ADVANCED HEALTH ASSESSMENT AND
DIAGNOSTIC REASONING 3 BY RHOADS 2026
PRACTICE SET MOCK EXAM REVISION NOTES
AND SOLUTIONS EXPERT GRADE A+
◉ Ethel is a 68 year old Caucasian female who is new to your area.
She shows you multiple brown colored, flat lesions on her face,
chest, and hands that have been present for years. You respond that
these are likely:
A) solar lentigos
B) melanomas
C) keloids
D) fissures. Answer: A) solar lentigos
solar lentigos are from sun damage, are more common on the face,
shoulders, and hands.
◉ A 27 year old female patient has three furuncles connected
around a hair follicle. You use the following term in your charting:
A) nodules
B) carbuncle
C) macules
,D) bulla Answer: B) carbuncle
Multiple furuncles around a hair follicle form a carbuncle.
◉ A young man comes to you with an extremely pruritic rash over
his knees and elbows which has come and gone for several years. It
seems to be worse in the winter and improves with some sun
exposure. On examination, you notice scabbing and crusting with
some silvery scale, and you are observant enough to notice small
"pits" in his nails. What would account for these findings?
A) Eczema
B) Pityriasis rosea
C) Psoriasis
D) Tinea infection Answer: C) Psoriasis
Psoriasis: silvery scaly papules or plaques, mainly on the extensor
surfaces. Pitting: punctate depressions of the nail plate caused by
defective layering of the superficial nail plate by the proximal nail
matrix. Usually associated with psoriasis.
◉ Suzanne, a 25 year old, comes to your clinic to establish care. You
are the student preparing to go into the examination room to
interview her. Which of the following is the most logical sequence
for the patient-provider interview?
,A) Establish the agenda, negotiate a plan, establish rapport, and
invite the patient's story.
B) Invite the patient's story, negotiate a plan, establish the agenda,
and establish rapport.
C) Greet the patient, establish rapport, invite the patient's story,
establish the agenda, expand and clarify the patient's story, and
negotiate a plan.
D) Negotiate a plan, establish an agenda, invite the patient's story,
and establish rapport. Answer: C) Greet the patient, establish
rapport, invite the patient's story, establish the agenda, expand and
clarify the patient's story, and negotiate a plan.
The sequence of the interview: Greeting the patient and establishing
rapport. Taking notes. Establishing the agenda for the interview.
Inviting the patient's story. Expanding and clarifying the patient's
story. Sharing the treatment plan.
◉ A young woman undergoes cranial nerve testing. On touching the
soft palate, her uvula deviates to the left. Which of the following is
likely?
A) CN IX lesion on the left
B) CN X lesion on the left
C) CN IX lesion on the right
D) CN X lesion on the right Answer: D) CN X lesion on the right
, In cranial nerve X paralysis, the soft palate fails to rise and the uvula
deviates to the opposite side.
◉ When performing posterior palpation of the thyroid gland, you
should do all fo the following, EXCEPT:
A) Have the patient tip his or her head forward and slightly to the
side.
B) Place your index fingers above the cricoid cartilage.
C) Palpate between the sternocleidomastoid muscle and the trachea
for the lobes of the thyroid.
D) Move your fingers laterally to palpate for the thyroid lobes.
Answer: B) Place your index fingers above the cricoid cartilage.
Place the fingers of both hands on the patient's neck so that your
index fingers are just BELOW the cricoid cartilage.
◉ You are interviewing an elderly woman in the ambulatory setting
and trying to get more information about her urinary symptoms.
Which of the following techniques is NOT a component of guided
questioning?
A) Reassuring the patient that the urinary symptoms are benign and
that she doesn't need to worry about it being a sign of cancer.
B) Offering the patient multiple choices in order to clarify the
character of the urinary symptoms she is experiencing.
DIAGNOSTIC REASONING 3 BY RHOADS 2026
PRACTICE SET MOCK EXAM REVISION NOTES
AND SOLUTIONS EXPERT GRADE A+
◉ Ethel is a 68 year old Caucasian female who is new to your area.
She shows you multiple brown colored, flat lesions on her face,
chest, and hands that have been present for years. You respond that
these are likely:
A) solar lentigos
B) melanomas
C) keloids
D) fissures. Answer: A) solar lentigos
solar lentigos are from sun damage, are more common on the face,
shoulders, and hands.
◉ A 27 year old female patient has three furuncles connected
around a hair follicle. You use the following term in your charting:
A) nodules
B) carbuncle
C) macules
,D) bulla Answer: B) carbuncle
Multiple furuncles around a hair follicle form a carbuncle.
◉ A young man comes to you with an extremely pruritic rash over
his knees and elbows which has come and gone for several years. It
seems to be worse in the winter and improves with some sun
exposure. On examination, you notice scabbing and crusting with
some silvery scale, and you are observant enough to notice small
"pits" in his nails. What would account for these findings?
A) Eczema
B) Pityriasis rosea
C) Psoriasis
D) Tinea infection Answer: C) Psoriasis
Psoriasis: silvery scaly papules or plaques, mainly on the extensor
surfaces. Pitting: punctate depressions of the nail plate caused by
defective layering of the superficial nail plate by the proximal nail
matrix. Usually associated with psoriasis.
◉ Suzanne, a 25 year old, comes to your clinic to establish care. You
are the student preparing to go into the examination room to
interview her. Which of the following is the most logical sequence
for the patient-provider interview?
,A) Establish the agenda, negotiate a plan, establish rapport, and
invite the patient's story.
B) Invite the patient's story, negotiate a plan, establish the agenda,
and establish rapport.
C) Greet the patient, establish rapport, invite the patient's story,
establish the agenda, expand and clarify the patient's story, and
negotiate a plan.
D) Negotiate a plan, establish an agenda, invite the patient's story,
and establish rapport. Answer: C) Greet the patient, establish
rapport, invite the patient's story, establish the agenda, expand and
clarify the patient's story, and negotiate a plan.
The sequence of the interview: Greeting the patient and establishing
rapport. Taking notes. Establishing the agenda for the interview.
Inviting the patient's story. Expanding and clarifying the patient's
story. Sharing the treatment plan.
◉ A young woman undergoes cranial nerve testing. On touching the
soft palate, her uvula deviates to the left. Which of the following is
likely?
A) CN IX lesion on the left
B) CN X lesion on the left
C) CN IX lesion on the right
D) CN X lesion on the right Answer: D) CN X lesion on the right
, In cranial nerve X paralysis, the soft palate fails to rise and the uvula
deviates to the opposite side.
◉ When performing posterior palpation of the thyroid gland, you
should do all fo the following, EXCEPT:
A) Have the patient tip his or her head forward and slightly to the
side.
B) Place your index fingers above the cricoid cartilage.
C) Palpate between the sternocleidomastoid muscle and the trachea
for the lobes of the thyroid.
D) Move your fingers laterally to palpate for the thyroid lobes.
Answer: B) Place your index fingers above the cricoid cartilage.
Place the fingers of both hands on the patient's neck so that your
index fingers are just BELOW the cricoid cartilage.
◉ You are interviewing an elderly woman in the ambulatory setting
and trying to get more information about her urinary symptoms.
Which of the following techniques is NOT a component of guided
questioning?
A) Reassuring the patient that the urinary symptoms are benign and
that she doesn't need to worry about it being a sign of cancer.
B) Offering the patient multiple choices in order to clarify the
character of the urinary symptoms she is experiencing.
