Management Flashcards
In an effort to control costs and maximize revenues, the Rehabilitation Unit at Cross
Hospital reduces the number of its nursing managers. Within a year the number of adverse
events on the units has doubled. This may be attributable to:
a. The overload of work for staff nurses.
b. Inability of staff at the bedside to make good choices.
c. A change in reporting systems.
d. Fewer clinical leaders and advocates for necessary resources.
D
Traditional approaches to ensuring patient safety have focused on:
a. Assigning blame.
b. Finding solutions to systems issues.
c. Instituting best practices in response to errors.
d. Hiding errors from potential litigation.
A
What is the primary purpose of nursing standards?
a. To inform performance appraisals at the unit level.
b. To identify the desired level of performance.
c. To inform the courts in relation to negligence and malpractice cases.
d. To educate other health care professionals about the role of the nurse.
B
During review of back injuries, it is determined that mechanical lifts and transfer belts are
not being properly used. In addressing this concern, the unit manager:
a. Meets individually with nurses, who are observed using the lifts incorrectly, to
review the correct procedure.
b. Consults with the staff about the review to determine how best to proceed.
c. Blames the system for inadequate funding for resources.
d. Reviews the system of reporting adverse events to ensure that appropriate
reporting is occurring.
B
The nursing manager changed the current model of implementing nursing rounds of patients
each day at 1200 hours to implementing interdisciplinary rounds of patients at 1000 hours.
This change reflects:
a. A patient-centred care initiative.
b. Delegation of responsibility from nursing to other health care professionals.
c. Lack of consultation among the nursing staff.
d. An inappropriate time to complete patient rounds and will probably not work.
A
Which of the following represents an activity that supports patient-centred care?
a. Posting of visiting hours on the entrance way to each hospital unit
b. Regular staff surveys to monitor organizational satisfaction
c. Reserved parking spots at the main hospital entrance for physicians
d. Creating e-health stations on each inpatient unit
D
After consulting with practice environments about quality and safety concerns in health
care, the Dean of Health Programs at a Canadian university develops:
a. A nursing program that emphasizes the development of a strong disciplinary
identity.
b. Programming that stresses discipline-based research.
c. Partnerships with health care professionals to develop software for reporting of
adverse events.
d. An interdisciplinary program for nurses, pharmacists, and medical practitioners
that emphasizes collaborative learning teams.
D
In designing a high-quality, safe health care environment, the primary emphasis needs to be
on:
a. Evidence-informed practice.
b. Informatics.
c. Staffing.
d. The patient.
D
As a patient care advocate, you regularly coach patients in how to stay safe in health care by
educating them about:
a. The need to understand and record all medications being taken.
b. Bringing their own linens and other personal items to the hospital.
c. Washing hands frequently while in a health care environment and using a hand
sanitizer.
d. Following closely the directions and orders of health care providers.
A
What is the focus in a culture of safety?
a. Employee safety.
b. Investigating who is making health care errors.
c. Effective systems and team work
d. Professional nursing standards and ethical codes
C
Which attribute is a common feature of a culture of safety?
a. Voluntary reporting of incidents.
b. Organization behaviour.
c. Individual-focused policies.
d. A nonpunitive approach to adverse event reporting and analysis.
D
Which of the following depicts a nursing-sensitive outcome?
a. Programming that increases individual nurse competency to offer smoking
cessation programs.
b. Implementation of informatics at the patient’s bedside.
c. Staff–manager conferences to review reporting of adverse events.
d. Patient council meetings to review food, recreation, and nurse–patient relations.
A
Having team “huddles” each day on the nursing unit is a reflection of:
a. Nurses’ need to socialize.
b. Creating a culture of safety.
c. Ensuring distribution of equal workloads.
d. The manager`s need to talk with staff nurses on a daily basis.
B
Approximately what percentage of Canadian hospital admissions can be expected to include
an adverse event?
a. 5
b. 7.5
c. 10
d. 12.5
B
Having access to information, evidence, and research is an important driver for quality and;
a. Nurse safety.
b. Patient safety.
c. Organizational policy development.
d. Patient-centred care.
B
Which of the following represents a potential use of nurse-sensitive outcomes?
a. Informing best practices.
b. Accountability for nursing behaviours.
c. Performance appraisals.
d. Maintaining the status quo.
