Nursing Expert Q&A

A patient has approximately 6 months to live and asks about a do not resuscitate (DNR) order. Which statements by the nurse give the patient correct information? (Select all that apply.)

A) "You will be resuscitated unless there is a DNR order in the chart."
B) "If you want certain procedures or actions taken or not taken, and you might not be able to tell anyone at the time, you need to complete documents ahead of time that give your health care provider this information."
C) "You will be resuscitated at any time to allow you the longest length of survival."
D) "If you decide you want a DNR order, you will need to talk to your health care provider."
E) "If you travel to another state, your living will should cover your wishes."

The nurse hears a health care provider say to the charge nurse that a certain nurse cannot care for patients because the nurse is stupid and won't follow orders. The health care provider also writes in the patient's medical records that the same nurse, by name, is not to care for any of the patients because of incompetence. Which torts has the health care provider committed? (Select all that apply.)

A) Libel
B) Slander
C) Assault
D) Battery
E) Invasion of privacy

A pediatric oncology nurse floats to an orthopedic trauma unit. Which action should the nurse manager of the orthopedic unit take to enable safe care to be given by this nurse?

A) Provide a complete orientation to the functioning of the entire unit.
B) Determine patient acuity and care the nurse can safely provide.
C) Allow the nurse to choose which mealtime works best.
D) Assign nursing assistive personnel to assist with care.

A 17-year-old patient, dying of heart failure, wants to have organs removed for transplantation after death. Which action by the nurse is correct?

A) Instruct the patient to talk with parents about the desire to donate organs.
B) Notify the health care provider about the patient's desire to donate organs.
C) Prepare the organ donation form for the patient to sign while still oriented.
D) Contact the United Network for Organ Sharing after talking with the patient.

The nurse is caring for a dying patient. Which intervention is considered futile?

A) Giving pain medication for pain
B) Providing oral care every 5 hours
C) Administering the influenza vaccine
D) Supporting lower extremities with pillows

Which action by the nurse indicates a safe and efficient use of social networks?

A) Promotes support for a local health charity
B) Posts a picture of a patient's infected foot
C) Vents about a patient problem at work
D) Friends a patient

A nurse is a member of the ethics committee. Which purposes will the nurse fulfill in this committee? (Select all that apply.)

A) Education
B) Case consultation
C) Purchasing power
D) Direct patient care
E) Policy recommendation

During a severe respiratory epidemic, the local health care organizations decide to give health care workers priority access to ventilators over other members of the community who also need that resource. Which philosophy would give the strongest support for this decision?

A) Deontology
B) Utilitarianism
C) Ethics of care
D) Feminist ethics

A confused patient with a urinary catheter, nasogastric tube, and intravenous line keeps touching these needed items for care. The nurse has tried to explain to the patient that these lines should not be touched, but the patient continues. Which is the best action by the nurse at this time?

A) Apply restraints loosely on the patient's dominant wrist.
B) Notify the health care provider that restraints are needed immediately.
C) Try other approaches to prevent the patient from touching these care items.
D) Allow the patient to pull out lines to prove that the patient needs to be restrained.

A home health nurse notices that a patient's preschool children are often playing on the sidewalk and in the street unsupervised and repeatedly takes them back to the home and talks with the patient, but the situation continues. Which immediate action by the nurse is mandated by law?

A) Contact the appropriate community child protection facility.
B) Tell the parents that the authorities will be contacted shortly.
C) Take pictures of the children to support the overt child abuse.
D) Discuss with both parents about the safety needs of their children.

A nurse must make an ethical decision concerning vulnerable patient populations. Which philosophy of health care ethics would be particularly useful for this nurse?

A) Teleology
B) Deontology
C) Utilitarianism
D) Feminist ethics

A new nurse notes that the health care unit keeps a listing of patient names in a closed book behind the front desk of the nursing station so patients can be located easily. Which action is most appropriate for the nurse to take?

A) Talk with the nurse manager about the listing being a violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) .
B) Use the book as needed while keeping it away from individuals not involved in patient care.
C) Move the book to the upper ledge of the nursing station for easier access.
D) Ask the nurse manager to move the book to a more secluded area.

A newly hired experienced nurse is preparing to change a patient's abdominal dressing and hasn't done it before at this hospital. Which action by the nurse is best?

A) Have another nurse do it so the correct method can be viewed.
B) Change the dressing using the method taught in nursing school.
C) Ask the patient how the dressing change has been recently done.
D) Check the policy and procedure manual for the facility's method.

The nurse values autonomy above all other principles. Which patient assignment will the nurse find most difficult to accept?

A) Older-adult patient who requires dialysis
B) Teenager in labor who requests epidural anesthesia
C) Middle-aged father of three with an advance directive declining life support
D) Family elder who is making the decisions for a young-adult female member

The nurse finds it difficult to care for a patient whose advance directive states that no extraordinary resuscitation measures should be taken. Which step may help the nurse to find resolution in this assignment?

A) Scrutinize personal values.
B) Call for an ethical committee consult.
C) Decline the assignment on religious grounds.
D) Convince the family to challenge the directive.

The nurse questions a health care provider's decision to not tell the patient about a cancer diagnosis. Which ethical principle is the nurse trying to uphold for the patient?

A) Consequentialism
B) Autonomy
C) Fidelity
D) Justice

When professionals work together to solve ethical dilemmas, nurses must examine their own values. What is the best rationale for this step?

A) So fact is separated from opinion
B) So different perspectives are respected
C) So judgmental attitudes can be provoked
D) So the group identifies the one correct solution

Which staff member does the nurse assign to provide morning care for an older-adult patient who requires assistance with activities of daily living?

A) Licensed practical nurse
B) Cardiac monitor technician
C) Nursing assistive personnel (NAP)
D) Another registered nurse on the floor

A nurse is assigned to care for the following patients who all need vital signs taken right now. Which patient is most appropriate for the nurse to delegate vital sign measurement to the nursing assistive personnel (NAP) ?

A) Patient scheduled for a procedure in the nuclear medicine department
B) Patient transferring from the intensive care unit (ICU)
C) Patient returning from a cardiac catheterization
D) Patient returning from hip replacement surgery

The patient's son requests to view documentation in the medical record. What is the nurse's best response to this request?

A) "I'll be happy to get that for you."
B) "You are not allowed to look at it."
C) "You will need your mother's permission."
D) "I cannot let you see the chart without a doctor's order."