Chapter 03: Health History and Physical Examination

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. Question: A patient who is actively bleeding is admitted to the emergency department. Which approach is best for the nurse to use to obtain a health history?
2. Question: During the health history interview, a patient tells the nurse about periodic fainting spells. Which question by the nurse will best elicit any associated clinical manifestations?
3. Question: Immediate surgery is planned for a patient with acute abdominal pain. Which question by the nurse will elicit the most complete information about the patients coping-stress tolerance pattern?
4. Question: The nurse records the following general survey of a patient: The patient is a 50-year-old Asian female attended by her husband and two daughters. Alert and oriented. Does not make eye contact with the nurse and responds slowly, but appropriately, to questions. No apparent disabilities or distinguishing features. What additional information should the nurse add to this general survey?
5. Question: A nurse performs a health history and physical examination with a patient who has a right leg fracture. Which assessment would be a pertinent negative finding?
6. Question: The nurse who is assessing an older adult with rectal bleeding asks, Have you ever had a colonoscopy? The nurse is performing what type of assessment?
7. Question: The nurse is preparing to perform a focused assessment for a patient complaining of shortness of breath. Which equipment will be needed?
8. Question: The nurse plans to complete a physical examination of an alert, older patient. Which adaptations to the examination technique should the nurse include?
9. Question: While the nurse is taking the health history, a patient states, My mother and sister both had double mastectomies and were unable to be very active for weeks. Which functional health pattern is represented by this patients statement?
10. Question: A patient is seen in the emergency department with severe abdominal pain and hypotension. Which type of assessment should the nurse do at this time?
11. Question: The registered nurse (RN) cares for a patient who was admitted a few hours previously with back pain after falling. Which action can the RN delegate to unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP)?
12. Question: When assessing for formation of a possible blood clot in the lower leg of a patient, which action should the nurse take first?
13. Question: When assessing a patients abdomen during the admission assessment, which action should the nurse take first?
14. Question: When admitting a patient who has just arrived on the unit with a severe headache, what should the nurse do first?

OTHER

1. Question: In what order will the nurse perform these actions when doing a physical assessment for a patient admitted with abdominal pain? (Put a comma and a space between each answer choice [A, B, C, D].)