NR 509 WEEK 1 EXAM QUESTIONS AND CORRECT DETAILED
ANSWERS WITH RATIONALES (VERIFIED ANSWERS) 2025 LATEST
UPDATED AGRADE
Question 1
After completing an initial assessment on a patient, the nurse has charted that his respirations are
eupneic and his pulse is 58. This type of data would be:
A) Subjective
B) Objective
C) Historical
D) Secondary
E) Inferred
Correct Answer: B) Objective
Rationale: Objective data are those observations and measurements made by the nurse
during the physical examination. Respirations (eupneic means normal breathing) and pulse
rate are quantifiable and observable findings, making them objective data.
Question 2
A patient tells the nurse that he is very nervous, that he is nauseated, and that he "feels hot." This
type of data would be:
A) Objective
B) Subjective
C) Diagnostic
D) Observed
E) Inferred
Correct Answer: B) Subjective
Rationale: Subjective data are what the patient tells the nurse, or symptoms. These are
feelings or statements that can only be elicited from the patient. Nervousness, nausea, and
feeling hot are all internal sensations reported by the patient.
Question 3
The patient's record, laboratory studies, objective data, and subjective data combine to form the:
A) Care plan
B) Medical diagnosis
C) Data base
D) Nursing history
E) Progress notes
Correct Answer: C) Data base
Rationale: The database in the nursing process refers to all subjective data (what the person
says), objective data (what the nurse observes), the patient's record, and results from
laboratory and diagnostic studies. This comprehensive collection of information forms the
basis for nursing diagnoses and the plan of care.
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Question 4
When listening to a patient's breath sounds, the nurse is unsure about a sound that is heard. The
nurse's next action should be to:
A) Document the finding as "unclear."
B) Consult a textbook for clarification.
C) Validate the data by asking a coworker to listen to the breath sounds.
D) Ignore the sound if it is not heard again immediately.
E) Reassure the patient that everything is normal.
Correct Answer: C) Validate the data by asking a coworker to listen to the breath sounds
Rationale: When a nurse is unsure about an assessment finding, especially a critical one like
breath sounds, the best course of action is to validate the data. Asking a more experienced
coworker or another licensed professional to independently assess the finding helps confirm
or clarify the observation, ensuring accuracy and patient safety.
Question 5
The nurse is conducting a class for new graduate nurses. During the teaching session, the nurse
should keep in mind that novice nurses, without a background of skills and experience to draw
from, are more likely to make their decisions using:
A) Intuition
B) A set of rules
C) Critical thinking alone
D) Holistic thinking
E) Pattern recognition
Correct Answer: B) A set of rules
Rationale: Novice nurses, as described by Patricia Benner's Stages of Clinical Competence,
typically rely on abstract principles, rules, and guidelines when making clinical decisions.
They lack the extensive experience to recognize patterns or use intuition, which comes with
proficiency and expertise.
Question 6
Expert nurses learn to attend to a pattern of assessment data and act without consciously labeling
it. This is referred to as:
A) Diagnostic reasoning
B) Deductive reasoning
C) Inductive reasoning
D) Intuition
E) Problem-solving
Correct Answer: D) Intuition
Rationale: Expert nurses, through extensive experience, develop a deep understanding of
patient situations. This allows them to recognize subtle patterns, integrate vast amounts of
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information, and make rapid, accurate decisions without always consciously articulating
the underlying thought process. This ability is often referred to as intuition or clinical
judgment.
Question 7
The nurse is reviewing information about evidence-based practice (EBP). Which statement best
reflects evidence-based practice?
A) EBP relies solely on the latest research findings.
B) EBP emphasizes the use of best research evidence, clinical expertise, and patient
values/preferences.
C) EBP is primarily focused on reducing healthcare costs.
D) EBP is only applicable in specialized nursing fields.
E) EBP promotes standardized care for all patients.
Correct Answer: B) EBP emphasizes the use of best research evidence, clinical expertise, and
patient values/preferences.
Rationale: Evidence-based practice is a systematic approach to healthcare that integrates
the best available research evidence with the clinician's expertise, and the patient's unique
values and preferences. It's a triad, not solely reliant on research.
Question 8
The nurse is conducting a class on priority setting for a group of new graduate nurses. Which is
an example of a first-level priority problem?
A) An older adult with a urinary tract infection is also showing signs of confusion.
B) An individual with shortness of breath and respiratory distress.
C) A patient newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus does not know how to check his own
blood glucose levels.
D) A patient who reports mild ankle edema after prolonged standing.
E) A patient expressing anxiety about a planned surgery.
