Page 1 of 100
EVIDENCE-BASED PHYSICAL EXAMINATION: BEST
PRACTICES FOR HEALTH & WELL-BEING ASSESSMENT
EXAM QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED QUESTIONS DETAILED
RATIONALES GRADED A+
Evidence-Based Physical Examination: Best Practices for Health & Well-Being Assessment —
Original Practice Questions — Evidence-Based Physical Examination (300 MCQs)
Part I: Foundations of Clinical Practice (Questions 1–60)
Chapter 1: Approach to Evidence-Based Assessment (Questions 1–15)
1. After completing an initial assessment of a patient, the nurse has charted that his
respirations are eupneic and his pulse is 58 beats per minute. These types of data would be:
A) Objective
B) Reflective
C) Subjective
D) Introspective
Answer: A — Objective
Rationale: Objective data are what the health professional observes by inspecting, percussing,
palpating, and auscultating during the physical examination. Subjective data is what the person
says about himself or herself during history taking .
2. A patient tells the nurse that he is very nervous, is nauseated, and "feels hot." These types
of data would be:
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A) Objective
B) Reflective
C) Subjective
D) Introspective
Answer: C — Subjective
Rationale: Subjective data are what the person says about himself or herself during history
taking .
3. The patient's record, laboratory studies, objective data, and subjective data combine to
form the:
A) Data base
B) Admitting data
C) Financial statement
D) Discharge summary
Answer: A — Data base
Rationale: Together with the patient's record and laboratory studies, the objective and
subjective data form the data base .
4. When listening to a patient's breath sounds, the nurse is unsure of a sound that is heard.
The nurse's next action should be to:
A) Immediately notify the patient's physician
B) Document the sound exactly as it was heard
C) Validate the data by asking a coworker to listen to the breath sounds
D) Assess again in 20 minutes to note whether the sound is still present
Answer: C — Validate the data by asking a coworker to listen to the breath sounds
Rationale: When unsure of a sound heard while listening to a patient's breath sounds, the nurse
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validates the data to ensure accuracy. If the nurse has less experience in an area, then he or she
asks an expert to listen .
5. The nurse is conducting a class for new graduate nurses. During the teaching session, the
nurse should keep in mind that novice nurses, without a background of skills and experience
from which to draw, are more likely to make their decisions using:
A) Intuition
B) A set of rules
C) Articles in journals
D) Advice from supervisors
Answer: B — A set of rules
Rationale: Novice nurses operate from a set of defined, structured rules. The expert practitioner
uses intuitive links .
6. Expert nurses learn to attend to a pattern of assessment data and act without consciously
labeling it. These responses are referred to as:
A) Intuition
B) The nursing process
C) Clinical knowledge
D) Diagnostic reasoning
Answer: A — Intuition
Rationale: Intuition is characterized by pattern recognition—expert nurses learn to attend to a
pattern of assessment data and act without consciously labeling it .
7. The nurse is reviewing information about evidence-based practice (EBP). Which statement
best reflects EBP?
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A) EBP relies on tradition for support of best practices
B) EBP is simply the use of best practice techniques for the treatment of patients
C) EBP emphasizes the use of best evidence with the clinician's experience
D) The patient's own preferences are not important with EBP
Answer: C — EBP emphasizes the use of best evidence with the clinician's experience
Rationale: EBP is a systematic approach to practice that emphasizes the use of best evidence in
combination with the clinician's experience, as well as patient preferences and values, when
making decisions about care and treatment .
8. The nurse is conducting a class on priority setting for a group of new graduate nurses.
Which is an example of a first-level priority problem?
A) Patient with postoperative pain
B) Newly diagnosed patient with diabetes who needs diabetic teaching
C) Individual with a small laceration on the sole of the foot
D) Individual with shortness of breath and respiratory distress
Answer: D — Individual with shortness of breath and respiratory distress
Rationale: First-level priority problems are those that are emergent, life threatening, and
immediate (e.g., establishing an airway, supporting breathing, maintaining circulation,
monitoring abnormal vital signs) .
9. When considering priority setting of problems, the nurse keeps in mind that second-level
priority problems include which of these aspects?