A
Which of the following is a CPSI safety competency?
a. Practise patient-centred care.
b. Optimize human and environmental factors.
c. Analyze nurse-sensitive outcomes.
d. Assess nurse staffing and skill mix.
B
On the basis of a review of increased falls with injury and increased use of restraint during
evening hours, you as the unit manager are most likely to:
a. Review daytime and evening staffing mixes.
b. Schedule continuing education for all staff members.
c. Review the safety of ambulation devices.
d. Continue your current practices and procedures.
A
As the nurse was about to administer an oral mediation, the patient states, “That pill is the
wrong colour.” The nurse goes back to the medication administration area to check the
medication and realizes that it is indeed the wrong pill. Does this situation require the
completion of an adverse event report?
a. No; there was no actual error.
b. No; it was the patient who stopped an error from occurring.
c. Yes; an error almost occurred, and close calls are to be reported.
d. It is up to the nurse to decide whether to complete an adverse event report.
C
Which of the following is the CPSIs flagship program?
a. Patients Are First.
b. Safer Healthcare Now.
c. Safe Healthcare for All.
d. Patient Safety Culture Improvement.
B
Organizational changes that promote systems thinking, collective accountability, and
team-based care are examples of:
a. Activities that promote patient-centred care.
b. Accreditation standards that hospitals must meet.
c. Outdated practices that are not grounded in current evidence.
d. Quality improvement initiatives.
A
Robert, an experienced nurse, discovered a medication order was incorrectly translated.
The pharmacist filled the medication and sent it to be administered to the patient. When the
medication arrived Robert questioned the dose and consulted with the nurse manager. The
order was clarified with the physician and changed to the correct dose. When reviewing the
incident the nurse manager determined the near miss was related to which of the following?
a. Individual error.
b. System error.
c. An individual and system error.
d. Attributed to increased workload.
C
Gail, a senior nursing student, consults with her preceptor about a patient who has refused
his medication. When speaking with the patient he expresses that he does not believe the
medication is helping with his pain level. From a nursing sensitive outcome, which
outcomes are addressed in this situation? (Select all that apply.)
a. Quality of nursing care.
b. Symptom management.
c. Patient satisfaction.
d. Functional status.
B, C
Gathering information on patient outcomes leads to which of the following? (Select all that
apply.)
a. Evaluating different approaches to care.
b. Increasing quality of nursing care.
c. Decreasing nursing autonomy.
d. Having a positive impact at the individual, unit, and organization levels.
A,B,D
Rose a new nursing graduate chose hospital X for its culture of safety. Which of the
following attributes contribute to this culture of safety? (Select all that apply.)
a. Trusting and open communication
b. Organizational learning
c. A system rather that an individual approach to safety
d. Teamwork
A,B,C,D
Which of the following contribute to improved patient safety? (Select all that apply.)
a. Leadership capability.
b. Patient involvement in own care.
c. Data collection.
d. Increased staff mix.
A,B,C
The manager in the coronary care unit believes that the most important ethical
considerations in performance evaluations are that they include the employee’s good
qualities and that they give positive direction for professional growth. This belief is an
example of:
a. Justice.
b. Fidelity.
c. Beneficence.
d. Nonmaleficence.
D
Normative ethics is concerned with the:
a. Broader theory and meaning of morality.
b. Foundation and scope of moral values, words, and practice.
c. Standards that most people use to guide their behaviours.
d. Relationship of ethical principles to real-life moral issues.
C
A patient refuses a simple procedure that you believe is in the patient’s best interest. The
two ethical principles that are directly in conflict in such a situation are:
a. Fidelity and justice.
b. Veracity and fidelity.
c. Autonomy and beneficence.
d. Paternalism and respect for others.
C
Three gravely ill patients are candidates for the only available bed in the intensive care unit.
As the supervisor, you assign the bed to the patient with the best chance of recovery. This
decision reflects which of the following ethical principles?
a. Beneficence.
b. Autonomy.
c. Veracity.
d. Nonmaleficence.
A
Which ethical principle is primarily involved in informed consent?
a. Veracity.
b. Autonomy.
c. Beneficence.
d. Nonmaleficence.
B
Which of the following is a key area of ethical nursing practice?
a. Nursing process.
b. Therapeutic relationship.
c. Decision-making model.
d. Embodied knowledge.
