Chapter 1 (Mental Health and Mental Illness) Flashcards
The quantitative study of the distribution of mental disorders in human populations is called
a. ) mortality.
b. ) prevalence.
c. ) epidemiology.
d. ) clinical epidemiology.
c.) epidemiology.
Epidemiology is the quantitative study of the distribution of mental disorders in human populations.
Mortality refers to deaths.
Prevalence refers to the proportion of a population with a mental disorder at a given time.
Clinical epidemiology deals with what happens to people with illnesses who are seen by providers of care.
Which statement best describes the DSM-5?
a. ) It is a medical psychiatric assessment system.
b. ) It is a compendium of treatment modalities.
c. ) It offers a complete list of nursing diagnoses.
d. ) It suggests common interventions for mental disorders.
a.) It is a medical psychiatric assessment system.
The DSM-5 is a classification of mental disorders that includes descriptions and criteria of diagnoses.
Current information suggests that the most disabling mental disorders are the result of
a. ) biological influences.
b. ) psychological trauma.
c. ) learned ways of behaving.
d. ) faulty patterns of early nurturance.
a.) biological influences.
The biologically influenced illnesses include schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depression, obsessive-compulsive and panic disorders, posttraumatic stress disorder, and autism. Therefore many (but not all) of the most prevalent and disabling mental disorders have been found to have strong biological influences.
Psychological trauma, learned behaviors, and faulty patterns of nurturance may contribute to some forms of mental illness, but they are not major factors in most disabling mental disorders.
A nurse’s identification badge includes the term, “Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse.” A client with a history of paranoia asks, “What does that title mean?” The nurse responds best by answering:
a. ) “Don’t be afraid; it means I’m here to help, not hurt, you.”
b. ) “Psychiatric mental health nurses care for people with mental illnesses.”
c. ) “We have the specialized skills needed to care for those with mental illnesses.”
d. ) “The nurses who work in mental health facilities have that title.”
c.) “We have the specialized skills needed to care for those with mental illnesses.”
A psychiatric mental health nurse has specialized nursing skills and implements the nursing process to manage and deliver nursing care to the mentally ill.
The remaining options either do not effectively answer the client’s question or assume that the question is the result of the client’s paranoia.
Which statement about diagnosis of a mental disorder is true?
a. ) The symptoms of each disorder are common among all cultures.
b. ) Culture may cause variations in symptoms for each clinical disorder.
c. ) All mental disorders listed in the DSM-5 are seen in all other cultures.
d. ) Psychiatric diagnoses are listed in separately from other physical disorders in a five axes system.
b.) Culture may cause variations in symptoms for each clinical disorder.
Every society has its own view of health and illness and the types of behavior categorized as mental illness.
Culture also influences the symptoms of a particular disorder. For example, individuals of certain cultures are more likely to express depression through somatic symptoms than through affect and feeling tone.
The five axes system was abandoned in this edition of the DSM-5.
The prevalence rate over a 12-month period for major depressive disorder is
a. ) lower than the prevalence rate for panic disorders.
b. ) greater than the prevalence rate for psychotic disorders.
c. ) equal to the prevalence rate for psychotic disorders.
d. ) greater than the prevalence rate for generalized anxiety.
d.) greater than the prevalence rate for generalized anxiety.
Statistics show that the prevalence rate over a 12-month period for major depressive disorder is 6.7%, and the lifetime prevalence rate for generalized anxiety is 3.1%.
These severe mental illnesses are recognized across cultures:
a. ) antisocial and borderline personality disorders.
b. ) schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
c. ) bulimia and anorexia nervosa.
d. ) amok and social phobia.
b.) schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Worldwide studies indicate that both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are recognized cross-culturally.
Which branch of epidemiology is the nurse involved in when seeking outcomes for patients whose depression was treated with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)?
a. ) experimental
b. ) descriptive
c. ) clinical
d. ) analytic
c.) clinical
Clinical epidemiology represents a broad field that addresses what happens to people with illnesses who are seen by providers of clinical care. Studies use traditional epidemiological methods and are conducted in groups that are usually defined by illness or symptoms or by diagnostic procedures or treatments given for the illness or symptoms.
