NSG 3160 Exam | Questions and Answers Latest Updated
(Graded A+) - Galen College of Nursing
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
1. The nurse is assessing a 75-year-old man. What should the nurse expect when performing the
mental status portion of the assessment?
a. Will have no decrease in any of his abilities, including response time.
b. Will have difficulty on tests of remote memory because this ability typically
decreases with age.
c. May take a little longer to respond, but his general knowledge and abilities should
not have declined.
d. Will exhibit a decrease in his response time because of the loss of language and a
decrease in general knowledge.
2. The nurse is preparing to conduct a mental status examination. Which statement is true regarding
the mental status examination?
a. A patient’s family is the best resource for information about the patient’s coping
skills.
b. Gathering mental status information during the health history interview is usually
sufficient.
c. Integrating the mental status examination into the health history interview takes an
enormous amount of extra time.
d. To get a good idea of the patient’s level of functioning, performing a complete
mental status examination is usually necessary.
3. A woman brings her husband to the clinic for an examination. She is particularly worried
because after a recent fall, he seems to have lost a great deal of his memory of recent events.
Which statement reflects the nurse’s best course of action?
a. Perform a complete mental status examination.
b. Refer him to a psychometrician.
c. Plan to integrate the mental status examination into the history and physical
examination.
d. Reassure his wife that memory loss after a physical shock is normal and will soon
subside.
4. A patient has been in the intensive care unit for 10 days. He has just been moved to the medical-
surgical unit, and the admitting nurse is planning to perform a mental status examination. What
should the nurse expect during this patient’s tests of cognitive function?
a. May display some disruption in thought content.
b. Will state, “I am so relieved to be out of intensive care.”
c. Will be oriented to place and person, but the patient may not be certain of the date.
d. May show evidence of some clouding of his level of consciousness.
5. During a mental status examination, the nurse wants to assess a patient’s affect. Which question
the nurse should ask?
a. “How do you feel today?”
b. “Would you please repeat the following words?”
c. “Have these medications had any effect on your pain?”
, d. “Has this pain affected your ability to get dressed by yourself?”
6. The nurse is assessing orientation in a 79-year-old patient. Which of these responses would lead
the nurse to conclude that this patient is oriented?
a. “I know my name is John. I couldn’t tell you where I am. I think it is 2010,
though.”
b. “I know my name is John, but to tell you the truth, I get kind of confused about the
date.”
c. “I know my name is John; I guess I’m at the hospital in Spokane. No, I don’t know
the date.”
d. “I know my name is John. I am at the hospital in Spokane. I couldn’t tell you what
date it is, but I know that it is February of a new year—2010.”
7. A patient drifts off to sleep when she is not being stimulated. The nurse can easily arouse her by
calling her name, but the patient remains drowsy during the conversation. What is the best
description of this patient’s level of consciousness?
a. Lethargic
b. Obtunded
c. Stuporous
d. Semi-coma
8. A patient has had a cerebrovascular accident (stroke). He is trying very hard to scommunicate.
He seems driven to speak and says, “I buy obie get spirding and take my train.” What is the best
description of this patient’s problem?
a. Echolalia
b. Global aphasia
c. Broca’s aphasia
d. Wernicke’s aphasia
9. A woman has come to the clinic to seek help with a substance-abuse problem. She admits to
using cocaine just before arriving. Which of these assessment findings would the nurse expect to
find when examining this woman?
a. Dilated pupils, pacing, and psychomotor agitation
b. Dilated pupils, unsteady gait, and aggressiveness
c. Pupil constriction, lethargy, apathy, and dysphoria
d. Constricted pupils, euphoria, and decreased temperature
10. The nurse is conducting a class on alcohol and the effects of alcohol on the body. What
information about the number of standard drinks (each containing 14 grams of alcohol)
associated with a 32% increase in breast cancer should the nurse include in the class?
a. ? 2.1/day
b. ? 4.2/day
c. ? 8/week
d. ? 15/week
11. During an assessment, the nurse asks a female patient, “How many alcoholic drinks do you have
a week?” Which answer by the patient would indicate at-risk drinking?
a. “I may have one or two drinks a week.”