Correct Answer: B) An individual with shortness of breath and respiratory distress.
Rationale: First-level priority problems are immediate, life-threatening problems that
require emergent intervention. Shortness of breath and respiratory distress directly impact
ABCs (Airway, Breathing, Circulation), making them top priority.
Question 9
When considering priority setting of problems, the nurse keeps in mind that second-level
problems include which of these aspects?
A) Airway obstruction.
B) Abnormal laboratory values requiring prompt attention (e.g., hyperkalemia).
C) Lack of knowledge about a new medication.
D) Chronic conditions that are well-managed.
E) Long-term psychological issues.
, [Type here]
Correct Answer: B) Abnormal laboratory values requiring prompt attention (e.g.,
hyperkalemia).
Rationale: Second-level priority problems are those that are acute, require prompt
intervention to prevent further deterioration, but are not immediately life-threatening.
Examples include abnormal laboratory values (like hyperkalemia, which can lead to
cardiac arrhythmias), acute pain, or untreated infections. Confusion in an older adult with
a UTI is also a second-level problem.
Question 10
Which critical thinking skill helps the nurse to see relationships among the data?
A) Validation
B) Setting priorities
C) Clustering
D) Identifying assumptions
E) Evaluating outcomes
Correct Answer: C) Clustering
Rationale: Clustering (or grouping) related cues is a critical thinking skill in nursing that
involves organizing and interpreting the collected data. It helps the nurse to identify
patterns, make connections between symptoms, and draw conclusions that lead to a
nursing diagnosis.
Question 11
The nurse knows that developing appropriate nursing interventions for a patient relies on the
appropriateness of the _____ diagnosis.
A) Medical
B) Collaborative
C) Medical (again, if typo)
D) Nursing
E) Physician's
Correct Answer: D) Nursing
Rationale: Nursing diagnoses are clinical judgments about individual, family, or community
responses to actual or potential health problems or life processes. Nursing interventions are
then directly planned and implemented to address these nursing diagnoses, focusing on the
patient's response to their health state.
Question 12
The nursing process is a sequential method of problem-solving that nurses use and includes
which steps?
A) Evaluation, planning, assessment, diagnosis, implementation, outcome identification.
B) Assessment, diagnosis, outcome identification, planning, implementation, evaluation.
C) Diagnosis, assessment, planning, outcome identification, implementation, evaluation.
ANSWERS WITH RATIONALES (VERIFIED ANSWERS) 2025 LATEST
UPDATED AGRADE
Question 1
After completing an initial assessment on a patient, the nurse has charted that his respirations are
eupneic and his pulse is 58. This type of data would be:
A) Subjective
B) Objective
C) Historical
D) Secondary
E) Inferred
Correct Answer: B) Objective
Rationale: Objective data are those observations and measurements made by the nurse
during the physical examination. Respirations (eupneic means normal breathing) and pulse
rate are quantifiable and observable findings, making them objective data.
Question 2
A patient tells the nurse that he is very nervous, that he is nauseated, and that he "feels hot." This
type of data would be:
A) Objective
B) Subjective
C) Diagnostic
D) Observed
E) Inferred
Correct Answer: B) Subjective
Rationale: Subjective data are what the patient tells the nurse, or symptoms. These are
feelings or statements that can only be elicited from the patient. Nervousness, nausea, and
feeling hot are all internal sensations reported by the patient.
Question 3
The patient's record, laboratory studies, objective data, and subjective data combine to form the:
A) Care plan
B) Medical diagnosis
C) Data base
D) Nursing history
E) Progress notes
Correct Answer: C) Data base
Rationale: The database in the nursing process refers to all subjective data (what the person
says), objective data (what the nurse observes), the patient's record, and results from
laboratory and diagnostic studies. This comprehensive collection of information forms the
basis for nursing diagnoses and the plan of care.
,[Type here]
Question 4
When listening to a patient's breath sounds, the nurse is unsure about a sound that is heard. The
nurse's next action should be to:
A) Document the finding as "unclear."
B) Consult a textbook for clarification.
C) Validate the data by asking a coworker to listen to the breath sounds.
D) Ignore the sound if it is not heard again immediately.
E) Reassure the patient that everything is normal.
Correct Answer: C) Validate the data by asking a coworker to listen to the breath sounds
Rationale: When a nurse is unsure about an assessment finding, especially a critical one like
breath sounds, the best course of action is to validate the data. Asking a more experienced
coworker or another licensed professional to independently assess the finding helps confirm
or clarify the observation, ensuring accuracy and patient safety.
