NR 509 / NR509 Advanced Physical Assessment Midterm Exam Questions with Verified Answers - Chamberlain
Consist of 100 multiple choices Questions with Answers
- A 39-year-old nurse who is a well-established patient complains of irregular
menstrual periods and pelvic pain. She says that she is having trouble sleep- ing and asks whether she could be given a "sleeping pill." The patient also says she is thinking of leaving her job. What is the best "next step" in caring for this patient?
- Perform a pelvic examination.
- Obtain a urine sample for testing.
- Obtain a more complete description of problems.
- Obtain blood for testing.
- Ask about recent travel destinations
ANS: c. Obtain a more complete description of problems.
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- A 29-year-old female professional athlete presents to a new primary care
- Structured and clinician-centered with open-ended questions
- Validating and empathetic with open-ended questions
- Dismissive and concrete with open-ended questions
- Affirming and reassuring with close-ended questions
- Factual and structured with active listening
provider with chronic menstrual complaints. She remarks to the nursing staff that, in the past, she has experienced a dismissal of her complaints because of her high level of physical fitness and conditioning. She is seeking a care provider who will explore the issue in more detail and work with her particular concerns. Which of the following is the description of the patient-centered care this individual seeks?
ANS: b. Validating and empathetic with open-ended questions
- A 36-year-old female air traffic controller presents to her primary care
provider for a routine visit 3 months after losing her spouse to a lengthy battle with a neurodegenerative disease. The patient denies any psychiatric symptoms on review of systems and, in fact, states that she has slept better in the last month than she had in the previous years. She endorses a healthy support system, including the extended family of her deceased spouse, with whom she is still close. She becomes wistful and briefly tearful when speaking of the plans that they had when they first married that were never fulfilled; she then changes the subject rapidly to whether her Pap smear is due. Which of the following is an example of an empathetic response to this patient?Joshua 2 / 9
- Assuming that the event caused her to become depressed and expressing
- Recognizing the patient's emotions by asking or confirming how she feels
- By allowing the crying patient to look around the room for tissues to permit
- Presuming that the patient's emotions meet social expectations, such as
the same feeling on behalf of the patient
about the event
her an excuse to hide her face and defer her emotions
being depressed and even trau ANS: b. Recognizing the patient's emotions by asking or confirming how she feels about the event
- A 63-year-old male presents to establish care at a new primary care clinic
to discuss issues with pain and fatigue. The clinician conducting the visit begins with general historical questions but quickly becomes suspicious that
the patient is suffering from decompensated heart failure. When the patient mentions that he has had vague chest pain since last night, the clinician feels that the focus must be redirected to this potentially emergent condition. Which of the following interview techniques is the most appropriate to effectively manage this visit?
- Providing serial reassurances such as, "Don't worry, you're going to be
- Asking a series of negative questions such as, "You don't have any swelling
- Nonverbally cuing the patient to focus on his narrative regarding a motor Joshua 3 / 9
fine."
in your feet, do you?"
vehicle accident
- (MVA) that led to back pain
- Asking leading questions that focus on the presumed diagnosis of chest
pain
f. Moving from open-ended to focused questions: f. Moving from open-ended to
focused questions
- A 59-year-old patient presents to his primary care provider with a history of
several episodes of sharp epigastric pain. His father died of pancreatic cancer at age 52 years, and the patient recalls to the clinician that, "His pain was just like mine is now ..." The patient then pauses several seconds. The clinician replies, "Just like?" after which the patient restarts his narrative. Which of the following is an example of the interviewing techniques employed by the clinician?
- Clarifying
- Echoing
- Encouraging with continuers
- d. Eliciting a graded response
- Asking a leading question
ANS: b. Echoing
- A 14-year-old male presents to a new primary care provider after his family
relocates to a state. The patient underwent treatment for sarcoma when he was age 11 years, including an above-the-knee amputation. He has learned to successfully navigate with a prosthetic leg and even engage in competitive Joshua 4 / 9
athletics at school. He does not like to speak of his experience with cancer and often makes up humorous stories to tell new acquaintances about his amputation (such as, "I got bit by a squirrel and they had to amputate.").Although he is very well engaged in most of the visit with the new clinician, when the topic of cancer arises, he demurs to his father, who accompanies him to this appointment. Which of the following statements is most likely to
be helpful in cementing the patient's trust in the new provider
- "That sounds like a frightening experience that you are recovering well
- "You are becoming an adult and must be able to talk about your health."
- "You need to see a counselor since you have not adjusted well to your new
- "You have recovered well and should start moving on with your life."