B
Which question reflects the essence of relational ethics?
a. “What can I do to maintain my professional practice?”
b. “What should I do for others?”
c. “What techniques can I use to empower my colleagues?”
d. “What ethical decision-making model will work best for me?”
B
The nurse manager organizes interprofessional team meetings on a weekly basis. This action
is demonstrating which aspect of relational ethics?
a. Embodied knowledge.
b. Interdependent environment.
c. Engaged interactions.
d. Mutual respect.
D
According to relational ethics, what is critical in the development and maintenance of the
roles and actions of the nurse manager?
a. Time management skills.
b. Professional relationships.
c. Understanding of biomedical ethics.
d. Comprehension of the Quebec Nurses Association’s Code of Ethics for nursing.
B
Which of the following is a criticism of the principle of autonomy?
a. It is not culturally sensitive.
b. It can lead to focus on the needs of one person at the expense of the needs of
others.
c. It is not applicable with entire groups.
d. It can be viewed as advancing professional directives rather than patient desires.
B
Autonomy is best promoted through which of the following, in taking a relational approach
to autonomy?
a. Specific roles within the relationship.
b. Social change.
c. Protecting an individual’s freedom of choice.
d. The necessity of treating everyone fairly.
B
Sue, a staff nurse, consistently arrives 15 minute late for her shift, and the nurse manager
has talked to her about it several times. Sue does not take the comments seriously because
there are two other nurses who also arrive late all the time, and the unit manager does not
reprimand them. In this situation, the nurse manager is violating the ethical principle of:
a. Beneficence.
b. Nonmaleficence.
c. Justice.
d. Autonomy.
C
Which element of the Code of Ethics of the International Council of Nurses is reflected in
the following statement: “The nurse manager sets policies and procedures to guide ethical
nursing practice?”
a. People.
b. Practice.
c. Profession.
d. Coworkers.
C
Which element of the Code of Ethics of the International Council of Nurses is reflected
when the nurse manager establishes a system for performance appraisals?
a. People.
b. Practice.
c. Profession.
d. Coworkers.
B
What is reflected when a nurse feels a lack of clarity or is unable to know even what the
moral problem is, whereas at the same time feeling uneasy or uncomfortable about the
situation?
a. Moral distress.
b. Moral uncertainty.
c. Ethical dilemma.
d. Ethical distress.
B
A patient’s husband asks to speak with the nursing manager. He is visibly upset and tells the
nursing manager that while at the corner store, he overheard two nurses discussing his
wife’s health issues and is certain that others around him also heard the discussion. This is
an example of:
a. Ethical distress.
b. An ethical violation.
c. Moral inappropriateness.
d. An ethical dilemma.
B
Sally, a fourth year nursing student, was assigned to a maternal child unit. Upon reporting
for an assignment she was informed her patient would be having an abortion because of
severe medical issues with the unborn child. She approached her preceptor immediately and
asked to be reassigned to another patient because Sally was opposed to abortion for any
reason. This is an example of:
a. Competent nursing care.
b. Staffing availability.
c. Conflict of conscience.
d. Fatigue.
C
Michael a novice nurse has been assigned to four medically ill patients. There is a nursing
staff shortage on his unit and more experienced nurses have as highly acute a workload as
he does. As the shift progresses he becomes more distraught and unable to provide the type
of care he knows his patients need. Michael is experiencing:
a. Moral distress.
b. Moral fatigue.
c. Values conflict.
d. Therapeutic relationship.
A
Mr. and Mrs. Bennett are attending a consult for reproductive assistance. Although there is a
positive chance the method will result in a pregnancy, they are not able to cover the cost of
the procedure. This situation denies which of the following ethical principles?
a. Autonomy.
b. Nonmaleficence.
c. Justice.
d. Beneficence.
C
To perform treatment on a patient not requiring a formal written consent a nurse must
conduct which of the following? (Select all that apply.)
a. Asking permission to do a treatment.
b. Explaining the procedure.
c. Stopping the procedure if patient is uncomfortable.
d. Confirming understanding of the treatment.
A,B,C,D
Nursing management actions and decisions are guided by (Select all that apply.)
a. The law.
b. Ethical principles.
c. Leadership style.
d. Professional accountabilities.
e. Staff preferences.
