Exam 2: NSG552/ NSG 552 (NEW 2025/
2026 Update) Psychopharmacology Review|
Questions & Answers| Grade A| 100% Correct
(Verified Solutions)- Wilkes
A 19-year-old patient is admitted for the second time in 9 months and is acutely
psychotic with a diagnosis of undifferentiated schizophrenia. The patient sits alone
rubbing her arms and smiling. She tells the nurse her thoughts cause earthquakes,
and that the world is burning. The nurse assesses the primary deficit associated with
the patient's condition as:
a. Social isolation
b. Disturbed thinking
c. Altered mood states
d. Poor impulse - answer-b. Disturbed thinking
A 34-year-old male admitted with catatonic schizophrenia has been mute and
motionless for several days while at home prior to admission. He still appears
stuporous in the hospital. Which nursing intervention would be an initial priority?
a. Orienting the patient to the unit
b. Reinforcing reality with the patient
c. Establishing a nonthreatening relationship
d. Assessing the patient for physical problems - answer-d. Assessing the patient for
physical problems
A 60-year-old woman has been recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, a disease
in which the oligodendrocytes of the patients central nervous system (CNS) are
progressively destroyed. Which physiologic process within the neurologic system is
most likely be affected by this disease process?
A) Oxygen metabolism
B) Neurotransmitter synthesis
C) Nerve conduction
D) Production of cerebrospinal fluid - answer-C) Nerve conduction
A group of nursing students are reviewing the role of serotonin in psychiatric
disorders. The students demonstrate a need for additional study when they identify
which disorder as being associated with its dysfunction?
A) Depression
B) Obsessive-compulsive disorder
C) Panic disorder
D) Schizophrenia - answer-D) Schizophrenia
A group of nursing students are reviewing the various neurotransmitters. The
students demonstrate understanding when they identify which of the following as a
neuropeptide?
A) Melatonin
,B) Serotonin
C) Glutamate
D) Gamma-aminobutyric acid - answer-A) Melatonin
A group of students are reviewing information about neurotransmitter subtypes. The
group demonstrates understanding of the information when they identify which
neurotransmitter as having muscarinic and nicotinic receptors?
A) Serotonin
B) Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)
C) Dopamine
D) Acetylcholine - answer-D) Acetylcholine
A nurse is involved in gathering information about the inheritance of mental disorders
using population genetics. Which of the following would the nurse be least likely to
be evaluating?
A) Concordance rates
B) Occurrence in first-degree relatives
C) Risk factor analysis
D) Adoptions studies - answer-C) Risk factor analysis
A nurse is reading a journal article about psychoneuroimmunology. Which 16.
information would the nurse most likely find? Select all that apply.
A) Neurotoxins role in receptor site damage
B) Hypothalamicpituitarythyroid axis disruption
C) Static activity of natural killer cells in response to stress
D) Hypothalamic damage leading to immune dysfunction
E) Interruption in the typical circadian rhythm cycle - answer-A) Neurotoxins role in
receptor site damage
B) Hypothalamicpituitarythyroid axis disruption
D) Hypothalamic damage leading to immune dysfunction
A nurse is teaching a medication class to a group of psychiatric patients. One of
them asks the nurse why he has so much more trouble learning now when he's in his
60s than he did when he was younger. Which of the following concepts would the
nurse integrate into the response?
A) The extrapyramidal motor system
B) The amygdala
C) Neuroplasticity
D) Psychoneuroimmunology - answer-C) Neuroplasticity
A nursing instructor asks a student to explain the influence of chronobiology on
depression. Which of the following would the student include when responding?
A) The exact location of genes leads to identifying the gene responsible for causing
depression.
B) A break in the corpus coliseum blocks information exchange between the right
and left hemispheres. C) Damage to the posterior areas of the parietal lobe leads to
altered discriminative sensory function.
, D) Internal and external triggers can elicit biologic rhythm changes indicative of
clinical depression. - answer-D) Internal and external triggers can elicit biologic
rhythm changes indicative of clinical depression.
