Nursing Elites

1. A nurse recognizes which of the following as a primary goal of nursing?

• A. Assist patients to achieve a peaceful death.
• B. Improve personal knowledge and skills to enhance patient outcomes.
• C. Advocate for quality of life over the quantity of life.
• D. Work to control costs to enhance patients' quality of life.

Correct answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: 'Assist patients to achieve a peaceful death.' One of the primary goals of nursing is to help patients experience a comfortable and peaceful passing when faced with terminal illness or at the end of life. This involves providing holistic care, managing symptoms, and ensuring that patients are as comfortable and pain-free as possible. Choices B, C, and D are incorrect because while improving knowledge and skills, advocating for quality of life, and controlling costs are important aspects of nursing care, they are not the primary goal related to end-of-life care.

2. Which of the following is a primary responsibility of a nurse case manager?

• A. Direct patient care
• B. Financial planning
• C. Conduct health education
• D. Coordinate patient transitions

Correct answer: D

Rationale: A primary responsibility of a nurse case manager is to coordinate patient transitions. This involves ensuring smooth transitions between healthcare settings, coordinating care plans, and ensuring continuity of care for patients. While direct patient care, financial planning, and health education are important aspects of healthcare, they are not primary responsibilities of a nurse case manager. Nurse case managers focus on managing and coordinating the overall care and services for patients.

3. After her evaluation, a staff nurse exclaims: 'I'm not sure if my manager knows much about my performance, really. He only had three specific examples to give me, two good performance examples and one to work on, and they all happened in the last month. I don't feel like he can see the whole picture.' What kind of performance appraisal rating does this statement exemplify?

• A. Recency error
• B. Leniency error
• C. Halo error
• D. Absolute judgment

Correct answer: A

Rationale: The statement exemplifies a recency error. Recency error occurs when a manager assesses an employee's performance primarily based on recent events, rather than considering the entire evaluation period. In this case, the staff nurse feels that her manager focused only on recent examples, leading to an incomplete assessment of her overall performance. Choice B, Leniency error, refers to a rater consistently giving high ratings to all employees regardless of performance, which is not evident in this scenario. Choice C, Halo error, involves allowing one positive attribute of an individual to overshadow other characteristics during appraisal, which is not the case here. Absolute judgment, Choice D, is when a rater evaluates an employee without reference to any specific criteria, which is not reflected in the staff nurse's feedback.

4. An RN is writing reminders for good documentation for the nurses on her staff. The purpose is to ensure nursing documentation is legally credible. Which of the following is a recommendation she should include in the reminders?

• A. Use shortcuts in documentation.
• B. Only use approved abbreviations.
• C. Documentation should be subjective.
• D. Document after care is provided.

Correct answer: B

Rationale: The correct recommendation that should be included in the reminders for ensuring legally credible nursing documentation is to 'Only use approved abbreviations.' Using shortcuts in documentation (Choice A) may lead to incomplete or vague information, compromising the credibility of documentation. Documentation should not be subjective (Choice C) but rather objective and based on factual information. While it is important to document after care is provided (Choice D), the immediate documentation following care provision is critical for accuracy and legal credibility.

5. What is the main focus of health literacy initiatives?

• A. To promote the use of medical jargon
• B. To improve patient communication skills
• C. To ensure that patients understand their health information
• D. To reduce the use of electronic health records

Correct answer: C

Rationale: The main focus of health literacy initiatives is to ensure that patients understand their health information. By improving patient comprehension, individuals can make informed decisions about their health, leading to better health outcomes. Promoting the use of medical jargon would have the opposite effect, making health information less accessible. Improving patient communication skills is important but not the primary focus of health literacy initiatives. Electronic health records are tools for managing health information and not directly related to the main goal of health literacy initiatives.

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