A,B,D
Which of the following are core elements of relational ethics? (Select all that apply.)
a. Mutual respect.
b. Justice and beneficence.
c. Informed consent.
d. Interdependent environment.
A,D
According to Leininger (2002), “cultural imposition” is a major concern in nursing because
nurses have a tendency to impose their values, beliefs, and practices on people of other
cultures. The discussion topic most likely to be without cultural imposition would be:
a. Abortion.
b. Wound management.
c. Blood transfusion.
d. Advance directives.
B
Cultural diversity is the term used to describe a vast range of cultural differences. Events
have symbolic meanings for the nurse manager and the staff. The event that would be most
likely to provide symbolic meaning to a nurse manager and staff is:
a. The formation of a task force to commemorate a New Year’s celebration in the
Western tradition.
b. A project to provide Christmas gifts to the children in a daycare program.
c. Celebration of National Nurses’ Week with the focus on cultural care.
d. The formation of a task force to develop a poster for the unit depicting religions of
the world.
C
One of the staff nurses on your unit makes the comment, “All this time I thought Mary was
Black. She says she is Jamaican.” The best response would be:
a. “Who cares what she is?”
b. “What did you think when you learned she was Jamaican?”
c. “Why did you assume she was Black?”
d. “We have never had a Jamaican on this unit before.”
B
As a nurse manager, you notice that Sharon, an Aboriginal licenced practical nurse aide, is
visibly upset. When you ask her if something is wrong, she becomes tearful and says, “Why
is it that when Nick and I work together in giving patient care, he jokes about my being ‘a
little fat Eskimo’?” The nurse manager’s best response is, “Do you think he
a. Is sensitive to your culture?”
b. Wants to learn more about you?”
c. Has been hurt and wants to hurt others?”
d. Is stereotyping you without thinking?”
D
The nurse manager of a unit is asked by a family member of a dying Inuit patient if it is
possible to for the patient’s eight-member family to recite the rosary by the patient’s
bedside. The manager responds affirmatively. The nurse manager is most likely exhibiting
behaviour related to:
a. Acculturation.
b. Ethnocentricity.
c. Cultural diversity.
d. Cultural sensitivity.
D
A 66-year-old native Chinese patient, hospitalized for a myocardial infarction, asks the
nurse manager about seeing his “acupuncture doctor” for treatment of his migraine
headache. The best response to this patient would be:
a. “How long have you been using acupuncture treatment?”
b. “Do you think acupuncture relieves your pain satisfactorily?”
c. “What have you told your heart specialist about your migraines and treatment?”
d. “Have you tried nonprescription pain medication or been given a prescription drug
for your headaches?”
A
Maintaining a culturally diverse staff is an important function of a nurse manager who
works in the hospital of a large medical centre. According to Health Canada (2008), which
cultural group represents about 2% of registered nurses employed in Canada? The chapter
states 3% p. 11.
a. Men.
b. Aboriginal.
c. French Canadian.
d. African Canadian.
B
Because an increasing number of Aboriginal patients are being admitted, a nurse manager
designs a staff-development program for her staff to help them understand Aboriginal
culture. A nurse should understand that culture is determined by which of the following?
a. Behaviour.
b. Love for people.
c. Shared vision.
d. Rapid time passage.
A
The nurse manager for a unit’s culturally diverse staff creates a staff-development program
so that the professional nursing staff members can enhance their understanding of cultures
on the basis of published literature. The literature reveals that what characteristics are
inherent in a culture?
a. It develops over time.
b. It maintains a strong work ethic.
c. It changes easily.
d. It develops quickly.
A
Which principle of The Canada Health Act is frequently not upheld in rural and remote
areas of the country?
a. Comprehensiveness.
b. Public administration.
c. Accessibility.
d. Portability.
C
Within the deaf community, there is considerable disagreement about the use of SEE
(Signed Exact English) and ASL (American Sign Language). This is indicative of:
a. Dominant versus nondominant behaviours.
b. The need to recognize diversity within groups.
c. The effect of cross-culturalism.
d. How language separates subgroups.
B
When interviewing a candidate for a nursing position who has an Aboriginal background, a
non-Aboriginal nurse recognizes that the candidate’s lack of eye contact reflects the
candidate’s:
a. Lack of confidence.
b. Professional behaviour.
c. Cultural sensitivity.
d. Ethnicity.