Question 5
The nurse is conducting a class for new graduate nurses. During the teaching session, the nurse
should keep in mind that novice nurses, without a background of skills and experience to draw
from, are more likely to make their decisions using:
A) Intuition
B) A set of rules
C) Critical thinking alone
D) Holistic thinking
E) Pattern recognition
Correct Answer: B) A set of rules
Rationale: Novice nurses, as described by Patricia Benner's Stages of Clinical Competence,
typically rely on abstract principles, rules, and guidelines when making clinical decisions.
They lack the extensive experience to recognize patterns or use intuition, which comes with
proficiency and expertise.
Question 6
Expert nurses learn to attend to a pattern of assessment data and act without consciously labeling
it. This is referred to as:
A) Diagnostic reasoning
B) Deductive reasoning
C) Inductive reasoning
D) Intuition
E) Problem-solving
Correct Answer: D) Intuition
Rationale: Expert nurses, through extensive experience, develop a deep understanding of
patient situations. This allows them to recognize subtle patterns, integrate vast amounts of
,[Type here]
information, and make rapid, accurate decisions without always consciously articulating
the underlying thought process. This ability is often referred to as intuition or clinical
judgment.
Question 7
The nurse is reviewing information about evidence-based practice (EBP). Which statement best
reflects evidence-based practice?
A) EBP relies solely on the latest research findings.
B) EBP emphasizes the use of best research evidence, clinical expertise, and patient
values/preferences.
C) EBP is primarily focused on reducing healthcare costs.
D) EBP is only applicable in specialized nursing fields.
E) EBP promotes standardized care for all patients.
Correct Answer: B) EBP emphasizes the use of best research evidence, clinical expertise, and
patient values/preferences.
Rationale: Evidence-based practice is a systematic approach to healthcare that integrates
the best available research evidence with the clinician's expertise, and the patient's unique
values and preferences. It's a triad, not solely reliant on research.
Question 8
The nurse is conducting a class on priority setting for a group of new graduate nurses. Which is
an example of a first-level priority problem?
A) An older adult with a urinary tract infection is also showing signs of confusion.
B) An individual with shortness of breath and respiratory distress.
C) A patient newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus does not know how to check his own
blood glucose levels.
D) A patient who reports mild ankle edema after prolonged standing.
E) A patient expressing anxiety about a planned surgery.
Correct Answer: B) An individual with shortness of breath and respiratory distress.
Rationale: First-level priority problems are immediate, life-threatening problems that
require emergent intervention. Shortness of breath and respiratory distress directly impact
ABCs (Airway, Breathing, Circulation), making them top priority.
Question 9
When considering priority setting of problems, the nurse keeps in mind that second-level
problems include which of these aspects?
A) Airway obstruction.
B) Abnormal laboratory values requiring prompt attention (e.g., hyperkalemia).
C) Lack of knowledge about a new medication.
D) Chronic conditions that are well-managed.
E) Long-term psychological issues.
, [Type here]
Correct Answer: B) Abnormal laboratory values requiring prompt attention (e.g.,
hyperkalemia).
Rationale: Second-level priority problems are those that are acute, require prompt
intervention to prevent further deterioration, but are not immediately life-threatening.
Examples include abnormal laboratory values (like hyperkalemia, which can lead to
cardiac arrhythmias), acute pain, or untreated infections. Confusion in an older adult with
a UTI is also a second-level problem.
Question 10
Which critical thinking skill helps the nurse to see relationships among the data?
A) Validation
B) Setting priorities
C) Clustering
D) Identifying assumptions
E) Evaluating outcomes
Correct Answer: C) Clustering
Rationale: Clustering (or grouping) related cues is a critical thinking skill in nursing that
involves organizing and interpreting the collected data. It helps the nurse to identify
patterns, make connections between symptoms, and draw conclusions that lead to a
nursing diagnosis.
Question 11
The nurse knows that developing appropriate nursing interventions for a patient relies on the
appropriateness of the _____ diagnosis.
A) Medical
B) Collaborative
C) Medical (again, if typo)
D) Nursing
E) Physician's
Correct Answer: D) Nursing
Rationale: Nursing diagnoses are clinical judgments about individual, family, or community
responses to actual or potential health problems or life processes. Nursing interventions are
then directly planned and implemented to address these nursing diagnoses, focusing on the
patient's response to their health state.
Question 12
The nursing process is a sequential method of problem-solving that nurses use and includes
which steps?
A) Evaluation, planning, assessment, diagnosis, implementation, outcome identification.
B) Assessment, diagnosis, outcome identification, planning, implementation, evaluation.
C) Diagnosis, assessment, planning, outcome identification, implementation, evaluation.
