NYU ADULT AND ELDER 1 ACTUAL 2026 EXAM QUESTIONS
AND SOLUTIONS RATED A+
✔✔Kyphosis, a change in the musculoskeletal system, leads to:
A. Decreased bone density in the vertebrae and hips.
B. Increased risk for pathological stress fractures in the hips.
C. Changes in the configuration of the spine that affect the lungs and thorax.
D. Calcification of the bony tissues of the long bones such as in the legs and arm. -
✔✔C
This can also affect the ability of the patient to deep breath and cough effectively.
✔✔A 63-year-old patient is retiring from his job at an accounting firm where he was in a
management role for the past 20 years. He has been with the same company for 42
years and was a dedicated employee. His wife is a homemaker. She raised their five
children, babysits for her grandchildren as needed, and belongs to numerous church
committees. What are your major concerns for this patient? (Select all that apply.)
A. The loss of his work role
B. The risk of social isolation
C. A determination if the wife will need to start working
D. How the wife expects household tasks to be divided in the home in retirement
E. The age the patient chose to retire - ✔✔A, D
The psychosocial stresses of retirement are usually related to role changes with a
spouse or within the family and to loss of the work role. Often there are new
expectations of the retired person. This patient is not likely to become socially isolated
because of the size of the family. Whether the wife will have to work is not a major
concern at this time, nor is the age of the patient.
✔✔During a home health visit a nurse talks with a patient and his family caregiver about
the patient's medications. The patient has hypertension and renal disease. Which of the
following findings places him at risk for an adverse drug event? (Select all that apply.)
A. Taking two medications for hypertension
B. Taking a total of eight different medications during the day.
C. Having one physician who reviews all medications
D. Patient's health history
E. Involvement of the caregiver in assisting with medication administration - ✔✔B
The patient is at risk for an adverse drug event (ADE) because of polypharmacy and his
history of renal disease, which affects drug excretion. Taking two medications for
hypertension is common. Having one physician review all medications and involving a
family caregiver are desirable and are safety factors for preventing ADEs.
,✔✔You are caring for an 80-year-old man who recently lost his wife. He shares with you
that he has been drinking more than he ever did in the past and feels hopeless without
his wife. He reports that he rarely sees his children and feels isolated and alone. This
patient is at risk for:
A. Dementia.
B. Liver failure.
C. Dehydration.
D. Suicide. - ✔✔D
The patient is sharing that he is depressed. Key concepts include recent loss of his wife,
excessive drinking, hopelessness, and isolation, making him at risk for suicide.
✔✔You are working with an older adult after an acute hospitalization. Your goal is to
help this person be more in touch with time, place, and person. What might you try?
A. Reminiscence
B. Validation therapy
C. Reality orientation
D. Body image interventions - ✔✔C
Reality orientation is a communication technique that can help restore a sense of reality,
improve level of awareness, promote socialization, elevate independent functioning, and
minimize confusion.
✔✔A 71-year-old patient enters the emergency department after falling down stairs in
the home. The nurse is conducting a fall history with the patient and his wife. They live
in a one-level ranch home. He has had diabetes for over 15 years and experiences
some numbness in his feet. He wears bifocal glasses. His blood pressure is stable
around 130/70. The patient does not exercise regularly and complains of weakness in
his legs when climbing stairs. He is alert, oriented, and able to answer questions clearly.
What are the fall risk factors for this patient? (Select all that apply.)