D
Recognizing that the Aboriginal candidate’s lack of eye contact is different from her own,
the non-Aboriginal nurse is exhibiting
a. Acculturation.
b. Cultural sensitivity.
c. Ethnocentrism.
d. Transculturalism.
B
A non–English-speaking patient arrives at the nursing unit. The nurse knows that when
patient communication is hampered by the inability to communicate in the same language, it
may lead to:
a. Inequities in accessing health care services.
b. Inability to obtain health insurance.
c. A decrease in patient morbidity.
d. Lack of portability with health care coverage.
A
At Health Centre XYZ, staff members on the rehabilitation unit have a head nurse who is
intolerant of error and publicly chides anyone who makes a mistake. Over time, the rules on
the unit dictate that mistakes are hidden and that areas of concern related to the functioning
of the unit are discussed in privacy and are never openly discussed during periodic
meetings. New staff members are quickly made to realize that silence is expected. The
situation described is an example of:
a. Ethnicity.
b. Work environment.
c. Work culture.
d. Marginalization.
C
Which of the following enables people to make sense of situations that they may encounter
that differ from their circle of familiarity?
a. Paradox.
b. Prejudices.
c. Power.
d. Position.
B
During performance appraisal, you praise Xia for her attention and care to nursing details.
You suggest that her care would be further enhanced by greater acknowledgement of
patients’ feelings. Xia bursts into tears and leaves the office. Later, you learn that in Xia’s
culture, criticism is perceived as akin to failure. You reflect on how you could modify your
approach in the future to acknowledge different cultural interpretations of feedback. Your
response is indicative of:
a. Bias.
b. Cultural awareness.
c. Cultural diversity.
d. Ethnocentricity.
B
Individuals living with asthma, who also live in poverty, are much less likely to seek early
care than to go to emergency rooms for assistance. This example reflects:
a. Stereotyping.
b. Cultural diversity.
c. Ethnocentricity.
d. Transcultural care.
D
Serena, RN complains to you that a male nurse from a different culture sits very close
during charting and leans toward her when speaking. In responding to Serena, you consider
that differences across cultures that are relevant to this situation include:
a. Eye contact.
b. Personal space.
c. Harassment.
d. Expressions of feeling.
B
A new graduate registered nurse joins your unit. After a few weeks, she complains about
some of her peers on the unit and compares their practices negatively to what she learned in
her nursing program. She also is vocal about how she has learned so much here that she did
not in her program. She is best described as:
a. Having cultural sensitivity.
b. Experiencing cultural diversity.
c. Experiencing cultural marginality.
d. Experiencing acculturation.
C
In caring for a patient from an East Indian culture, staff members express frustration that
many friends and family members are in the room at any one time, which interferes with
care. As the nurse manager, you provide leadership in understanding that this behaviour of
the family and friend network reflects:
a. Lack of understanding of the seriousness of the patient’s illness.
b. Lack of communication between family members.
c. The social organization of friendships and family networks in East Indian culture.
d. Lack of caring about the hospital environment by the friends and family.
C
Monique, one of your registered nurses, tells you that she cannot understand why Jim, an
Aboriginal patient, wants to have a smudge ceremony. Monique’s response is based on her:
a. Cultural marginality.
b. Circle of familiarity.
c. Cultural understanding.
d. Acculturation.
B
In coaching Monique to become more culturally sensitive when a patient has requested a
smudge ceremony at the bedside, you suggest which of the following?
a. “Explain to Jim that there is no smoking in the hospital.”
b. “Inform Jim that fires are not allowed in the hospital.”
c. “Insist that he give you his tobacco because it is unhealthy for him.”
d. “Ask him what he means by a ‘smudge ceremony’ and what meaning it has for
him.”
D
A constructivist perspective of culture recognizes which of the following influence an
individual’s understanding of culture? (Select all that apply.)
a. Social context.
b. Is changeable.
c. Political understanding.
d. Economic status.
A,B,D
To ensure cultural safety regarding the use of language it is essential to address which of the
following? (Select all that apply.)
a. Uses common points of reference in practice.
b. Count on a word for word translation.
c. Ensure linguistic equivalence in both languages.
d. Think any translator is adequate.
