Chapter 17 Flashcards
Which statement made by a seminar participant indicates that the speaker needs to further
clarify teaching about environmental principles?
a. “Everything is connected to everything else.”
b. “Everything has to go somewhere.”
c. “The solution to pollution is prosecution.”
d. “Today’s solution may be tomorrow’s problem.”
ANS: C
Which scenario exemplifies the CHN’s practice of secondary prevention to reduce
environmental health risks?
a. Collecting blood specimens from preschool children to check for lead levels
b. Meeting with local government officials to request that the city clean up a
contaminated vacant lot
c. Referring a child diagnosed with toxic lead levels to a neurologist
d. Teaching the parents of a 2-year-old about the dangers of lead-based paint in older
homes
ANS: A
Which scenario exemplifies the occupational health nurse’s (OHN’s) practice of primary
prevention to improve health outcomes from environmental health risks?
a. Using radiation detectors to detect unsafe levels of radiation exposure
b. Irrigating the eyes of an employee who has had a chemical splash to the face
c. Teaching new employees who will work outdoors about the signs and symptoms of
heat-related illness
d. Using spirometry to rule out obstructive or restrictive lung disease in workers
before they start using mask respirators
ANS: C
What is an example of risk communication?
a. Interpreting and applying environmental health principles
b. Responding in scientifically sound and humanely sensitive ways to community
concerns
c. Proposing, informing, and monitoring action from agencies, communities, and
organization perspectives
d. Detecting potential and actual exposure pathways and outcomes for clients cared
for in acute care, chronic care, and healthy communities
ANS: A
A chemical company executive asks a new public health department employee about
obtaining a permit to build a new factory. Which employee statement would be the biggest
cause for concern?
a. “If your operation employs fewer than 20 employees, you will be exempt from the
requirement to obtain a permit.”
b. “Granting permits is a mechanism for controlling pollution by regulating the
operations and procedures of a facility.”
c. “This process may take a long time because your plans will need to be studied by
engineers and other specialists.”
d. “You will need to submit an application detailing how your factory will operate.”
ANS: A
The CHN is examining blood lead levels in school-aged children one year after a communitywide
education intervention. What term identifies this phase of the nursing process?
a. Assessment
b. Diagnosis
c. Intervention
d. Evaluation
ANS: D
In order to increase the proportion of noninstitutionalized adults who are vaccinated annually
against influenza, a nurse practitioner has established a mobile clinic. What part of the nursing
process is fulfilled by delivering immunization services?
a. Goal setting
b. Planning
c. Intervention
d. Evaluation
ANS: C
A community member reports to a CHN in the public health department that the city’s water
has had an unusual taste for the past few months. What is the best CHN action?
a. Advocate with or lobby decision makers.
b. Consult the Canadian Partnership for Children’s Health & Environment (CPCHE).
c. Check the most recent report on water quality in the community.
d. Place a call to the poison control centre.
ANS: C
Local inspections of restaurants are conducted by which level of government?
a. Local and regional boards of health
b. Environment Canada
c. Provincial/territorial Ministry of Labour
d. Health Canada
ANS: A
A farm worker reports an onset of wheezing, abdominal cramping, and fatigue. Assuming that
the cause is environmental, what will the CHN consider to be the most likely cause?
a. Carbon monoxide poisoning
b. Lead poisoning
c. Organophosphate toxicity
d. Sulphur dioxide exposure
ANS: C
When a concerned citizen asks the CHN about environmental health, what definition of
environmental health does the CHN provide?
a. Environmental health is the causative factors invading a susceptible host through
an environment favourable to producing disease, such as a biological or chemical
agent.
b. Environmental health is the systematic and ongoing observation and collection of
data concerning disease occurrence to describe phenomena and detect changes in
frequency or distribution.
c. Environmental health is the study of the effect of physical, chemical, and
biological factors in the external environment on human health.
d. Environmental health is the achievement of health and wellness and the prevention
of illness and injury from exposure to physical or psychosocial environmental
hazards.
ANS: D
A CHN desires greater understanding of the physiological effects of selected chemicals on
humans. Which specialist would provide the best source of information about this subject?
a. A chemist
b. An epidemiologist
c. A pharmacologist
d. A toxicologist
ANS: D
What is the first step to understanding the potential environmental health risks in a community
in order to conduct an environmental health assessment?
a. Conduct a health risk assessment of randomly selected individuals.
b. Perform a windshield survey.
c. Review facility permits and consumer confidence reports.
d. Survey community members.
ANS: B
