NUR 101 HEALTH ASSESSMENT EXAM
1 PRACTICE QUESTIONS
1. A 50-year-old body builder is upset by a letter of denial from his life insurance
company. He is very lean but has gained 2 pounds over the past 6 months. You
personally performed his health assessment and found no problems whatsoever. He
says he is classified as "high risk" because of obesity. What should you do next?
A. Explain that even small amounts of weight gain can classify you as obese.
B. Advise him to increase his aerobic exercise for calorie burning.
C. Measure his waist.
D. Place him on a high-protein, low-fat diet. - correct answerC
1. A 67-year-old retired janitor comes to the clinic with his wife. She brought him in
because she is concerned about his weight loss. He has a history of smoking 3 packs of
cigarettes a day for 30 years, for a total of 90 pack-years. He has noticed a daily cough
for the past several years, which he states is productive of sputum. He came into the
clinic approximately 1 year ago, and at that time his weight was 140 pounds. Today, his
weight is 110 pounds.
Which one of the following questions would be the most important to ask if you suspect
that he has lung cancer?
A. Have you tried to force yourself to vomit after eating a meal?
B. Do you have enough food to eat?
C. Do you have heartburn/indigestion and diarrhea?
D. Have you tried to lose weight? - correct answerD
1. Common or concerning symptoms to inquire about in the General Survey and vital
signs include all of the following except:
A. Fever and chills
B. Cough
C. Changes in weight
D. Fatigue and weakness - correct answerB
1. Jenny is one of your favorite patients who usually shares a joke with you and is nattily
dressed. Today she is dressed in old jeans, lacks makeup, and avoids eye contact. To
what do you attribute these changes?
A. She is running into financial difficulty.
B. She is lacking sleep.
C. She is fatigued from work.
D. She is depressed. - correct answerD
1. Mr. Mosley has shortness of breath that has persisted for the past 10 days; it is worse
with activity and relieved by rest. What type of data is this? - correct answerSubjective
, 1. Mrs. Brody has brought his 16-year-old daughter, Mandy, for a school sports physical
exam. Mandy's height is 65 inches, and she weighs 126 lbs. Mrs. Brody is concerned
that her daughter is overweight. According to Mandy's BMI, what is your response?
A. Mandy is overweight and needs to take diet pills.
B. Reassure the mother that this is a normal body weight.
C. Refer the patient to a nutritionist and psychologist because the patient is anorexic.
D. Give the patient information about exercise and reduction of fat cholesterol in her diet
because she is overweight. - correct answerB - (126 X 700) / (65^2) = 20.9
Body Mass Index (BMI) = (Weight (lbs) x 700)/(height (inches)^2)
- Underweight: BMI < 18.5
- Normal: BMI 18.5-24.9
- Overweight: BMI 25.0-29.9
- Obesity I: BMI 30.0-34.9
- Obesity II: BMI 35.0-39.9
- Extreme Obesity III: BMI ≥ 40
1. When you enter the patient's examination room, his wife is waiting there with him.
Which of the following is most appropriate?
A. Ask if it is okay to carry out the visit with both people in the room.
B. Carry on as you would ordinarily. The permission is implied because his wife is in
the room with him.
C. Ask his wife to leave the room for reasons of confidentiality.
D. First ask his wife what she thinks is going on. - correct answerA
1. You are beginning the examination of a patient. All of the following areas are
important to observe as part of the General Survey except:
A. Dress, grooming, and personal hygiene
B. Level of consciousness
C. Blood pressure
D. Signs of distress - correct answerC
1. You are beginning the examination of the skin on a 25 year old teacher.
You have previously elicited that she came to the office for evaluation of fatigue,
weight gain, and hair loss.
You strongly suspect that she has hypothyroidism.
What is the expected moisture and texture of the skin of a patient with hypothyroidism?