A. Presence of a chronic disease
B. Impaired vision
C. Residence design
D. Blood pressure
E. Leg weakness
F. Exercise history - ✔✔B,E,F
Risk factors for falling include sensory changes such as visual loss, musculoskeletal
conditions affecting mobility (in this case weakness), and deconditioning (from lack of
exercise). The mere presence of a chronic disease is not a risk factor unless it is a
condition such as a neurological disorder that alters mobility or cognitive function. The
,patient's blood pressure is stable, and there is no report of orthostatic hypotension. A
one-floor residence should not pose risks
✔✔While assessing a patient, the nurse observes that the patient's intravenous (IV) line
is not infusing at the ordered rate. The nurse assesses the patient for pain at the IV site,
checks the flow regulator on the tubing, looks to see if the patient is lying on the tubing,
checks the point of connection between the tubing and the IV catheter, and then checks
the condition of the site where the intravenous catheter enters the patient's skin. After
the nurse readjusts the flow rate, the infusion begins at the correct rate. This is an
example of:
A. Inference.
B. Diagnostic reasoning.
C. Competency.
D. Problem solving. - ✔✔D
This is an example of problem solving. The nurse collects information and tries options
until she is able to find a solution to the slowed infusion rate. The focus is on solving the
problem with the patient's IV and not on solving the patient's health problem; thus this is
not the diagnostic reasoning process.
✔✔The nurse sits down to talk with a patient who lost her sister 2 weeks ago. The
patient reports she is unable to sleep, feels very fatigued during the day, and is having
trouble at work. The nurse asks her to clarify the type of trouble. The patient explains
she can't concentrate or even solve simple problems. The nurse records the results of
the assessment, describing the patient as having ineffective coping. This is an example
of:
A. Diagnostic reasoning.
B. Competency.
C. Inference.
D. Problem solving. - ✔✔A
In this example the nurse collects information about the patient, sees patterns in the
data collected, and makes a nursing diagnosis. This is an example of the diagnostic
process.
✔✔A patient on a surgical unit develops sudden shortness of breath and a drop in blood
pressure. The staff respond, but the patient dies 30 minutes later. The manager on the
nursing unit calls the staff involved in the emergency response together. The staff
discusses what occurred over the 30-minute time frame, the actions taken, and whether
other steps should have been implemented. The nurses in this situation are:
A. Problem solving.
B. Showing humility.
C. Conducting reflective practice.
, D. Exercising responsibility. - ✔✔C
Reflective practice is a conscious process of thinking, analyzing, and learning from
previous work situations. The staff may discuss problems that occurred, but in this case
they are reflecting on them to learn for future patient situations.
✔✔A nurse has worked on an oncology unit for 3 years. One patient has become visibly
weaker and states, "I feel funny." The nurse knows how patients often have behavior
changes before developing sepsis when they have cancer. The nurse asks the patient
questions to assess thinking skills and notices the patient shivering. The nurse goes to
the phone, calls the physician, and begins the conversation by saying, "I believe that
your patient is developing sepsis. I want to report symptoms I'm seeing." What
examples of critical thinking concepts does the nurse show? (Select all that apply.)
A. Experience
B. Ethical
C. Analyticity
D. Self-confidence
E. Risk taking - ✔✔C,D
Among critical thinking concepts, the nurse shows analyticity (analyzing information,
gathering additional findings, and sensing a problem), and self-confidence (calling the
physician, which shows trust in his own reasoning). The nurse's experience would have
influenced the familiarity of patient symptoms, but in this text experience is considered a
component of the critical thinking model and not a concept. Acting ethically is a critical
thinking standard
✔✔A nurse who is working on a surgical unit is caring for four different patients. Patient
A will be discharged home and is in need of instruction about wound care. Patients B
and C have returned from the operating room within an hour of each other, and both
require vital signs and monitoring of their intravenous (IV) lines. Patient D is resting
following a visit by physical therapy. Which of the following activities by the nurse
represent(s) use of clinical decision making for groups of patients? (Select all that
apply.)
A. Consider how to involve patient A in deciding whether to involve the family caregiver
in wound care instruction.