(Graded A+) - Galen College of Nursing
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
1. The nurse is assessing a 75-year-old man. What should the nurse expect when performing the
mental status portion of the assessment?
a. Will have no decrease in any of his abilities, including response time.
b. Will have difficulty on tests of remote memory because this ability typically
decreases with age.
c. May take a little longer to respond, but his general knowledge and abilities should
not have declined.
d. Will exhibit a decrease in his response time because of the loss of language and a
decrease in general knowledge.
2. The nurse is preparing to conduct a mental status examination. Which statement is true regarding
the mental status examination?
a. A patient’s family is the best resource for information about the patient’s coping
skills.
b. Gathering mental status information during the health history interview is usually
sufficient.
c. Integrating the mental status examination into the health history interview takes an
enormous amount of extra time.
d. To get a good idea of the patient’s level of functioning, performing a complete
mental status examination is usually necessary.
3. A woman brings her husband to the clinic for an examination. She is particularly worried
because after a recent fall, he seems to have lost a great deal of his memory of recent events.
Which statement reflects the nurse’s best course of action?
a. Perform a complete mental status examination.
b. Refer him to a psychometrician.
c. Plan to integrate the mental status examination into the history and physical
examination.
d. Reassure his wife that memory loss after a physical shock is normal and will soon
subside.
4. A patient has been in the intensive care unit for 10 days. He has just been moved to the medical-
surgical unit, and the admitting nurse is planning to perform a mental status examination. What
should the nurse expect during this patient’s tests of cognitive function?
a. May display some disruption in thought content.
b. Will state, “I am so relieved to be out of intensive care.”
c. Will be oriented to place and person, but the patient may not be certain of the date.
d. May show evidence of some clouding of his level of consciousness.
5. During a mental status examination, the nurse wants to assess a patient’s affect. Which question
the nurse should ask?
a. “How do you feel today?”
b. “Would you please repeat the following words?”
c. “Have these medications had any effect on your pain?”
, d. “Has this pain affected your ability to get dressed by yourself?”
6. The nurse is assessing orientation in a 79-year-old patient. Which of these responses would lead
the nurse to conclude that this patient is oriented?
a. “I know my name is John. I couldn’t tell you where I am. I think it is 2010,
though.”
b. “I know my name is John, but to tell you the truth, I get kind of confused about the
date.”
c. “I know my name is John; I guess I’m at the hospital in Spokane. No, I don’t know
the date.”
d. “I know my name is John. I am at the hospital in Spokane. I couldn’t tell you what
date it is, but I know that it is February of a new year—2010.”
7. A patient drifts off to sleep when she is not being stimulated. The nurse can easily arouse her by
calling her name, but the patient remains drowsy during the conversation. What is the best
description of this patient’s level of consciousness?
a. Lethargic
b. Obtunded
c. Stuporous
d. Semi-coma
8. A patient has had a cerebrovascular accident (stroke). He is trying very hard to scommunicate.
He seems driven to speak and says, “I buy obie get spirding and take my train.” What is the best
description of this patient’s problem?
a. Echolalia
b. Global aphasia
c. Broca’s aphasia
d. Wernicke’s aphasia
9. A woman has come to the clinic to seek help with a substance-abuse problem. She admits to
using cocaine just before arriving. Which of these assessment findings would the nurse expect to
find when examining this woman?
a. Dilated pupils, pacing, and psychomotor agitation
b. Dilated pupils, unsteady gait, and aggressiveness
c. Pupil constriction, lethargy, apathy, and dysphoria
d. Constricted pupils, euphoria, and decreased temperature
10. The nurse is conducting a class on alcohol and the effects of alcohol on the body. What
information about the number of standard drinks (each containing 14 grams of alcohol)
associated with a 32% increase in breast cancer should the nurse include in the class?
a. ? 2.1/day
b. ? 4.2/day
c. ? 8/week
d. ? 15/week
11. During an assessment, the nurse asks a female patient, “How many alcoholic drinks do you have
a week?” Which answer by the patient would indicate at-risk drinking?
a. “I may have one or two drinks a week.”