A patient admitted to the mental unit has shown a deficit in providing self- care and
has a medical diagnosis of major depression. The nursing diagnosis for this would
be:
A. Knowledge deficit related to personal choices.
B. Self-care deficit related to impaired ability to provide personal hygiene.
C. Risk for violence related to poor hygiene.
D. Impaired social interaction related to poor hygiene. - answer-B. Self-care deficit
related to impaired ability to provide personal hygiene.
A patient admitted with the diagnosis of schizophreniform disorder R/O organic
pathology. Based on this information, the nurse can expect that the patient will:
a. Be scheduled for a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test
b. See a mental health specialist for extensive psychological testing
c. Have an immunologic assay performed within 2 days of the admission
d. Participate in a dexamethasone suppression test (DST) administered by the staff -
answer-a. Be scheduled for a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test
A male patient becomes verbally aggressive and insists the nurse is poisoning him
as she attempts to administer haloperidol (Haldol). Which action will the nurse take?
a. Support the patients decision to refuse the medication.
b. Discreetly ask an assistant to put the medication in the patients food.
c. Firmly redirect the patient to take the medication.
d. Speak privately with the patient and reinforce medication action. - answer-c.
Firmly redirect the patient to take the medication.
A neuron has been hyperpolarized. How will this affect the excitability of the neuron?
A) The neuron will have a membrane potential farther from the threshold.
B) The neuron will be more difficult to repolarize after firing.
C) The membrane potential of the neuron will be closer to the threshold.
D) The neurons excitability will be significantly increased. - answer-A) The neuron
will have a membrane potential farther from the threshold.
A newly admitted client has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder. Which
nursing diagnosis takes priority?
A. Impaired social interaction
B. Self-esteem deficit
C. Hopelessness
D. Self-care deficit - answer-C. Hopelessness
A newly admitted patient has the diagnosis of catatonic schizophrenia. Which
behavior observed in the patient supports that diagnosis?
a. Uses a rhyming form of speech
b. Refuses to eat any unwrapped foods
c. Laughs when watching a sad movie
2026 Update) Psychopharmacology Review|
Questions & Answers| Grade A| 100% Correct
(Verified Solutions)- Wilkes
A 19-year-old patient is admitted for the second time in 9 months and is acutely
psychotic with a diagnosis of undifferentiated schizophrenia. The patient sits alone
rubbing her arms and smiling. She tells the nurse her thoughts cause earthquakes,
and that the world is burning. The nurse assesses the primary deficit associated with
the patient's condition as:
a. Social isolation
b. Disturbed thinking
c. Altered mood states
d. Poor impulse - answer-b. Disturbed thinking
A 34-year-old male admitted with catatonic schizophrenia has been mute and
motionless for several days while at home prior to admission. He still appears
stuporous in the hospital. Which nursing intervention would be an initial priority?
a. Orienting the patient to the unit
b. Reinforcing reality with the patient
c. Establishing a nonthreatening relationship
d. Assessing the patient for physical problems - answer-d. Assessing the patient for
physical problems
A 60-year-old woman has been recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, a disease
in which the oligodendrocytes of the patients central nervous system (CNS) are
progressively destroyed. Which physiologic process within the neurologic system is
most likely be affected by this disease process?
A) Oxygen metabolism
B) Neurotransmitter synthesis
C) Nerve conduction
D) Production of cerebrospinal fluid - answer-C) Nerve conduction
A group of nursing students are reviewing the role of serotonin in psychiatric
disorders. The students demonstrate a need for additional study when they identify
which disorder as being associated with its dysfunction?
A) Depression
B) Obsessive-compulsive disorder
C) Panic disorder
D) Schizophrenia - answer-D) Schizophrenia
A group of nursing students are reviewing the various neurotransmitters. The
students demonstrate understanding when they identify which of the following as a
neuropeptide?
A) Melatonin
,B) Serotonin
C) Glutamate
D) Gamma-aminobutyric acid - answer-A) Melatonin
A group of students are reviewing information about neurotransmitter subtypes. The
group demonstrates understanding of the information when they identify which
neurotransmitter as having muscarinic and nicotinic receptors?
