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DAVIS ADVANTAGE BASIC NURSING: THINKING, DOING, AND
CARING (4TH EDITION) EXAM GUIDE AND CORRECT ANSWERS
LATEST EDITION 2026
Davis Advantage Basic Nursing: Thinking, Doing, and Caring (4th Edition) — 250 MCQs with
Rationales
Summarized 10-Point Exam Coverage
This question bank is aligned with the 4th Edition of Davis Advantage Basic Nursing: Thinking,
Doing, and Caring by Treas, Barnett, and Smith. The textbook is organized into five major units,
and the questions below reflect the chapter structure and the "Thinking, Doing, and Caring"
framework emphasized throughout the text.
1. How Nurses Think (Chapters 1–4) — Evolution of nursing thought, clinical judgment, the
nursing process, evidence-based practice, theory, and research.
2. Factors Affecting Health (Chapters 5–13) — Lifespan development, health and illness,
stress and adaptation, psychosocial health, family health, cultural care, spirituality, and
loss.
3. Essential Nursing Interventions (Chapters 14–23) — Health promotion, communication,
patient education, documentation, vital signs, physical assessment, asepsis, safety,
hygiene, and medication administration.
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4. Supporting Physiological Function (Chapters 24–36) — Nutrition, elimination, sensation,
pain, mobility, sexual health, sleep, skin integrity, oxygenation, circulation, hydration,
and surgical care.
5. The Context for Nurses' Work (Chapters 37–40) — Community health, nursing
informatics, legal accountability, and leadership/management.
UNIT I: HOW NURSES THINK (Questions 1–40)
1. A nurse is explaining the concept of "quality and safety education for nurses" (QSEN) to a
nursing student. Which statement by the student indicates a correct understanding of the
"Patient-Centered Care" competency?
A) "I will make all clinical decisions for the patient to ensure their safety."
B) "I will recognize the patient as the source of control and a full partner in their care."
C) "I will prioritize minimizing the hospital's length of stay to reduce costs."
D) "I will use standard protocols to treat all patients with the same diagnosis identically."
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Patient-centered care involves recognizing the patient as the source of control and a
full partner in providing compassionate, coordinated care based on respect for the patient's
preferences, values, and needs. Option A is paternalistic and violates patient autonomy. Option
C focuses on cost rather than patient preferences. Option D ignores individual patient
differences and the need for individualized care.
2. What is the most influential factor that has shaped the nursing profession throughout
history, according to the foundational context of professional nursing practice?
A) Physicians' need for handmaidens to assist with medical procedures
B) Societal need for healthcare outside the home for the general public
C) Military demand for nurses in the field to care for sick and injured soldiers
D) Germ theory influence on sanitation practices in hospital settings
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Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Throughout the centuries, stability of government has been related to the success of
the military to protect or extend its domain. As the survival and well-being of soldiers is critical,
nurses provided healthcare to the sick and injured at the battle site. The physician's
handmaiden was a nursing stereotype rather than an influence on nursing. The need for
healthcare outside the home influenced the development of hospitals, not nursing. Germ
theory improved healthcare but did not shape nursing.
3. Which of the following contributions of Florence Nightingale had an immediate impact on
improving patients' health outcomes during the Crimean War?
A) Providing a clean environment by improving sanitation and ventilation
B) Improving nursing education through the establishment of formal training schools
C) Changing the delivery of care in hospitals through administrative reorganization
D) Establishing nursing as a distinct profession separate from medicine
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: Improved sanitation (a clean environment) greatly and immediately reduced the rate
of infection and mortality in hospitals during the Crimean War. The other responses are all
activities of Florence Nightingale that improved healthcare or nursing, but their impact was
long-range rather than immediate. Her environmental theory emphasized the importance of
fresh air, clean water, and sanitation.
4. All of the following are aspects of the full-spectrum nursing role. Which one is essential for
the nurse to do in order to successfully carry out all the others?
A) Thinking and reasoning about the client's care using clinical judgment
B) Providing hands-on client care such as bathing and repositioning
C) Carrying out physician orders accurately and in a timely manner
D) Delegating tasks to assistive personnel to conserve nursing resources
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Correct Answer: A
Rationale: A substantial portion of the nursing role involves using clinical judgment, critical
thinking, and problem solving, which directly affect the care the client will actually receive.
Providing hands-on care is important; however, clinical judgment is essential to do it
successfully. Carrying out physician orders is a small part of a nurse's role; it also requires
nursing assessment, planning, intervention, and evaluation. Delegation requires clinical
judgment to determine what can safely be delegated.
5. A nurse is explaining the difference between illness prevention and health promotion
activities to a group of nursing students. Which of the following is an example of an illness
prevention activity?
A) Encouraging a client to keep a food diary to track dietary habits
B) Joining a cancer support group after receiving a diagnosis
C) Administering the HPV immunization to a young adult client
D) Teaching a diabetic patient about carbohydrate counting and diet
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Administering immunization for HPV is an example of illness prevention because it
focuses on avoiding a specific disease before it occurs. A food diary is a health-promotion
activity. Joining a cancer support group is treatment, not prevention, because the person
already has the disease. Teaching a diabetic patient about diet is treatment for an existing
condition; the patient already has diabetes, so it cannot prevent diabetes.
6. Which statement best describes the primary focus of modern professional nursing practice
in contemporary healthcare settings?
