100 Questions Exam – Answers & Rationales

1. A nurse on the evening shift checks a physician's prescriptions and notes that the dose of a prescribed medication is higher than the normal dose. The nurse calls the physician's answering service and is told that the physician is off for the night and will be available in the morning. The nurse should: Call the nursing supervisor Correct Ask the answering service to contact the on-call physician Withhold the medication until the physician can be reached in the morning Administer the medication but consult the physician when he becomes available Rationale: The nurse has a duty to protect the client from harm. A nurse who believes that a physician’s prescription may be in error is responsible for clarifying the prescription before carrying it out. Therefore the nurse would not administer the medication; instead, the nurse would withhold the medication until the dose can be clarified. The nurse would not wait until the next morning to obtain clarification. It is premature to call the nursing supervisor. Test-Taking Strategy: Use the process of elimination and your knowledge of the legal responsibilities of the nurse in regard to medication administration and physician’s prescriptions. Eliminate the options that are comparable or alike in that they avoid clarification of the prescription (administering the medication and holding the medication). To select from the remaining options, note that it is premature to call the nursing supervisor. Also note that the correct option is the only one that clarifies the prescription. Review legal responsibilities in regard to medication prescriptions if you had difficulty with this question. 2. A nurse has assisted a physician in inserting a central venous access device into a client with a diagnosis of severe malnutrition who will be receiving parenteral nutrition (PN). After insertion of the catheter, the nurse immediately plans to: Correct Call the radiography department to obtain a chest x-ray Check the client's blood glucose level to serve as a baseline measurement Hang the prescribed bag of PN and start the infusion at the prescribed rate Infuse normal saline solution through the catheter at a rate of 100 mL/hr to maintain patency Rationale: One major complication associated with central venous catheter placement is pneumothorax, which may result from accidental puncture of the lung. After the catheter has been placed but before it is used for infusions, its placement must be checked with an x-ray. Hanging the prescribed bag of PN and starting the infusion at the prescribed rate and infusing normal saline solution through the catheter at a rate of 100 mL/hr to maintain patency are all incorrect because they could result in the infusion of solution into a lung if a pneumothorax is present. Although the nurse may obtain a blood glucose measurement to serve as a baseline, this action is not the priority. Test-Taking Strategy: Note the strategic word “immediately.” Use the ABCs — airway, breathing, and circulation. Recalling that pneumothorax is a complication of the insertion of this type of catheter will direct you to the correct option. Review care after central venous catheter placement if you have difficulty with this question. 3. A nurse is caring for a client with a cuffed endotracheal tube who is undergoing mechanical ventilation. Which intervention to prevent a tracheoesophageal fistula, a complication of this type of tube, does the nurse implement? Frequent suctioning Correct Maintaining cuff pressure Maintaining mechanical ventilation settings Alternating the use of a cuffed tube with a cuffless tube on a daily basis Rationale: Necrosis of the tracheal wall caused by the cuff of an endotracheal tube can lead to the development of an opening between the posterior trachea and esophagus, a complication known as tracheoesophageal fistula. The fistula allows air to escape into the stomach, resulting in abdominal distention. It also leads to the aspiration of gastric contents. To prevent this complication, the nurse must maintain cuff pressure, monitor the amount of air needed for cuff inflation, and help the client progress to a deflated cuff or cuffless tube as soon as possible as prescribed by the physician. Suctioning should be performed only as needed; frequent suctioning can cause mucosal damage. Maintenance of mechanical ventilation settings ensures that the client is adequately oxygenated, but this intervention is not a measure for the prevention of tracheoesophageal fistula. Alternating the use of a cuffed tube and a cuffless tube on a daily basis is incorrect, because the endotracheal tube would not be removed and replaced on a daily basis. Test-Taking Strategy: Use your knowledge of anatomy and medical terminology to answer this question. A fistula is an artificial opening. The term "tracheoesophageal" indicates "trachea to