HESI 101-HESI RN FUNDAMENTALS

1. When turning an immobile bedridden client without assistance, which action

by the nurse best ensures client safety?

A. Securely grasp the client's arm and leg.

B. Put bed rails up on the side of bed opposite from

the nurse.

C. Correctly position and use a turn sheet.

D. Lower the head of the client's bed slowly.

Rationale:

Because the nurse can only stand on one side of the bed, bed rails should be up on

the opposite side to ensure that the client does not fall out of bed. Option A can

cause client injury to the skin or joint. Options C and D are useful techniques while

turning a client but have less priority in terms of safety than use of the bed rails.

2. The nurse identifies a potential for infection in a client with partial-thickness

(second-degree) and full-thickness (third-degree) burns. What intervention

has the highest priority in decreasing the client's risk of infection?

A. Administration of plasma expanders

B. Use of careful handwashing technique

C. Application of a topical antibacterial cream

D. Limiting visitors to the client with burns

Rationale:

Careful handwashing technique is the single most effective intervention for the

prevention of contamination to all clients. Option A reverses the hypovolemia that

initially accompanies burn trauma but is not related to decreasing the proliferation

of infective organisms. Options C and D are recommended by various burn centers

as possible ways to reduce the chance of infection. Option B is a proven technique

to prevent infection.

 1 / 4

3. The nurse is aware that malnutrition is a common problem among clients

served by a community health clinic for the homeless. Which laboratory

value is the most reliable indicator of chronic protein malnutrition?

A. Low serum albumin level

B. Low serum transferrin level

C. High hemoglobin level

D. High cholesterol level

Rationale:

Long-term protein deficiency is required to cause significantly lowered serum

albumin levels. Albumin is made by the liver only when adequate amounts of

amino acids (from protein breakdown) are available. Albumin has a long half-life,

so acute protein loss does not significantly alter serum levels. Option B is a serum

protein with a half-life of only 8 to 10 days, so it will drop with an acute protein

deficiency. Options C and D are not clinical measures of protein malnutrition.

4. In completing a client's preoperative routine, the nurse finds that the

operative permit is not signed. The client begins to ask more questions about

the surgical procedure. Which action should the nurse take next?

A. Witness the client's signature to the permit.

B. Answer the client's questions about the surgery.

C. Inform the surgeon that the operative permit is

not signed and the client has questions about the

surgery.

D. Reassure the client that the surgeon will answer

any questions before the anesthesia is

administered.

Rationale:

The surgeon should be informed immediately that the permit is not signed. It is the

surgeon's responsibility to explain the procedure to the client and obtain the client's

signature on the permit. Although the nurse can witness an operative permit, the

procedure must first be explained by the health care provider or surgeon, including

answering the client's questions. The client's questions should be addressed before

the permit is signed.

 2 / 4

5. The nurse is assessing several clients prior to surgery. Which factor in a

client's history poses the greatest threat for complications to occur during

surgery?

A. Taking birth control pills for the past 2 years

B. Taking anticoagulants for the past year

C. Recently completing antibiotic therapy

D. Having taken laxatives PRN for the last 6 months

Rationale:

Anticoagulants increase the risk for bleeding during surgery, which can pose a

threat for the development of surgical complications. The health care provider

should be informed that the client is taking these drugs. Although clients who take

birth control pills may be more susceptible to the development of thrombi, such

problems usually occur postoperatively. A client with option C or D is at less of a

surgical risk than with option B.

6. When assisting a client from the bed to a chair, which procedure is best for

the nurse to follow?

A. Place the chair parallel to the bed, with its back

toward the head of the bed and assist the client in

moving to the chair.

B. With the nurse's feet spread apart and knees

aligned with the client's knees, stand and pivot the

client into the chair.

C. Assist the client to a standing position by gently

lifting upward, underneath the axillae.

D. Stand beside the client, place the client's arms

around the nurse's neck, and gently move the

client to the chair.

Rationale:

Option B describes the correct positioning of the nurse and affords the nurse a

wide base of support while stabilizing the client's knees when assisting to a

standing position. The chair should be placed at a 45-degree angle to the bed, with

the back of the chair toward the head of the bed. Clients should never be lifted

under the axillae; this could damage nerves and strain the nurse's back. The client

should be instructed to use the arms of the chair and should never place his or her

 3 / 4

arms around the nurse's neck; this places undue stress on the nurse's neck and back

and increases the risk for a fall.

7.Which step(s) should the nurse take when administering ear drops to an adult

client? (Select all that apply.)

A. Place the client in a side-lying position.

B. Pull the auricle upward and outward.

C. Hold the dropper 6 cm above the ear canal.

D. Place a cotton ball into the inner canal.

E. Pull the auricle down and back.

Rationale:

The correct answers (A and B) are the appropriate administration of ear drops. The

dropper should be held 1 cm (½ inch) above the ear canal (C). A cotton ball should

be placed in the outermost canal (D). The auricle is pulled down and back for a

child younger than 3 years of age, but not an adult (E).

8.The nurse is instructing a client in the proper use of a metered-dose inhaler.

Which instruction should the nurse provide the client to ensure the optimal benefits

from the drug?

A. "Fill your lungs with air through your mouth and

then compress the inhaler."

B. "Compress the inhaler while slowly breathing in

through your mouth."

C. "Compress the inhaler while inhaling quickly

through your nose."

D. "Exhale completely after compressing the inhaler

and then inhale."

Rationale:

The medication should be inhaled through the mouth simultaneously with

compression of the inhaler. This will facilitate the desired destination of the aerosol

medication deep in the lungs for an optimal bronchodilation effect. Options A, C,

and D do not allow for deep lung penetration

Powered by qwivy(www.qwivy.org)

 4 / 4