A) Carrying out physician orders efficiently and without question
B) Providing holistic, patient-centered care that addresses all dimensions
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DAVIS ADVANTAGE BASIC NURSING: THINKING, DOING, AND
CARING (4TH EDITION) EXAM GUIDE AND CORRECT ANSWERS
LATEST EDITION 2026
Davis Advantage Basic Nursing: Thinking, Doing, and Caring (4th Edition) — 250 MCQs with
Rationales
Summarized 10-Point Exam Coverage
This question bank is aligned with the 4th Edition of Davis Advantage Basic Nursing: Thinking,
Doing, and Caring by Treas, Barnett, and Smith. The textbook is organized into five major units,
and the questions below reflect the chapter structure and the "Thinking, Doing, and Caring"
framework emphasized throughout the text.
1. How Nurses Think (Chapters 1–4) — Evolution of nursing thought, clinical judgment, the
nursing process, evidence-based practice, theory, and research.
2. Factors Affecting Health (Chapters 5–13) — Lifespan development, health and illness,
stress and adaptation, psychosocial health, family health, cultural care, spirituality, and
loss.
3. Essential Nursing Interventions (Chapters 14–23) — Health promotion, communication,
patient education, documentation, vital signs, physical assessment, asepsis, safety,
hygiene, and medication administration.
1|Page
,Page 2 of 116
4. Supporting Physiological Function (Chapters 24–36) — Nutrition, elimination, sensation,
pain, mobility, sexual health, sleep, skin integrity, oxygenation, circulation, hydration,
and surgical care.
5. The Context for Nurses' Work (Chapters 37–40) — Community health, nursing
informatics, legal accountability, and leadership/management.
UNIT I: HOW NURSES THINK (Questions 1–40)
1. A nurse is explaining the concept of "quality and safety education for nurses" (QSEN) to a
nursing student. Which statement by the student indicates a correct understanding of the
"Patient-Centered Care" competency?
A) "I will make all clinical decisions for the patient to ensure their safety."
B) "I will recognize the patient as the source of control and a full partner in their care."
C) "I will prioritize minimizing the hospital's length of stay to reduce costs."
D) "I will use standard protocols to treat all patients with the same diagnosis identically."
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Patient-centered care involves recognizing the patient as the source of control and a
full partner in providing compassionate, coordinated care based on respect for the patient's
preferences, values, and needs. Option A is paternalistic and violates patient autonomy. Option
C focuses on cost rather than patient preferences. Option D ignores individual patient
differences and the need for individualized care.
2. What is the most influential factor that has shaped the nursing profession throughout
history, according to the foundational context of professional nursing practice?
A) Physicians' need for handmaidens to assist with medical procedures
B) Societal need for healthcare outside the home for the general public
C) Military demand for nurses in the field to care for sick and injured soldiers
D) Germ theory influence on sanitation practices in hospital settings
2|Page
,Page 3 of 116
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Throughout the centuries, stability of government has been related to the success of
the military to protect or extend its domain. As the survival and well-being of soldiers is critical,
nurses provided healthcare to the sick and injured at the battle site. The physician's
handmaiden was a nursing stereotype rather than an influence on nursing. The need for
healthcare outside the home influenced the development of hospitals, not nursing. Germ
theory improved healthcare but did not shape nursing.
3. Which of the following contributions of Florence Nightingale had an immediate impact on
improving patients' health outcomes during the Crimean War?
A) Providing a clean environment by improving sanitation and ventilation
B) Improving nursing education through the establishment of formal training schools
C) Changing the delivery of care in hospitals through administrative reorganization
D) Establishing nursing as a distinct profession separate from medicine
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: Improved sanitation (a clean environment) greatly and immediately reduced the rate
of infection and mortality in hospitals during the Crimean War. The other responses are all
activities of Florence Nightingale that improved healthcare or nursing, but their impact was
long-range rather than immediate. Her environmental theory emphasized the importance of
fresh air, clean water, and sanitation.
4. All of the following are aspects of the full-spectrum nursing role. Which one is essential for
the nurse to do in order to successfully carry out all the others?
A) Thinking and reasoning about the client's care using clinical judgment
B) Providing hands-on client care such as bathing and repositioning
C) Carrying out physician orders accurately and in a timely manner
D) Delegating tasks to assistive personnel to conserve nursing resources
3|Page
, Page 4 of 116
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: A substantial portion of the nursing role involves using clinical judgment, critical
thinking, and problem solving, which directly affect the care the client will actually receive.
Providing hands-on care is important; however, clinical judgment is essential to do it
successfully. Carrying out physician orders is a small part of a nurse's role; it also requires
nursing assessment, planning, intervention, and evaluation. Delegation requires clinical
judgment to determine what can safely be delegated.
5. A nurse is explaining the difference between illness prevention and health promotion
activities to a group of nursing students. Which of the following is an example of an illness
prevention activity?
A) Encouraging a client to keep a food diary to track dietary habits
B) Joining a cancer support group after receiving a diagnosis
C) Administering the HPV immunization to a young adult client
D) Teaching a diabetic patient about carbohydrate counting and diet
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Administering immunization for HPV is an example of illness prevention because it
focuses on avoiding a specific disease before it occurs. A food diary is a health-promotion
activity. Joining a cancer support group is treatment, not prevention, because the person
already has the disease. Teaching a diabetic patient about diet is treatment for an existing
condition; the patient already has diabetes, so it cannot prevent diabetes.
6. Which statement best describes the primary focus of modern professional nursing practice
in contemporary healthcare settings?
A) Carrying out physician orders efficiently and without question
B) Providing holistic, patient-centered care that addresses all dimensions
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