Chapter 33

Question 1

Which statement about poverty is true?

a. All cultures view poverty as a pitiful existence.
b. Most cultures want to improve the plight of the poor.
c. Dangerous environments are present in all cultures.
d. Western cultures view poverty negatively.

Answer 1

ANS: D
The meaning of poverty differs across cultures. Western cultures view poverty negatively whereas other cultures often respect the poor.

Question 2

During the industrial revolution, which population group would have been least likely to receive community assistance?

a. Widowed women
b. Orphaned children
c. Mentally ill
d. Injured laborers

Answer 2

ANS: C
Mentally ill individuals were considered undeserving poor and did not receive any community assistance. Widowed women, orphaned children, and injured laborers were deserving poor because their poverty was considered to be beyond their control.

Question 3

Which statement about poor people living in the seventeenth century is accurate?

a. They were likely alcoholics or prostitutes.
b. They were ashamed to be living in poverty.
c. They traveled from community to community for food and shelter.
d. They would be given assistance by their community.

Answer 3

ANS: D
The Elizabethan Poor Laws began in seventeenth-century England by helping the poor receive help within the boundaries of their original community. Needy travelers would not be helped and were sent back to their original community where they would be helped by their own folk. It was no disgrace to live in poverty because nearly everyone was poor.

Question 4

What action should a nurse take in order to provide effective nursing care to poor persons, families, and populations in a variety of settings?

a. Move to the area where people are living to understand their plight.
b. Understand the concept of poverty on many levels.
c. Take a trip abroad to see how poverty exists in other countries.
d. Become fully immersed in the concept of poverty for at least a year.

Answer 4

ANS: B
Understanding the concept of poverty with historical, social, political, economic, biological, psychological, and spiritual dimensions is the first step in providing effective care to this population.

Question 5

A nurse who provides care to populations who are from different socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds should be aware of which barrier that may prevent full engagement in a relationship?

a. Fears and misconceptions related to poverty
b. Lack of tangible and emotional resources
c. Lack of knowledge about people who live in poverty
d. Perception that the poor don’t need to be poor

Answer 5

ANS: A
Fears and misconceptions of nurses related to poverty is a barrier that may prevent nurses from fully engaging in relationships with people who come from different socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds.

Question 6

Which action can the nurse take to break down the barriers between the nurse and people who live in poverty?

a. Maintain a strict professional demeanor.
b. Call the client by name.
c. Keep client appointments as scheduled.
d. Smile and be friendly to clients.

Answer 6

ANS: B

Nurses can then begin the process of breaking down barriers of fear, isolation, uncertainty, and the unknown.

Question 7

Nurses might evaluate their beliefs, values, and knowledge about poverty by being placed in which situation?

a. A client asking for a small amount of money at a clinic
b. Setting up a homeless shelter
c. Making a home visit to a home that is unkempt
d. Reading about poverty in a textbook

Answer 7

ANS: C

Nurses’ behaviors in situations are influenced by their relationship with clients.

Question 8

Which factor influences the growing number of poor persons in the United States?

a. Increase in company earnings
b. Changes in the labor force
c. Better access to quality education
d. Adequate welfare benefits

Answer 8

ANS: B

Changes in the labor force affect the growing number of poor persons in the United States.

Question 9

Persons and families who have an income above the federal income guidelines, but are unable to meet their living expenses are often called:

a. In persistent poverty
b. Near poor
c. Impoverished
d. Neighborhood poverty

Answer 9

ANS: B
The near poor are persons and families whose income is above the federal income guidelines but insufficient to meet living expenses.

Question 10

The public health nurse is taking care of a poor family, whose parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents also have been poor. This is called:

a. Near poor
b. Persistent poor
c. Impoverished
d. Neighborhood poverty

Answer 10

ANS: B

This refers to individuals and families who remain poor for long periods and who pass poverty on to their descendants.

Question 11

Why would a nurse refer to federal income guidelines?

a. To determine financial eligibility for government assistance programs
b. To calculate statistical occurrences in the community
c. To identify those with inadequate resources for basic needs
d. To provide guidelines for reform of social programs

Answer 11

ANS: A

Federal income guidelines are used primarily to determine financial eligibility for government assistance programs.

Question 12

A nurse is discussing eligibility for federal food assistance with a family. Which federal guideline would a nurse refer to when considering financial eligibility?

a. Poverty Threshold Guideline
b. Consumer Price Index (CPI)
c. Federal Income Poverty Guideline
d. Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)

Answer 12

ANS: C
The Federal Income Poverty Guideline is issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and is used to determine if a person or family is financially eligible for assistance or services from various federal programs.

Question 13

Which group has the highest rate of poverty?

a. Children
b. Teenagers
c. Women
d. Older adults

Answer 13

ANS: A

The 2007 poverty rate was 18% for children, higher than any other age group.

Question 14

Which is a characteristic of persons living in poverty?

a. Longer life expectancy
b. Simple health problems
c. Higher rates of chronic illness
d. Fewer hospitalizations

Answer 14

ANS: C

Not only do persons have higher rates of chronic illness, but less access to care.

