm in
toward the center of his body. This movement is called:
A) Flexion
B) Abduction
C) Adduction
D) Extension

Answer: C

Moving a limb toward the midline of the body is called adduction; abduction is moving a limb away from
the midline of the body. Flexion is bending a limb at a joint; extension is straightening a limb at a joint.