HESI Health Assessment HESI Practice
Exam Questions and Answers
1.The nurse hears bilateral louder, longer, and lower tones
when percussing over the lungs of a 4-year old child. What
should the nurse do next?
a) Palpate over the area for increased pain and tenderness.
b) Ask the child to take shallow breaths and percuss over the
area again.
c) Refer the child immediately because of an increased amount
of air in the lungs.
d) Consider this a normal finding for a child this age and
proceed with the examination.
Answer d) Consider this a normal finding for a child this age and
proceed with the examination.
2.A patient has suddenly developed shortness of breath and
appears to be in significant respiratory distress. After putting a
call in to the physician and placing the patient on oxygen,
which of these is the best action for the nurse to take when
assessing the patient further?
a) Count the patient's respirations.
b) Percuss the thorax bilaterally, noting any differences in
percussion tones.
,c) Call for a chest x-ray and wait for the results before
beginning an assess- ment.
d) Inspect the thorax for any new masses and bleeding
associated with respirations.
Answer
3.When performing a physical examination, safety must be
considered to protect the examiner and the patient against the
spread of infection. Which of these statements describes the
most appropriate action the nurse should take when
performing a physical examination?
a) There is no need to wash one's hands after removing gloves,
as long as the gloves are still
b) Wash hands before and after every physical patient encounter.
c) Wash hands between the examination of each body system
to prevent the spread of bacteria from one part of the body to
another.
d) Wear gloves throughout the entire examination to
demonstrate to the pa- tient concern regarding the spread of
infectious diseases.
Answer b) b) Wash hands before and after every physical patient
encounter.
4.The nurse is teaching a class on basic assessment skills.
Which of these statements is true regarding the stethoscope
,and its use?
a) The slope of the earpieces should point posteriorly (toward the
occiput).
b) The stethoscope does not magnify sound but does block out
extraneous room noise.
c) The fit and quality of the stethoscope are not as important
as its ability to magnify sound.
d)The ideal tubing length should be 22 inches to dampen
distortion of sound.
Answer
5.The nurse is conducting a patient interview. Which statement
made by the patient should the nurse explore more fully during
the interview? The patient states that he
a) "Sleeps like a baby"
b) Has no health problems
c) "Never did too good in school"
d) Currently is not taking any medication
Answer c) "Never did too good in school"
6.The nurse is preparing to use a stethoscope for auscultation.
Which state- ment is true regarding the diaphragm of the
stethoscope?
a) The diaphragm is used to listen for high-pitched sounds.
b) The diaphragm is used to listen for low-pitched sounds.
, c) The diaphragm should be held lightly against the person's
skin to block out low-pitched sounds.
d) The diaphragm should be held lightly against the person's
skin to listen for extra heart sounds and murmurs.
Answer
7.A patient is admitted to the unit after an automobile accident.
The nurse begins the mental status examination and finds that
the patient's speech is dysarthric and that she is lethargic. The
nurse's best approach regarding this examination is to
a) Plan to defer the rest of the mental status examination
b) Skip the language portion of the examination and go on to
assess mood and affect
c) Do an in-depth speech evaluation and defer the mental status
examination to another time
d) Go ahead and assess for suicidal thoughts because dysarthria
is often ac- companied by severe depression
Answer b) Skip the language portion of the examination and go on to
assess mood and affect
8.Before auscultating the abdomen for the presence of bowel
sounds on a patient, the nurse should
a) Warm the end piece of the stethoscope by placing it in warm
water
Exam Questions and Answers
1.The nurse hears bilateral louder, longer, and lower tones
when percussing over the lungs of a 4-year old child. What
should the nurse do next?
a) Palpate over the area for increased pain and tenderness.
b) Ask the child to take shallow breaths and percuss over the
area again.
c) Refer the child immediately because of an increased amount
of air in the lungs.
d) Consider this a normal finding for a child this age and
proceed with the examination.
Answer d) Consider this a normal finding for a child this age and
proceed with the examination.
2.A patient has suddenly developed shortness of breath and
appears to be in significant respiratory distress. After putting a
call in to the physician and placing the patient on oxygen,
which of these is the best action for the nurse to take when
assessing the patient further?
a) Count the patient's respirations.
b) Percuss the thorax bilaterally, noting any differences in
percussion tones.
,c) Call for a chest x-ray and wait for the results before
beginning an assess- ment.
d) Inspect the thorax for any new masses and bleeding
associated with respirations.
Answer
3.When performing a physical examination, safety must be
considered to protect the examiner and the patient against the
spread of infection. Which of these statements describes the
most appropriate action the nurse should take when
performing a physical examination?
a) There is no need to wash one's hands after removing gloves,
as long as the gloves are still
b) Wash hands before and after every physical patient encounter.
c) Wash hands between the examination of each body system
to prevent the spread of bacteria from one part of the body to
another.
d) Wear gloves throughout the entire examination to
demonstrate to the pa- tient concern regarding the spread of
infectious diseases.
Answer b) b) Wash hands before and after every physical patient
encounter.
4.The nurse is teaching a class on basic assessment skills.
Which of these statements is true regarding the stethoscope
,and its use?
a) The slope of the earpieces should point posteriorly (toward the
occiput).
b) The stethoscope does not magnify sound but does block out
extraneous room noise.
c) The fit and quality of the stethoscope are not as important
as its ability to magnify sound.
d)The ideal tubing length should be 22 inches to dampen
distortion of sound.
Answer
5.The nurse is conducting a patient interview. Which statement
made by the patient should the nurse explore more fully during
the interview? The patient states that he
a) "Sleeps like a baby"
b) Has no health problems
c) "Never did too good in school"
d) Currently is not taking any medication
Answer c) "Never did too good in school"
6.The nurse is preparing to use a stethoscope for auscultation.
Which state- ment is true regarding the diaphragm of the
stethoscope?
a) The diaphragm is used to listen for high-pitched sounds.
b) The diaphragm is used to listen for low-pitched sounds.
, c) The diaphragm should be held lightly against the person's
skin to block out low-pitched sounds.
d) The diaphragm should be held lightly against the person's
skin to listen for extra heart sounds and murmurs.
Answer
7.A patient is admitted to the unit after an automobile accident.
The nurse begins the mental status examination and finds that
the patient's speech is dysarthric and that she is lethargic. The
nurse's best approach regarding this examination is to
a) Plan to defer the rest of the mental status examination
b) Skip the language portion of the examination and go on to
assess mood and affect
c) Do an in-depth speech evaluation and defer the mental status
examination to another time
d) Go ahead and assess for suicidal thoughts because dysarthria
is often ac- companied by severe depression
Answer b) Skip the language portion of the examination and go on to
assess mood and affect
8.Before auscultating the abdomen for the presence of bowel
sounds on a patient, the nurse should
a) Warm the end piece of the stethoscope by placing it in warm
water