Question 15

A nurse refers a client to an assistance program that requires the individual to find a job and/or enroll in job training program. Which program is being used?

a. Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)
b. Medicaid
c. Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)
d. Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)

Answer 15

ANS: C

TANF requires participants to find jobs and/or enroll in job training programs.

Question 16

A nurse conducting a community assessment in a poor neighborhood is most likely to find:

a. Fewer minority groups
b. Increased exposure to environmental hazards
c. More available health care services
d. Lower rates of crime and substance abuse

Answer 16

ANS: B

Poor neighborhoods are more likely to have exposure to environmental hazards.

Question 17

A community health nurse is caring for an individual who is experiencing crisis poverty. Which characteristic would this individual most likely display?

a. Episodic homelessness
b. Physical disability
c. Mental disability
d. Drug abuse

Answer 17

ANS: A
Episodic homelessness is a characteristic of crisis poverty. Physical disability, mental disability, and drug abuse would be considered in persistent poverty.

Question 18

The community health nurse would consider a person in which situation to be living in persistent poverty?

a. Severe mental illness
b. Transient homelessness
c. Victim of domestic violence
d. Temporary housing

Answer 18

ANS: A
Transient homeless persons, victims of domestic violence, and persons with temporary housing would be considered in crisis poverty

Question 19

Which statement about homelessness is true?

a. Homeless persons are not found in rural areas.
b. Gentrification can lead to homelessness.
c. Deinstitutionalization led to a small number of homeless.
d. Community-based clinics provide much needed health care.

Answer 19

ANS: B

When urban housing is upgraded, the supply of low-income housing drops.

Question 20

A person who is already homeless and receives shelter is using which type of housing?

a. Low income
b. Supportive
c. Emergency
d. Adequate

Answer 20

ANS: C

Emergency housing is shelter for persons who are already homeless.

Question 21

The original goal of deinstitutionalization was to:

a. Reduce state costs of caring for the chronically mentally ill.
b. Replace state psychiatric hospitals with community-based treatment programs.
c. Modernize psychiatric hospitals.
d. Allow mentally ill persons to live on their own to test their life skills.

Answer 21

ANS: B
The original goal was to replace large psychiatric hospitals with community-based treatments centers. However, federal and state governments failed to allocate the needed funds.

Question 22

Which statement regarding the effects of homelessness on health is accurate?

a. Peripheral vascular disease and hypertension are lessened by this lifestyle.
b. The incidence and virulence of infections are decreasing.
c. Trauma is a significant cause of death and disability.
d. Crowded living conditions result in decreased risk for exposure to infections.

Answer 22

ANS: C
Major trauma includes gunshot wounds, stab wounds, head trauma, suicide attempts, and fractures. Minor trauma includes bruises, abrasions, concussions, sprains, puncture wounds, eye injuries, and cellulitis.

Question 23

An example of primary prevention when working with the homeless is:

a. Providing emergency housing aid
b. Creating drug and alcohol treatment options
c. Offering effective job training programs
d. Evaluating comprehensive case management programs

Answer 23

ANS: C
Emergency housing is secondary prevention. Drug and alcohol treatment and comprehensive case management are tertiary preventions.

Question 24

An example of secondary prevention when working with the homeless is:

a. Employer incentives
b. Safe sex education
c. Comprehensive case management
d. Soup kitchens

Answer 24

ANS: D
Secondary preventive services target persons on the verge of homeless as well as those who are newly homeless. Employer incentives and safe sex education are primary preventions; comprehensive case management is a tertiary prevention.

Question 25

Which action should a nurse take before working with homeless clients?

a. Change personal views about homelessness.
b. Understand the concepts of homelessness.
c. Receive special training about where to locate homeless people.
d. Have experience in mental health nursing and counseling.

Answer 25

ANS: B
To implement effective nursing interventions for homeless clients, nurses need to be aware of their own beliefs and values about the homeless as well as understand the concepts of homelessness.

Question 26

Which intervention could be categorized as both primary and tertiary prevention?

a. Providing emergency shelter housing
b. Offering physical and mental health services
c. Developing a targeted case management program
d. Establishing a needle exchange program

Answer 26

ANS: D
Establishing a needle exchange program could be considered both primary (preventing a problem before it occurs by helping clients avoid disease transmission) and tertiary (working with a population who already has a “problem” of drug abuse). Providing emergency shelter housing and offering physical and mental health services are both secondary and tertiary prevention interventions. Developing a targeted case management program is secondary prevention.

Question 27

Which media images influence society’s beliefs about poor persons? Select all that apply.

a. Poor persons are often cast as lazy, shiftless folk.
b. Poor people are shown receiving food at soup kitchens.
c. Criminals are portrayed as poor, desperate persons.
d. Homeless people seen sleeping on park benches.

Answer 27

ANS: A, B, C, D

All are correct. The media is a powerful influence on how people view poverty.

Question 28

Why is it difficult to know the exact number of homeless persons? Select all that apply.

a. Homeless people refuse to provide demographic information.
b. Many homeless people refuse to be interviewed.
c. It is difficult to generalize from one location to another.
d. Some persons experience short intervals of homelessness.

Answer 28

ANS: B, C, D

Homeless people do not refuse to provide demographic information.