B. Think about past experience with patients who develop postoperative complications.
C. Decide which activities can be combined for patients B and C.
D. Carefully gather any assessment information and identify patient problems. - ✔✔C
Considering how to involve patients in decisions and how to combine nursing activities
to be more organized and allow for resolving more than one problem at a time are
examples of clinical decision making for groups of patients. Thinking about past
experience with patients is an example of reflection, an approach to strengthen critical
AND SOLUTIONS RATED A+
✔✔Kyphosis, a change in the musculoskeletal system, leads to:
A. Decreased bone density in the vertebrae and hips.
B. Increased risk for pathological stress fractures in the hips.
C. Changes in the configuration of the spine that affect the lungs and thorax.
D. Calcification of the bony tissues of the long bones such as in the legs and arm. -
✔✔C
This can also affect the ability of the patient to deep breath and cough effectively.
✔✔A 63-year-old patient is retiring from his job at an accounting firm where he was in a
management role for the past 20 years. He has been with the same company for 42
years and was a dedicated employee. His wife is a homemaker. She raised their five
children, babysits for her grandchildren as needed, and belongs to numerous church
committees. What are your major concerns for this patient? (Select all that apply.)
A. The loss of his work role
B. The risk of social isolation
C. A determination if the wife will need to start working
D. How the wife expects household tasks to be divided in the home in retirement
E. The age the patient chose to retire - ✔✔A, D
The psychosocial stresses of retirement are usually related to role changes with a
spouse or within the family and to loss of the work role. Often there are new
expectations of the retired person. This patient is not likely to become socially isolated
because of the size of the family. Whether the wife will have to work is not a major
concern at this time, nor is the age of the patient.
✔✔During a home health visit a nurse talks with a patient and his family caregiver about
the patient's medications. The patient has hypertension and renal disease. Which of the
following findings places him at risk for an adverse drug event? (Select all that apply.)
A. Taking two medications for hypertension
B. Taking a total of eight different medications during the day.
C. Having one physician who reviews all medications
D. Patient's health history
E. Involvement of the caregiver in assisting with medication administration - ✔✔B
The patient is at risk for an adverse drug event (ADE) because of polypharmacy and his
history of renal disease, which affects drug excretion. Taking two medications for
hypertension is common. Having one physician review all medications and involving a
family caregiver are desirable and are safety factors for preventing ADEs.
,✔✔You are caring for an 80-year-old man who recently lost his wife. He shares with you
that he has been drinking more than he ever did in the past and feels hopeless without
his wife. He reports that he rarely sees his children and feels isolated and alone. This
patient is at risk for:
A. Dementia.
B. Liver failure.
C. Dehydration.
D. Suicide. - ✔✔D
The patient is sharing that he is depressed. Key concepts include recent loss of his wife,
excessive drinking, hopelessness, and isolation, making him at risk for suicide.
✔✔You are working with an older adult after an acute hospitalization. Your goal is to
help this person be more in touch with time, place, and person. What might you try?
A. Reminiscence
B. Validation therapy
C. Reality orientation
D. Body image interventions - ✔✔C
Reality orientation is a communication technique that can help restore a sense of reality,
improve level of awareness, promote socialization, elevate independent functioning, and
minimize confusion.
✔✔A 71-year-old patient enters the emergency department after falling down stairs in
the home. The nurse is conducting a fall history with the patient and his wife. They live
in a one-level ranch home. He has had diabetes for over 15 years and experiences
some numbness in his feet. He wears bifocal glasses. His blood pressure is stable
around 130/70. The patient does not exercise regularly and complains of weakness in
his legs when climbing stairs. He is alert, oriented, and able to answer questions clearly.
What are the fall risk factors for this patient? (Select all that apply.)