A. Moist and smooth
B. Moist and rough
C. Dry and smooth
D. Dry and rough - correct answerD
1. You are seeing an older patient who has not had medical care for many years. Her
vital signs taken by your office staff are: T 37.2, HR 78, BP 118/92, and RR 14, and she
denies pain. You notice that she has some hypertensive changes in her retinas and you
1 PRACTICE QUESTIONS
1. A 50-year-old body builder is upset by a letter of denial from his life insurance
company. He is very lean but has gained 2 pounds over the past 6 months. You
personally performed his health assessment and found no problems whatsoever. He
says he is classified as "high risk" because of obesity. What should you do next?
A. Explain that even small amounts of weight gain can classify you as obese.
B. Advise him to increase his aerobic exercise for calorie burning.
C. Measure his waist.
D. Place him on a high-protein, low-fat diet. - correct answerC
1. A 67-year-old retired janitor comes to the clinic with his wife. She brought him in
because she is concerned about his weight loss. He has a history of smoking 3 packs of
cigarettes a day for 30 years, for a total of 90 pack-years. He has noticed a daily cough
for the past several years, which he states is productive of sputum. He came into the
clinic approximately 1 year ago, and at that time his weight was 140 pounds. Today, his
weight is 110 pounds.
Which one of the following questions would be the most important to ask if you suspect
that he has lung cancer?
A. Have you tried to force yourself to vomit after eating a meal?
B. Do you have enough food to eat?
C. Do you have heartburn/indigestion and diarrhea?
D. Have you tried to lose weight? - correct answerD
1. Common or concerning symptoms to inquire about in the General Survey and vital
signs include all of the following except:
A. Fever and chills
B. Cough
C. Changes in weight
D. Fatigue and weakness - correct answerB
1. Jenny is one of your favorite patients who usually shares a joke with you and is nattily
dressed. Today she is dressed in old jeans, lacks makeup, and avoids eye contact. To
what do you attribute these changes?
A. She is running into financial difficulty.
B. She is lacking sleep.
C. She is fatigued from work.
D. She is depressed. - correct answerD
1. Mr. Mosley has shortness of breath that has persisted for the past 10 days; it is worse
with activity and relieved by rest. What type of data is this? - correct answerSubjective
, 1. Mrs. Brody has brought his 16-year-old daughter, Mandy, for a school sports physical
exam. Mandy's height is 65 inches, and she weighs 126 lbs. Mrs. Brody is concerned
that her daughter is overweight. According to Mandy's BMI, what is your response?
A. Mandy is overweight and needs to take diet pills.
B. Reassure the mother that this is a normal body weight.
C. Refer the patient to a nutritionist and psychologist because the patient is anorexic.
D. Give the patient information about exercise and reduction of fat cholesterol in her diet
because she is overweight. - correct answerB - (126 X 700) / (65^2) = 20.9
Body Mass Index (BMI) = (Weight (lbs) x 700)/(height (inches)^2)
- Underweight: BMI < 18.5
- Normal: BMI 18.5-24.9
- Overweight: BMI 25.0-29.9
- Obesity I: BMI 30.0-34.9
- Obesity II: BMI 35.0-39.9
- Extreme Obesity III: BMI ≥ 40
1. When you enter the patient's examination room, his wife is waiting there with him.
Which of the following is most appropriate?
A. Ask if it is okay to carry out the visit with both people in the room.
B. Carry on as you would ordinarily. The permission is implied because his wife is in
the room with him.
C. Ask his wife to leave the room for reasons of confidentiality.
D. First ask his wife what she thinks is going on. - correct answerA
1. You are beginning the examination of a patient. All of the following areas are
important to observe as part of the General Survey except:
A. Dress, grooming, and personal hygiene
B. Level of consciousness
C. Blood pressure
D. Signs of distress - correct answerC
1. You are beginning the examination of the skin on a 25 year old teacher.
You have previously elicited that she came to the office for evaluation of fatigue,
weight gain, and hair loss.
You strongly suspect that she has hypothyroidism.
What is the expected moisture and texture of the skin of a patient with hypothyroidism?
A. Moist and smooth
B. Moist and rough
C. Dry and smooth
D. Dry and rough - correct answerD
1. You are seeing an older patient who has not had medical care for many years. Her
vital signs taken by your office staff are: T 37.2, HR 78, BP 118/92, and RR 14, and she
denies pain. You notice that she has some hypertensive changes in her retinas and you