A,C
New immigrants to Canada have a limited understanding of the Canadian health care
system. Nurse leaders must ensure that staff use effective communication to ensure patients
have the knowledge to understand their rights to health care. Good communication can be
achieved through which of the following? (Select all that apply.)
a. Understanding one’s own prejudices.
b. Allowing time for interpreting and clarifying information.
c. Presuming openness exists between people of different cultures.
d. Recognizing providing care to diverse groups is a dynamic and complex
experience.
A,B,D
As a nurse manager, you have to be effective in managing a culturally diverse staff. Which
of the following attributes of a nurse manager would assist you in addressing the cultural
needs of your staff? (Select all that apply.)
a. Stereotyping of others.
b. Respect for others.
c. Positive reinforcement.
d. Knowledge about your staff.
e. Age bias.
f. Disrespect for others.
B,C,D
A nurse manager was orienting new staff members with regard to computerized charting. To
understand computerized charting, staff members must understand informatics. Which of
the following are the core concepts in informatics?
a. Hardware, software, competency, and printers.
b. Data, information, knowledge, and wisdom.
c. Decision making, data gathering, data analysis, and reporting.
d. Wireless technology, voice recognition, and handheld devices.
B
The nursing manager of a surgical unit has been asked by administration to evaluate patient
outcomes after cardiac catheterization. Using data about patient outcomes after cardiac
catheterization for the past 6 months so as to modify practice is an example of:
a. Gathering information.
b. Cost-effective care.
c. Meeting standards.
d. Evidence-informed practice.
D
The clinic nurse has just accessed a patient’s chart on the computer. The resident comes
over and asks her to stay logged on because he needs to add a note to that patient’s chart.
What should she say?
a. “No problem. Just log me off when you’re done.”
b. “I’ll put the note in for you. What do you want to say?”
c. “Just make sure that you sign your note because it’s under my password.”
d. “I’m sorry, but you will have to enter the information using your own password.”
D
A home health nurse has been assigned to cover a 500-km2
area of remote Alberta. Mrs.
Banister has just been discharged home and will need daily contacts for the next week.
Because it is not possible to visit Mrs. Banister in person every day and see all the other
patients, the nurse gives her a laptop computer with Internet meeting software installed.
Each morning, both dial in at an agreed-upon time and discuss her progress. The home
health nurse assesses whether the patient needs to be seen that day. This type of technology
is called:
a. Distance learning.
b. Knowledge software.
c. Telecommunications.
d. Biomedical technology.
C
Nurses need to know how to operate a computer, compare data across time, and look for
patterns in patient responses to treatments. These are examples of which of the following?
a. Canadian Nursing Informatics Association standards.
b. Information systems.
c. Informatics competencies.
d. Requirements for nursing licensure.
C
The chief nursing officer understands that to be able to compare data across patient
populations and sites, it is important that nurses use:
a. Similar settings.
b. Information systems.
c. Knowledge systems.
d. Consistent nursing languages.
D
Leaders in nursing must advocate for information and knowledge systems that support
nursing practice. How is this best accomplished?
a. Participating in organizational information technology committees.
b. Submitting written requests for needed information systems.
c. Requesting budgetary funds needed for systems.
d. Sending staff nurses to conferences that discuss cutting-edge technologies.
A
You are in the process of designing a patient education program that will provide education
and monitoring for patients with hypertension. To support your planning, you obtain and
present patient data from which of the following?
a. A clinical database.
b. Biomedical technologies.
c. Email.
d. Internet sources.
A
As the head nurse involved in determining which patient surveillance systems to acquire for
your unit, one of your aims is to avoid adverse events through the implementation of
appropriate technology. What does this particular aim recognize?
a. Human error is significant in contributing to adverse events.
b. Documentation of patient data is often illegible and therefore misinterpreted.
c. Data systems provide backup documentation with adverse events that staff cannot
provide.
d. Physiologic monitoring systems enable detection of early changes before an
adverse event occurs.
D
As a nurse manager in a multisite facility, you are comparing the effectiveness of prompted
voiding training programs for staff by examining the effect of prompted voiding on the
frequency of incontinence in patients. To do this, you access an NMDS, which allows you
to:
a. Retrieve standardized information regarding patient care and trends.
b. Access medical diagnoses and pharmacologic interventions.
c. Learn sociodemographic and population-based trends.
d. Find information on public funding and private health insurance revenues.