A) Serotonin
B) Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)
C) Dopamine
D) Acetylcholine - answer-D) Acetylcholine
A nurse is involved in gathering information about the inheritance of mental disorders
using population genetics. Which of the following would the nurse be least likely to
be evaluating?
A) Concordance rates
B) Occurrence in first-degree relatives
C) Risk factor analysis
D) Adoptions studies - answer-C) Risk factor analysis
A nurse is reading a journal article about psychoneuroimmunology. Which 16.
information would the nurse most likely find? Select all that apply.
A) Neurotoxins role in receptor site damage
B) Hypothalamicpituitarythyroid axis disruption
C) Static activity of natural killer cells in response to stress
D) Hypothalamic damage leading to immune dysfunction
E) Interruption in the typical circadian rhythm cycle - answer-A) Neurotoxins role in
receptor site damage
B) Hypothalamicpituitarythyroid axis disruption
D) Hypothalamic damage leading to immune dysfunction
A nurse is teaching a medication class to a group of psychiatric patients. One of
them asks the nurse why he has so much more trouble learning now when he's in his
60s than he did when he was younger. Which of the following concepts would the
nurse integrate into the response?
A) The extrapyramidal motor system
B) The amygdala
C) Neuroplasticity
D) Psychoneuroimmunology - answer-C) Neuroplasticity
A nursing instructor asks a student to explain the influence of chronobiology on
depression. Which of the following would the student include when responding?
A) The exact location of genes leads to identifying the gene responsible for causing
depression.
B) A break in the corpus coliseum blocks information exchange between the right
and left hemispheres. C) Damage to the posterior areas of the parietal lobe leads to
altered discriminative sensory function.
, D) Internal and external triggers can elicit biologic rhythm changes indicative of
clinical depression. - answer-D) Internal and external triggers can elicit biologic
rhythm changes indicative of clinical depression.
A patient admitted to the mental unit has shown a deficit in providing self- care and
has a medical diagnosis of major depression. The nursing diagnosis for this would
be:
A. Knowledge deficit related to personal choices.
B. Self-care deficit related to impaired ability to provide personal hygiene.
C. Risk for violence related to poor hygiene.
D. Impaired social interaction related to poor hygiene. - answer-B. Self-care deficit
related to impaired ability to provide personal hygiene.
A patient admitted with the diagnosis of schizophreniform disorder R/O organic
pathology. Based on this information, the nurse can expect that the patient will:
a. Be scheduled for a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test
b. See a mental health specialist for extensive psychological testing
c. Have an immunologic assay performed within 2 days of the admission
d. Participate in a dexamethasone suppression test (DST) administered by the staff -
answer-a. Be scheduled for a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test
A male patient becomes verbally aggressive and insists the nurse is poisoning him
as she attempts to administer haloperidol (Haldol). Which action will the nurse take?
a. Support the patients decision to refuse the medication.
b. Discreetly ask an assistant to put the medication in the patients food.
c. Firmly redirect the patient to take the medication.
d. Speak privately with the patient and reinforce medication action. - answer-c.
Firmly redirect the patient to take the medication.
A neuron has been hyperpolarized. How will this affect the excitability of the neuron?
A) The neuron will have a membrane potential farther from the threshold.
B) The neuron will be more difficult to repolarize after firing.
C) The membrane potential of the neuron will be closer to the threshold.
D) The neurons excitability will be significantly increased. - answer-A) The neuron
will have a membrane potential farther from the threshold.
A newly admitted client has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder. Which
nursing diagnosis takes priority?
A. Impaired social interaction
B. Self-esteem deficit
C. Hopelessness
D. Self-care deficit - answer-C. Hopelessness
A newly admitted patient has the diagnosis of catatonic schizophrenia. Which
behavior observed in the patient supports that diagnosis?
a. Uses a rhyming form of speech
b. Refuses to eat any unwrapped foods
c. Laughs when watching a sad movie
