NUR 2488 Exam Q A Test Bank Mental

NUR 2488 Exam Q & A Test Bank Mental Health Nursing – Rasmussen

Latest 2023 / 2024

Which neurotransmitter has been implicated as playing a part in the decision to commit suicide?

• γ-Aminobutyric acid
• Dopamine
• Serotonin
• Acetylcholine

When working with a patient who may have made a covert reference to suicide, the nurse should do which of the following?

• Be careful not to mention the idea of suicide
• Listen carefully to see whether the patient mentions it a second time
• Ask about the possibility of suicidal thoughts in a covert way
• Ask the patient directly if he or she is thinking of attempting suicide

Nurses should assess the lethality of the patient's plan for suicide. What factor would be irrelevant to that assessment?

• How long the patient has been suicidal
• Whether the plan has specific details
• Whether the method is one that causes death quickly
• Whether the patient has the means to implement the plan 1 / 4

Which of the following suicide interventions has the greatest impact on a patient's safety?

• Educating visitors about potentially dangerous gifts
• Restricting the patient from potentially dangerous areas of the unit.
• One-on-one observation by the staff
• Removal of personal items that might prove harmful

Which of the following are some of the most important characteristics of staff members who work with suicidal patients?

• The ability to be consistently organized
• The ability to teach problem-solving skills
• Warmth and consistency when interacting
• Interview and counselling skills

Since learning that he will have a trial pass yo a new group home tomorrow, Bill's behavior has changed. He has started to pace rapidly. He has trouble focusing on anything other than the group home issue and complains that he suddenly feels very nauseated. Which initial nursing response is most appropriate for Bill's level of anxiety?

• "You seem anxious. Would you like to talk about how you are feeling?"
• "If you do no calm down, I will have to give you medicine to calm you"
• "Bill, slow down. Listen to me. You are safe. Take a nice, deep breath..."
• "We can delay the visit to the group home if that would help you calm down."

A patient who seems to be angry when his family again fails to visit as promised tells the nurse that he is fine and that the visit was not important to him anyway. When the nurse suggests that perhaps he might be disappointed or even a little angry that the family has again let him down, the patient responds that it is his family who is angry, not him, or else they would have visited. Which of the following defense mechanisms is this patient using to deal with his feelings?

• Rationalization
• Introjection
• Regression
• Dissociation 2 / 4

John a construction worker, is on duty when a wall under construction suddenly falls, crushing a number of co-workers. Shaken initially, he seems to be coping well with the tragedy but later begins to experience tremors, nightmares, and periods during which he feels dumb or detached from his environment. He finds himself frequently thinking about the tragedy and feeling guilty that he was spared while many others died. Which statement about this situation is most accurate?

• John is experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and requires therapy.
• John has acute stress disorder and should be treated with anti-anxiety

medications.

• John is experiencing anxiety and grief and should be monitored for PSTD

symptoms.

• John is experiencing mild anxiety and a normal grief reaction; no intervention is

needed

Various medications are used in the treatment of severe anxiety disorders. Which class of medication used to treat anxiety is potentially addictive?

• Benzodiazepines
• Select serotonin reuptake inhibitors
• Antihistamines
• Nonbenzodiazepine anxiolytics

An older adult in the outpatient internal medicine clinic complains of feeling a sense of dread and fearfulness without apparent cause. It has been growing steadily worse and is to the point that it is interfering with the patient's sleep and volunteer work. After a brief interview and cursory physical exam, the nurse diagnoses the patient with generalized anxiety disorder and suggests a referral to the mental health clinic. Which response by the medical clinic nurse would be the priority response?

• Complete the referral to the mental health clinic.
• Meet with patient's family to discuss treatment options for generalized anxiety

disorder.

• Instruct the client in deep-breathing and basic cognitive-behavioral techniques

for coping with worry.

• Suggest that a battery of blood tests, including a CBC, be ordered and

reviewed. 3 / 4

A person is found in a closet with an empty two-liter bottle of cola taken from the staff refrigerator. The bottle was full but now is empty. Recently, staff have noticed an increase in this person's response to auditory hallucinations and the recent addition of confusion to his symptoms. For the past several days, the person has been seen drinking from the hallway water cooler and taking items from his peer's dinner trays. Which response is most appropriate for decreasing these behaviors?

• Place the person on every-15-minute checks to identify any further deterioration.
• Restrict his access to fluids, and evaluate for water intoxication via daily

weights.

• Attempt to distract the person from excess fluid intake and other bizarre

behavior.

• Request an increase in antipsychotic medication, owing to the worsening of his

psychosis

Which patient statement indicates learned helplessness?

• "I am a horrible person"
• "Everyone in the world is just out to get me"
• "It's all my fault that my husband left me for another woman"
• "I hate myself"

The nurse is planning care for a patient with depression who will be discharged to home soon. What aspect of teaching should be priority on the nurse's discharge plan of care?

• Pharmacological teaching
• Safety risk
• Awareness of symptoms of increasing depression
• The need for interpersonal contact

The nurse is reviewing orders given for a patient with depression. Which order should the nurse question?

• A low starting dose of tricyclic antidepressants.
• An SSRI given initially with an MAOI
• Electroconvulsive therapy to treat suicidal thoughts
• Elavil to address the patient's agitation
• / 4