A
As a nurse manager representative on a team to select a clinical information system, you
would be particularly concerned if the favoured system has which of the following
characteristics?
a. It involves screen displays that are best configured for nonclinical users.
b. It requires an upgrade to servers in the facility.
c. It requires staff orientation and training during implementation
A
When assessing the appropriateness of adopting personal digital assistants (PDAs) for a
nursing unit, you need to consider which of the following advantages?
a. Lower cost in relation to personal computers.
b. Small display screen.
c. Font size.
d. Speed of operation.
A
A nurse manager is excited by the possible use of speech recognition (SR) systems for
documentation of patient care, especially during crisis situations when staff members need
to focus on performing rapid assessments and implementation of procedures. She learns,
however, that SR systems would be impractical at this point for this. What characteristic
would lead to this conclusion?
a. SR systems are not available outside pilot projects.
b. The type of speech required for voice recognition is unlikely in a pressured
situation.
c. The hands-free function has not been perfected in SR technology.
d. Wireless communications are prone to unreliability in transmission.
B
For a nurse manager, one challenge is to orient new staff to the agency’s policies and
procedures, and also to provide training across various shifts. Which of the following would
be a cost-effective and effective learning strategy?
a. Development of new learning modules and software to support document retrieval.
b. Email distribution to staff home email addresses regarding important policies.
c. Preparation of digital video disks (DVDs) that can be viewed on computers at the
nursing station during “down times.”
d. Linking policies and procedures to the network for access when required at the
point of care.
D
What is the most critical factor in ensuring nurses’ comfort and knowledge in the use of
technology in health care regardless of age, education level, or area of practice?
a. Confidence in using technology.
b. Adequacy and substance of professional development.
c. Repeated training sessions.
d. Peer and leader support.
B
Peggy, a nurse leader on a busy medical surgical unit, is concerned that the rapid expansion
in use of EHRs and clinical decision support systems may lead to leaked patient information
and breach of confidentiality. She decides to form a nurse led committee to address these
concerns. Which of the following must be addressed to prevent breach of confidentiality?
(Select all that apply.)
a. Assign a password that uniquely identifies a user to the system by name and title.
b. Ensure nurse confidentiality through ongoing discussion.
c. Ensure nurses understand privacy legislation that applies to them, and their work
setting.
d. Monitor individual nurses.
A,B,C
Nurses rely on technology to lessen the number of adverse events that are well documented,
yet are challenged in keeping the unique therapeutic relationship between nurse and patient
with increasing use of technology. What approaches can be used to ensure the therapeutic
relationship is preserved (Select all that apply.)
a. Involving patients in decisions about their own care.
b. Actively listening while conducting electronic charting.
c. Showing patients what is being documented.
d. Repeatedly monitoring equipment while documenting.
A,B,C
As a nurse manager, you want to institute point-of-care devices on your unit. The rationale
that you provide to support the point-of-care devices includes which of the following?
(Select all that apply.)
a. Reduction in incidents of medication error.
b. Immediate documentation of care.
c. Improving discharge planning.
d. Increasing confusion with nursing workflow.
A,B,C
The number of adverse events such as falls and pressure ulcers on your unit is increasing.
An ideal staffing plan to address this issue would include which of the following?
a. Increasing the total number of staff on the unit.
b. Increasing the staff and registered nurse (RN) hours per patient.
c. Increasing the total number of staff and implementing 12-hour shifts.
d. Increasing the number of RNs and number of RNs with experience on the unit.
D
A small rural hospital has been designated as a critical access hospital. It has 40 beds and an
average occupancy rate of 34 beds. To prepare the staffing, the chief nursing officer
computes the occupancy as being;
a. 90%.
b. 85%.
c. 75%.
d. 60%.
B
To prepare staffing schedules, a nurse manager needs to calculate paid nonproductive time.
When calculating paid nonproductive time, the nurse manager considers:
a. Work time, educational time, and holiday time.
b. Paid hours minus worked hours.
c. Vacation time, holiday time, and sick time.
d. Paid hours minus meeting time.
C
An important aspect of managing the costs on a unit is to plan accurately for staffing needs.