A client tells the mental health nurse “I am terribly frightened! I hear whispering that someone is going to kill me.” Which criterion of mental health can the nurse assess as lacking?
a. ) Control over behavior
b. ) Appraisal of reality
c. ) Effectiveness in work
d. ) Healthy self-concept
b.) Appraisal of reality
The appraisal of reality is lacking for this client. The client does not have a picture of what is happening around himself or herself.
A 14-year-old belongs to a neighborhood gang, engages in sexually promiscuous behavior, and has a history of school truancy but reports that her parents are just old- fashioned and don’t understand her. The assessment data supports that the client
a. ) is displaying deviant behavior.
b. ) cannot accurately appraise reality.
c. ) is seriously and persistently mentally ill.
d. ) should be considered for group home placement.
a.) is displaying deviant behavior.
This client is demonstrating deviant behavior. This client demonstrates undersocialized, aggressive behavior such as a repetitive and persistent pattern of aggressive conduct in which the basic rights of others are violated.
The nurse planning care for a mentally ill client bases interventions on the concept that the client
a. ) has areas of strength on which to build.
b. ) has right that must be respected.
c. ) comes with experiences that contribute to their problem.
d. ) share fears that are similar to those of all mentally healthy individuals.
a.) has areas of strength on which to build.
Nurses are expected to evaluate clients with mental health issues for their strengths and their areas of high functioning. You will find many attributes of mental health in some of your clients with mental health issues. These strengths should be built upon and encouraged.
In order to best differentiate whether an Asian client is demonstrating a mental illness when attempting suicide is to
a. ) ask the client whether he views himself as being depressed.
b. ) identify his culture’s view regarding suicide.
c. ) explain to him that suicide is often regarded as a desperate act.
d. ) assess the client for other examples of depressive behaviors.
b.) identify his culture’s view regarding suicide.
One approach to differentiating mental health from mental illness is to consider what a particular culture regards as acceptable or unacceptable. In this view, the mentally ill are those who violate social norms and thus threaten (or make anxious) those observing them.
For example, traditional Japanese may consider suicide to be an act of honor, and Middle Eastern “suicide bombers” are considered holy warriors or martyrs. Contrast these viewpoints with Western culture, where people who attempt or complete suicides are nearly always considered mentally ill.
An individual is found to consistently wear only a bathrobe and neglect the cleanliness of his apartment. When neighbors ask him to stop his frequent outbursts of operatic arias, he acts outraged and tells them he must sing daily and will not promise to be quieter. This behavior supports that he is
a. ) demonstrating symptoms of bipolar disorder.
b. ) socially deviant.
c. ) egocentric.
d. ) not demonstrating any definitive signs of mental illness.
d.) not demonstrating any definitive signs of mental illness.
One myth about mental illness is that to be mentally ill is to be different and odd.
Another misconception is that to be healthy, a person must be logical and rational. Everyone dreams “irrational” dreams at night, and “irrational” emotions are universal human experiences and are essential to a fulfilling life.
Some people who show extremely abnormal behavior and are characterized as mentally ill are far more like the rest of us than different from us. No obvious and consistent line between mental illness and mental health exists.
A nursing diagnosis for a client with a psychiatric disorder serves the purpose of
a. ) justifying the use of certain psychotropic medication.
b. ) providing data essential for insurance reimbursement.
c. ) providing a framework for selecting appropriate interventions.
d. ) completing the medical diagnostic statement.
c.) providing a framework for selecting appropriate interventions.
Nursing diagnoses provide the framework for identifying appropriate nursing interventions for dealing with the phenomena a client with a mental health disorder is experiencing.
Which of the following best demonstrates parity related to mental health care?
a. ) The client is admitted for a 72-hour mental hygiene evaluation.
b. ) Advance practice nurse can be certified as psychiatric nurse specialist.
c. ) A client’s mental health coverage is equal to his medical/surgical coverage.
d. ) A client who has attempted sucide is hospitalized for a mental health evaluation.
c. ) A client’s mental health coverage is equal to his medical/surgical coverage.
* Parity* refers to equivalence that requires insurers who provide mental health coverage to offer annual and lifetime benefits at the same level provided for medical/surgical coverage.
