Test Prep

The amount of force exerted against the walls of the artery by the blood is commonly referred to as:

Blood pressure

The normal oral temperature of an adult patient/resident is:

98.6°F

The Nurse Assistant enters Mr. S's room to take his oral temperature and observes that he is drinking a glass of ice water. The Nurse Assistant should:

Request that the patient not eat or drink anything else for 15 minutes and then return to take his temperature

Which of the steps mentioned below should the Nurse Assistant not do as part of taking a rectal temperature for an adult?

Position the patient in the prone position

Which of the following can increase the pulse rate?

Pain

Before using a stethoscope from the nursing unit, the Nurse Assistant should:

Disinfect the entire stethoscope with a strong disinfectant

A patient/resident's diastolic pressure is 104 mm Hg. A high diastolic reading could be serious because it:

Measures the amount of pressure in the arteries when the heart is at rest

Mr. Johnson is a 75 year old, who has a cardiac condition and is experiencing bradycardia. Which pulse rate represents bradycardia?

42 beats per minute

The Nurse Assistant is taking routine vital signs on a patient/resident who is known to have an irregular pulse. The Nurse Assistant should take a:

Radial pulse for one full minute

The radial pulse is the most common site used for routine vital signs. The radial pulse is located on the:

Thumb side of the wrist

When taking a patient's/resident's temperature, pulse, and respirations (TPR), the respiration should be counted after the:

Pulse has been taken, while the fingers remain on the pulse site

Nurse Assistant informs the patient/resident that the respirations will be counted. A respiration is defined as:

One full inhalation and exhalation cycle

A patient/resident has a temperature of 102°F. What can the Nurse Assistant do to assist in lowering the fever without a physician's order?

Encourage the patient/resident to drink cool fluids, if allowed to have oral intake

Which of the following pulse rates and blood pressure readings are within normal range for an adult?

Pulse 72, BP 130/84

Which of the following signs is not associated with a fever?

Decreased pulse

When a patient/resident experiences difficult, painful or labored breathing, it is known as:

Dyspnea

Which one of the following statements about blood pressure is true:

The cuff is inflated 20mm - 30mm above the point where the radial pulse was palpated in the two step procedure

Which of the following pulses is located at the inner side of the elbow?

Brachial

When taking a blood pressure reading, the higher number represents the pressure in the artery at the peak of cardiac contraction. This is called the:

Systolic

When a patient/resident must be in a sitting position to breathe, this is known as:

Orthopnea

When taking a patient's/resident's blood pressure, the Nurse Assistant will need to use a stethoscope and a:

Sphygmomanometer

The Nurse Assistant is preparing to take a patient's/resident's blood pressure. The patient/resident has an IV in the right arm. The Nurse Assistant should:

Take the blood pressure on the left arm

The Nurse Assistant should know that the first sound heard when taking a blood pressure reading is called the:

Systolic pressure

When taking a patient's/resident's vital signs, which of the following should the Nurse Assistant recognize as abnormal?

Pulse 124

Which of the following is the correct order for the Nurse Assistant to use when recording a patient's/resident's vital signs?

Temperature, pulse, and respirations

When the patient/resident returns to his room after a short walk, he reports shortness of breath and tightness in the chest. Which of the following should the Nurse Assistant do FIRST?

Stay with the patient/resident and call for the nurse immediately

When a Nurse Assistant is unable to obtain a patient's/resident's pulse rate:

Take the pulse for a full minute at another location

The Nurse Assistant is taking a patient's/resident's temperature. Which of the following would be a normal axillary temperature reading?

97.6° F (36.4° C)

The Nurse Assistant is taking a patient's/resident's blood pressure. To read systolic pressure a second time, the Nurse Assistant should:

Deflate the cuff completely, wait 1-2 minutes and retake the blood pressure

To take a patient's/resident's pulse, the Nurse Assistant should:

Take the pulse on the thumb side of the wrist