NR 302 Health Assessment I - Exam 2 Practice Questions 2026
|Chamberlain College
1. When assessing for skin turgor in an older adult, which location is the most
reliable for evaluating dehydration?
A. The back of the hand
B. Under the clavicle
C. The forearm
D. The abdomen
Answer: B
Rationale: Skin turgor is best assessed under the clavicle or on the sternum in older adults
because the skin on the hands and arms often loses elasticity with age, making it less
reliable.
2. A nurse is performing the ABCDE assessment on a mole. What does the ‘D’
stand for?
A. Depth
B. Diameter
C. Density
D. Discoloration
Answer: B
Rationale: In the ABCDE rule for melanoma, D stands for Diameter (greater than 6mm),
while A is Asymmetry, B is Border irregularity, C is Color variation, and E is Evolving.
,3. Which finding is considered normal when inspecting the tympanic membrane
with an otoscope?
A. Amber or yellow color
B. Red and bulging membrane
C. Pearly gray color with a cone of light
D. White cheesy discharge
Answer: C
Rationale: A normal tympanic membrane is pearly gray, translucent, and features a cone of
light reflecting at 5 o’clock (right ear) or 7 o’clock (left ear).
4. To assess for accommodation, the nurse should ask the patient to perform
which action?
A. Follow a moving object through the six cardinal positions of gaze
B. Read the smallest line possible on a Snellen chart
C. Cover one eye and identify when an object enters peripheral vision
D. Focus on a distant object, then shift gaze to a near object
Answer: D
Rationale: Accommodation is tested by asking the patient to shift focus from far to near;
the normal response is pupillary constriction and convergence of the axes of the eyes.
5. During a breast exam, where is the most common site for breast tumors
found?
A. Upper inner quadrant
B. Upper outer quadrant
C. Lower inner quadrant
D. Lower outer quadrant
Answer: B
Rationale: The upper outer quadrant, including the Tail of Spence, is the most common site
for breast tumors.
, 6. When palpating the thyroid gland using the posterior approach, the nurse
should ask the patient to:
A. Tilt the head forward and to the right, then swallow
B. Hyperextend the neck and cough
C. Hold their breath while the nurse palpates
D. Open their mouth and say ‘Ah’
Answer: A
Rationale: To palpate the thyroid posteriorly, the nurse moves behind the patient, tilts the
head slightly forward and to the side being examined, and asks the patient to swallow to
feel the gland move under the fingers.
7. A patient presents with a ‘whispered pectoriloquy’ test where the whispered
‘1-2-3’ is heard clearly and distinctly. This indicates:
A. Normal lung tissue
B. Pneumothorax
C. Lung consolidation (e.g., pneumonia)
D. Emphysema
Answer: C
Rationale: Normally, whispered sounds are faint and muffled. If they are heard clearly, it
suggests consolidation (fluid/solid mass) which transmits sound better than air-filled
lungs.
8. Which breath sound is normally heard over the peripheral lung fields?
A. Bronchial
B. Bronchovesicular
C. Vesicular
D. Tracheal
Answer: C
|Chamberlain College
1. When assessing for skin turgor in an older adult, which location is the most
reliable for evaluating dehydration?
A. The back of the hand
B. Under the clavicle
C. The forearm
D. The abdomen
Answer: B
Rationale: Skin turgor is best assessed under the clavicle or on the sternum in older adults
because the skin on the hands and arms often loses elasticity with age, making it less
reliable.
2. A nurse is performing the ABCDE assessment on a mole. What does the ‘D’
stand for?
A. Depth
B. Diameter
C. Density
D. Discoloration
Answer: B
Rationale: In the ABCDE rule for melanoma, D stands for Diameter (greater than 6mm),
while A is Asymmetry, B is Border irregularity, C is Color variation, and E is Evolving.
,3. Which finding is considered normal when inspecting the tympanic membrane
with an otoscope?
A. Amber or yellow color
B. Red and bulging membrane
C. Pearly gray color with a cone of light
D. White cheesy discharge
Answer: C
Rationale: A normal tympanic membrane is pearly gray, translucent, and features a cone of
light reflecting at 5 o’clock (right ear) or 7 o’clock (left ear).
4. To assess for accommodation, the nurse should ask the patient to perform
which action?
A. Follow a moving object through the six cardinal positions of gaze
B. Read the smallest line possible on a Snellen chart
C. Cover one eye and identify when an object enters peripheral vision
D. Focus on a distant object, then shift gaze to a near object
Answer: D
Rationale: Accommodation is tested by asking the patient to shift focus from far to near;
the normal response is pupillary constriction and convergence of the axes of the eyes.
5. During a breast exam, where is the most common site for breast tumors
found?
A. Upper inner quadrant
B. Upper outer quadrant
C. Lower inner quadrant
D. Lower outer quadrant
Answer: B
Rationale: The upper outer quadrant, including the Tail of Spence, is the most common site
for breast tumors.
, 6. When palpating the thyroid gland using the posterior approach, the nurse
should ask the patient to:
A. Tilt the head forward and to the right, then swallow
B. Hyperextend the neck and cough
C. Hold their breath while the nurse palpates
D. Open their mouth and say ‘Ah’
Answer: A
Rationale: To palpate the thyroid posteriorly, the nurse moves behind the patient, tilts the
head slightly forward and to the side being examined, and asks the patient to swallow to
feel the gland move under the fingers.
7. A patient presents with a ‘whispered pectoriloquy’ test where the whispered
‘1-2-3’ is heard clearly and distinctly. This indicates:
A. Normal lung tissue
B. Pneumothorax
C. Lung consolidation (e.g., pneumonia)
D. Emphysema
Answer: C
Rationale: Normally, whispered sounds are faint and muffled. If they are heard clearly, it
suggests consolidation (fluid/solid mass) which transmits sound better than air-filled
lungs.
8. Which breath sound is normally heard over the peripheral lung fields?
A. Bronchial
B. Bronchovesicular
C. Vesicular
D. Tracheal
Answer: C