A. Presence of a chronic disease
B. Impaired vision
C. Residence design
D. Blood pressure
E. Leg weakness
F. Exercise history - ✔✔B,E,F
Risk factors for falling include sensory changes such as visual loss, musculoskeletal
conditions affecting mobility (in this case weakness), and deconditioning (from lack of
exercise). The mere presence of a chronic disease is not a risk factor unless it is a
condition such as a neurological disorder that alters mobility or cognitive function. The
,patient's blood pressure is stable, and there is no report of orthostatic hypotension. A
one-floor residence should not pose risks
✔✔While assessing a patient, the nurse observes that the patient's intravenous (IV) line
is not infusing at the ordered rate. The nurse assesses the patient for pain at the IV site,
checks the flow regulator on the tubing, looks to see if the patient is lying on the tubing,
checks the point of connection between the tubing and the IV catheter, and then checks
the condition of the site where the intravenous catheter enters the patient's skin. After
the nurse readjusts the flow rate, the infusion begins at the correct rate. This is an
example of:
A. Inference.
B. Diagnostic reasoning.
C. Competency.
D. Problem solving. - ✔✔D
This is an example of problem solving. The nurse collects information and tries options
until she is able to find a solution to the slowed infusion rate. The focus is on solving the
problem with the patient's IV and not on solving the patient's health problem; thus this is
not the diagnostic reasoning process.
✔✔The nurse sits down to talk with a patient who lost her sister 2 weeks ago. The
patient reports she is unable to sleep, feels very fatigued during the day, and is having
trouble at work. The nurse asks her to clarify the type of trouble. The patient explains
she can't concentrate or even solve simple problems. The nurse records the results of
the assessment, describing the patient as having ineffective coping. This is an example
of:
A. Diagnostic reasoning.
B. Competency.
C. Inference.
D. Problem solving. - ✔✔A
In this example the nurse collects information about the patient, sees patterns in the
data collected, and makes a nursing diagnosis. This is an example of the diagnostic
process.
✔✔A patient on a surgical unit develops sudden shortness of breath and a drop in blood
pressure. The staff respond, but the patient dies 30 minutes later. The manager on the
nursing unit calls the staff involved in the emergency response together. The staff
discusses what occurred over the 30-minute time frame, the actions taken, and whether
other steps should have been implemented. The nurses in this situation are:
A. Problem solving.
B. Showing humility.
C. Conducting reflective practice.
, D. Exercising responsibility. - ✔✔C
Reflective practice is a conscious process of thinking, analyzing, and learning from
previous work situations. The staff may discuss problems that occurred, but in this case
they are reflecting on them to learn for future patient situations.
✔✔A nurse has worked on an oncology unit for 3 years. One patient has become visibly
weaker and states, "I feel funny." The nurse knows how patients often have behavior
changes before developing sepsis when they have cancer. The nurse asks the patient
questions to assess thinking skills and notices the patient shivering. The nurse goes to
the phone, calls the physician, and begins the conversation by saying, "I believe that
your patient is developing sepsis. I want to report symptoms I'm seeing." What
examples of critical thinking concepts does the nurse show? (Select all that apply.)
A. Experience
B. Ethical
C. Analyticity
D. Self-confidence
E. Risk taking - ✔✔C,D
Among critical thinking concepts, the nurse shows analyticity (analyzing information,
gathering additional findings, and sensing a problem), and self-confidence (calling the
physician, which shows trust in his own reasoning). The nurse's experience would have
influenced the familiarity of patient symptoms, but in this text experience is considered a
component of the critical thinking model and not a concept. Acting ethically is a critical
thinking standard
✔✔A nurse who is working on a surgical unit is caring for four different patients. Patient
A will be discharged home and is in need of instruction about wound care. Patients B
and C have returned from the operating room within an hour of each other, and both
require vital signs and monitoring of their intravenous (IV) lines. Patient D is resting
following a visit by physical therapy. Which of the following activities by the nurse
represent(s) use of clinical decision making for groups of patients? (Select all that
apply.)
A. Consider how to involve patient A in deciding whether to involve the family caregiver
in wound care instruction.
B. Think about past experience with patients who develop postoperative complications.
C. Decide which activities can be combined for patients B and C.
D. Carefully gather any assessment information and identify patient problems. - ✔✔C
Considering how to involve patients in decisions and how to combine nursing activities
to be more organized and allow for resolving more than one problem at a time are
examples of clinical decision making for groups of patients. Thinking about past
experience with patients is an example of reflection, an approach to strengthen critical