Nurse managers use staffing plans to:
a. Assign staff on the unit on a daily basis.
b. Ensure that days off are planned for the staff.
c. Outline the number of individuals by classification on a per-shift basis.
d. Predict the numbers and classifications of float staff needed to augment regular
staff.
C
A nurse manager must consider a number of external variables when preparing the
personnel budget and projecting the unit’s staffing needs. An external consideration is:
a. Organizational staffing policies.
b. Staffing models.
c. Changes in services that will be offered.
d. Department of Health licensing standards.
D
A nurse manager must also consider a number of internal variables that will affect staffing
patterns. Which of the following is an internal variable to be considered?
a. Organizational staffing policies.
b. Provincial/territorial licensing standards.
c. Canadian Nurses Association guidelines.
d. Consumer expectations.
A
A nurse manager uses many sources of data when planning the unit’s workload for the year.
Which of the following data must be considered in the planning?
a. Hours of operation of the unit.
b. Trends in the numbers of acutely ill patients on the unit.
c. Maximum work stretch for each employee.
d. Weekend requirements.
B
Scheduling is a function of implementing the staffing plan by assigning unit personnel to
work specific hours and specific days of the week. To retain nursing staff, the nurse
manager must schedule:
a. All weekends off.
b. All holidays off.
c. A variety of scheduling options.
d. Rotating shifts.
C
The difference between staffing and scheduling is that staffing:
a. Puts the right person in the right position.
b. Puts the right person in the right time and place.
c. Refers to the number of nursing hours per patient per day.
d. Accounts for interpretation of benefits and compensation.
A
A busy neurologic intensive care unit and a step-down unit are most likely to use which
patient classification system?
a. Factor evaluation.
b. Prototype evaluation.
c. Canadian National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators.
d. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) system.
A
Factor evaluation systems involve classification systems in which:
a. Financial data are used to determine staff-to-patient ratios.
b. Diagnosis-related groups are used to determine the numbers of acutely ill patients
on a unit.
c. Interventions and time required for interventions are combined to determine the
levels that are required.
d. Financial resources and nursing interventions are combined to determine patient
contact hours.
C
Staff members on your unit raise concern that the number of acutely ill patients on the unit
is rising and responsiveness in addressing these needs through appropriate staffing is
lacking. They point to increased incidences of adverse and sentinel events on the unit. To
address this concern, the best action for your hospital organization is to:
a. Implement a patient classification system immediately.
b. Participate in databases that compare the outcomes and staffing levels versus those
of institutions similar to yours.
c. Provide increased numbers of staff to the unit.
d. Ignore such concerns because the number of acutely ill patients is variable.
B
A particular classification system assigns revenue according to the functional capacity of
patients and the progression of patients during their stay in rehabilitation units. More
independent patient activities such as prompted voiding require higher staff utilization than
do dependent activities but do not result in increased staff resources. This is an example of:
a. Bureaucracy.
b. Concern related to the validity of classification systems.
c. Inadequate reliability of classification systems.
d. Inappropriate subjectivity in making judgements about staffing.
B
In the past year, you have noticed an increase in patient falls on your unit. In reading studies
related to staffing and patient outcomes, you realize that you will need to plan for:
a. Higher patient care hours.
b. Safer facilities.
c. Institution of a patient classification system.
d. An increased number of RN positions.
D
In evaluating mortality rates, the head nurse on the cardiac unit is surprised to find that they
are higher on the weekend than on weekdays. In exploring the reasons for this apparent
anomaly, the head nurse focuses on:
a. Availability of diagnostic personnel.
b. Availability of physicians.
c. Communication with on-call providers.
d. Numbers of acutely ill patients.
C
What does a nurse staffing plan take into account?
a. Specific nurse-to-patient ratios per shift.
b. Participation of nurses in projecting staffing needs.
c. Compensation and benefits for each level of staff.
d. The occupancy load of a unit.
B
As the unit manager you post the staffing plan and compliance reports. This initiative is
aimed at:
a. Maintaining unit morale.
b. Complying with national requirements.
c. Demonstrating patient outcomes.
d. Inviting staff participation in decision making.
A
To maintain patient safety, studies suggest that scheduling should avoid which of the
following?
a. Rotating shifts.
b. Weekends.
c. Eight-hour shifts.
d. Mandatory overtime.
A