A) Low self-esteem
B) Lack of knowledge
C) Abnormal laboratory values
D) Severely abnormal vital signs
EVIDENCE-BASED PHYSICAL EXAMINATION: BEST
PRACTICES FOR HEALTH & WELL-BEING ASSESSMENT
EXAM QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED QUESTIONS DETAILED
RATIONALES GRADED A+
Evidence-Based Physical Examination: Best Practices for Health & Well-Being Assessment —
Original Practice Questions — Evidence-Based Physical Examination (300 MCQs)
Part I: Foundations of Clinical Practice (Questions 1–60)
Chapter 1: Approach to Evidence-Based Assessment (Questions 1–15)
1. After completing an initial assessment of a patient, the nurse has charted that his
respirations are eupneic and his pulse is 58 beats per minute. These types of data would be:
A) Objective
B) Reflective
C) Subjective
D) Introspective
Answer: A — Objective
Rationale: Objective data are what the health professional observes by inspecting, percussing,
palpating, and auscultating during the physical examination. Subjective data is what the person
says about himself or herself during history taking .
2. A patient tells the nurse that he is very nervous, is nauseated, and "feels hot." These types
of data would be:
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A) Objective
B) Reflective
C) Subjective
D) Introspective
Answer: C — Subjective
Rationale: Subjective data are what the person says about himself or herself during history
taking .
3. The patient's record, laboratory studies, objective data, and subjective data combine to
form the:
A) Data base
B) Admitting data
C) Financial statement
D) Discharge summary
Answer: A — Data base
Rationale: Together with the patient's record and laboratory studies, the objective and
subjective data form the data base .
4. When listening to a patient's breath sounds, the nurse is unsure of a sound that is heard.
The nurse's next action should be to:
A) Immediately notify the patient's physician
B) Document the sound exactly as it was heard
C) Validate the data by asking a coworker to listen to the breath sounds
D) Assess again in 20 minutes to note whether the sound is still present
Answer: C — Validate the data by asking a coworker to listen to the breath sounds
Rationale: When unsure of a sound heard while listening to a patient's breath sounds, the nurse
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validates the data to ensure accuracy. If the nurse has less experience in an area, then he or she
asks an expert to listen .
5. The nurse is conducting a class for new graduate nurses. During the teaching session, the
nurse should keep in mind that novice nurses, without a background of skills and experience
from which to draw, are more likely to make their decisions using:
A) Intuition
B) A set of rules
C) Articles in journals
D) Advice from supervisors
Answer: B — A set of rules
Rationale: Novice nurses operate from a set of defined, structured rules. The expert practitioner
uses intuitive links .
6. Expert nurses learn to attend to a pattern of assessment data and act without consciously
labeling it. These responses are referred to as:
A) Intuition
B) The nursing process
C) Clinical knowledge
D) Diagnostic reasoning
Answer: A — Intuition
Rationale: Intuition is characterized by pattern recognition—expert nurses learn to attend to a
pattern of assessment data and act without consciously labeling it .
7. The nurse is reviewing information about evidence-based practice (EBP). Which statement
best reflects EBP?
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A) EBP relies on tradition for support of best practices
B) EBP is simply the use of best practice techniques for the treatment of patients
C) EBP emphasizes the use of best evidence with the clinician's experience
D) The patient's own preferences are not important with EBP
Answer: C — EBP emphasizes the use of best evidence with the clinician's experience
Rationale: EBP is a systematic approach to practice that emphasizes the use of best evidence in
combination with the clinician's experience, as well as patient preferences and values, when
making decisions about care and treatment .
8. The nurse is conducting a class on priority setting for a group of new graduate nurses.
Which is an example of a first-level priority problem?
A) Patient with postoperative pain
B) Newly diagnosed patient with diabetes who needs diabetic teaching
C) Individual with a small laceration on the sole of the foot
D) Individual with shortness of breath and respiratory distress
Answer: D — Individual with shortness of breath and respiratory distress
Rationale: First-level priority problems are those that are emergent, life threatening, and
immediate (e.g., establishing an airway, supporting breathing, maintaining circulation,
monitoring abnormal vital signs) .
9. When considering priority setting of problems, the nurse keeps in mind that second-level
priority problems include which of these aspects?
A) Low self-esteem
B) Lack of knowledge
C) Abnormal laboratory values
D) Severely abnormal vital signs
