Graded A – Grand Canyon University
1. Which information would the nurse teach older adults at a
community recreation center about ways to prevent fractures?
Answer: Buy supportive nonskid shoes that are comfortable to wear.
2. A factory line worker has developed repetitive strain injury in the
left elbow. Which topic would the nurse plan to include in patient
teaching?
Answer: Modifying arm movements.
3. Which recommendation would the occupational health nurse
provide to a patient whose job involves many hours of typing?
Answer: Obtain a keyboard pad to support the wrist.
4. Which discharge instruction would the emergency department
nurse include for a patient with a sprained ankle?
Answer: Use pillows to elevate the ankle above the heart.
5. A tennis player has an arthroscopic repair of a rotator cuff injury
performed in same-day surgery. Which information will the nurse
include in postoperative teaching?
Answer: You will begin exercises with a physical therapist tomorrow.
6. The nurse would instruct a patient with a nondisplaced fractured
left radius that the cast will need to remain in place for what amount
of time?
Answer: At least six weeks.
,7. The nurse is caring for a patient who has a pelvic fracture and an
external fixation device. Which method would the nurse use to assess
pressure areas and provide skin care to the patient's back and
sacrum?
Answer: Have the patient lift the back and buttocks using a trapeze bar.
8. Which patient statement indicates understanding of the nurse's
teaching about a new short-arm synthetic cast?
Answer: I will apply an ice pack to the cast over the fracture site off and
on for 24 hours.
9. A patient who is to have no weight bearing on the left leg is learning
to use crutches. Which observation by the nurse indicates the patient
can safely ambulate independently?
Answer: The patient advances the left leg and both crutches together
and then advances the right leg.
10. A patient who had open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) of
left lower leg fractures continues to report severe pain in the leg 15
minutes after receiving the prescribed IV morphine. The nurse
determines pulses are faintly palpable and the foot is cool to the
touch. Which action would the nurse take next?
Answer: Notify the health care provider.
11. A patient with a complex pelvic fracture from a motor vehicle
crash is on bed rest. Which assessment finding indicates a potential
complication of the fracture?
Answer: Abdomen is distended and bowel sounds are absent.
,12. Which action would the nurse take to evaluate the effectiveness of
Buck's traction for a patient who has a fracture of the right femur?
Answer: Assess for hip pain.
13. A patient who has a right lower leg fracture will be discharged
home with an external fixation device in place. Which statement
would the nurse include in discharge teaching?
Answer: Check and clean the pin insertion sites daily.
14. A patient who has had open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF)
of a hip fracture tells the nurse he is ready to get out of bed for the
first time. Which action would the nurse take?
Answer: Check the patient's prescribed weight-bearing status.
15. Which information would the nurse include in discharge teaching
for a patient who has had a repair of a fractured mandible?
Answer: How and when to cut the immobilizing wires.
16. After the health care provider recommends amputation for a
patient who has nonhealing ischemic foot ulcers, the patient tells the
nurse that he would rather die than have an amputation. Which initial
response would the nurse provide?
Answer: Tell me what you know about your options for treatment.
17. The day after having a right below-the-knee amputation, a patient
reports pain in the missing right foot. Which action is most important
for the nurse to take?
Answer: Administer prescribed analgesics.
18. Which statement by a patient who has had an above-the-knee
amputation indicates the nurse's discharge teaching has been
effective?
, Answer: I should lie flat on my abdomen for 30 minutes 3 or 4 times a
day.
19. A patient is to be discharged from the hospital 4 days after
insertion of a femoral head prosthesis using a posterior approach.
Which patient statement to the nurse indicates that additional
teaching is needed?
Answer: I can sleep in any position that is comfortable for me.
20. Which action would the nurse include in the plan of care for a
patient who had a cemented right total knee arthroplasty?
Answer: Start progressive knee exercises to obtain 90-degree flexion.
21. A patient with ulnar drift caused by rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is
scheduled for arthroplasty of several joints in the left hand. Which
patient statement to the nurse indicates a realistic expectation for the
surgery?
Answer: I will be able to use my fingers with more flexibility to grasp
things.
22. Which information would the nurse include in discharge
instructions for a patient with comminuted left forearm fractures and
a long-arm cast?
Answer: Call the health care provider for numbness of the hand.
23. A patient who slipped and fell in the shower at home has a
proximal left humerus fracture immobilized with a sling. Which
intervention would the nurse include in the plan of care?
Answer: Assess the left axilla and change absorbent dressings as
needed.