- "You cannot rely on your father for support forever."
from."
condition."
ANS: a. "That sounds like a frightening experience that you are recovering well from."
- A 29-year-old electrician complains of persistent cough and wheezing,
particularly when he exercises. He says he smokes "occasionally" but rarely so much that he needs to purchase cigarettes: "Mostly, I bum them," he says, chuckling. Upon hearing this information, what is the best next step on the part of the clinician?
- Determine the patient's exercise regimen.
- Determine the number of pack-years the patient smokes. Joshua 5 / 9
- Conduct a mental status examination.
- Explain the relationship between smoking and cancer.
- Determine the patient's immunization history.
ANS: b. Determine the number of pack-years the patient smokes.
- A 47-year-old fitness trainer visits the physician assistant (PA) because of
skin dryness, night sweats, and irregular menstrual periods. It is the PA's first contact with this patient. The patient notes that "My sex life has really gone downhill lately" and says that she is considering divorcing her husband of 20 years, stating that "He's not a bad guy. I just think that I can do better." In which of the following ways should the clinician proceed?
- Obtain a menstrual history for the previous 6 months.
- Help the patient review the pros and cons of divorce.
- Inform the patient that menopause is a normal part of aging.
- Conduct a breast examination.
- Determine the patient's out-of-country travel history.
ANS: a. Obtain a menstrual history for the previous 6 months.
- One important examination technique involves using the third fingers of
each hand to determine the health of internal organs. What is the name of this technique?
- Auscultation
- Percussion
- Inspection Joshua 6 / 9
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- Palpation
- Listening
ANS: b. Percussion
- A 23-year-old physician assistant (PA) student found that she felt
- Adjust lighting so it is tangential to the patient's body.
- Explain how the examination will proceed.
- Ask the patient where he comes from.
- Explain that she is a PA student.
- Provide ongoing interpretation of findings.
nervous when called upon to examine men in her age group. On one occasion, she encountered a young male patient who appeared embarrassed to see her walk into the room. What should the PA do to minimize their mutual discomfort?
ANS: b. Explain how the examination will proceed.
- A 34-year-old male with a history of complex social and medical needs
(including current substance abuse) presents to a primary care teaching clinic. The patient has experienced a number of adversarial relationships with prior clinicians, including voluntarily leaving two practices within the previous year and being asked to leave care at a third clinic due to misbehavior. The attending physician desires to utilize the approaches to this patient that are most likely lead to comprehensive care and patient compliance. Which of the Joshua 7 / 9
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following is the most appropriate interview style for the attending physician to use?
- Focusing on the need for immediate diagnostic certainty over personal
- Taking charge of the interaction to meet the clinician's desire to acquire
- Following the patient's lead to understand their thoughts, ideas, concerns,
- Deferring respect, empathy, humility, and sensitivity in favor of the acquisi-
- Taking a symptom-focused approach to reduce the involvement of the
connection
diagnostic information
and requests
tion of concrete details about the patient's condition
patient's emotional difficulties
ANS: c. Following the patient's lead to understand their thoughts, ideas, concerns, and requests
- A 17-year-old male presents to a sexually transmitted disease clinic at
the behest of his brother, who convinced the patient to attend the clinic after he disclosed that he prefers homosexual partners but is afraid that his last partner may have given him an infection. The patient expresses to the intake nurse that he is unashamed of his sexual orientation and will not stay through the visit if he feels that he is dismissed or discriminated against because of it. The nurse practitioner receives this communication prior to entering the Joshua 8 / 9
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examination room and decides to employ active listening to best connect with the patient at this critical juncture in his care with the clinic. Which of the following is an example of an active listening technique?
- Ignoring visual cues to focus on the patient's exact words
- Setting aside the patient's emotional state to focus on his medical needs
- Paring down the patient's concerns to concrete medical needs
- Using nonverbal communication to encourage the patient to expand their
- Considering a differential diagnosis while the patient is speaking to maxi-
narrative
mize the patient's time with the provider
ANS: d. Using nonverbal communication to encourage the patient to expand their
narrative
- A 42-year-old female mathematician presents for follow-up care
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regarding a new diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus 6 months ago after a lengthy diagnostic process during which she was debilitated with fatigue and joint pain. Since her diagnosis, she has been minimally compliant with medications and has switched her rheumatology provider twice. She continues to feel ill, and, in explanation for her lack of adherence to the prescribed treatment, she simply says, "I don't like it." At this initial visit with her third rheumatology provider, the clinician elects to explore the issues behind her noncompliance before engaging in diagnostics and treatment using the FIFE model. Which of the following best defines the elements of the Joshua