ETHICAL AND LEGAL ISSUES NCLEX QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS LATEST 2024 VERSION VERIFIED
RATIONALE GRADED A+
4. The nurse arrives at work and is told to report (float) to the intensive care unit (ICU) for the day
because the ICU is understaffed and needs additional nurses to care for the clients. The nurse has never
worked in the ICU. The nurse should take which action first?
a. Call the hospital lawyer
b. Refuse to float to the ICU
c. Call the nursing supervisor
d. Identify tasks that can be performed safely in the ICU - ans4. D- Floating is an acceptable legal
practice used by hospitals to solve understaffing problems. Legally, the nurse cannot refuse to float
unless a union contract guarantees that nurses can work only in a specified area or the nurse can prove
the lack of knowledge for the performance of assigned tasks. When encountering this situation, the nurse
should set priorities and identify potential areas of harm to the client. The nursing supervisor is called if
the nurse is expected to perform tasks that he or she cannot safely perform. Calling the hospital lawyer is
a premature action.
5. The nurse who works on the night shift enters the medication room and finds a co-worker with a
tourniquet wrapped around the upper arm. The co-worker is about to insert a needle, attached to a
syringe containing clear liquid, in the antecubital area. Which is the most appropriate action by the nurse?
a. Call security
b. Call the police
c. Call the nursing supervisor
d. Lock the co-worker in the medication room until help is obtain - ans5. C- Nurse practice acts require
reporting impaired nurses. The board of nursing has jurisdiction over the practice of nursing and may
develop plans for treatment and supervision of the impaired nurse. This incident needs to be reported to
the nursing supervisor, who will then report to the board of nursing and other authorities, such as the
police, as required. The nurse may call security if a disturbance occurs, but no information in the question
supports this need, and so this is not the appropriate action. Option 4 is an inappropriate and unsafe
action.
6. A hospitalized client tells the nurse that a living will is being prepared and that the lawyer will be
bringing the will to the hospital today for witness signatures. The client asks the nurse for assistance
obtaining a witness to the will. Which is the most appropriate response to the client?
a. "I will sign as a witness to your signature."
b. "You will need to find a witness on your own.'
c. "Whoever is available at the time will sign as a witness for you."
d. "I will call the nursing supervisor to seek assistance regarding your request." - ans6. D- Living wills,
also known as natural death acts in some states, are required to be in writing and signed by the client.
The client's signature must be witnessed by specified individuals or notarized. Laws and guidelines
, ETHICAL AND LEGAL ISSUES NCLEX QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS LATEST 2024 VERSION VERIFIED
RATIONALE GRADED A+
regarding living wills vary from state to state, and it is the responsibility of the nurse to know the laws.
Many states prohibit any employee, including the nurse of a facility where the client is receiving care, from
being a witness. Option 2 is nontherapeutic and not a helpful response. The nurse should seek the
assistance of the nursing supervisor.
7. The nurse has made an error in a narrative documentation of an assessment finding on a client and
obtains the client's record to correct the error. The nurse should take which action to correct the error?
a. Documenting a late entry into the client's record
b. Trying to erase the error for space to write in the correct data
c. Using whiteout to delete the error to write in the correct data
d. Drawing one line through the error, initialing and dating, and then documenting the correct information.
- ans7. D- If the nurse makes an error in narrative documentation in the client's record, the nurse should
follow agency policies to correct the error. This includes drawing one line through the error, initializing and
dating the line, and then documenting the correct information. A late entry is used to document additional
information not remembered at the initial time of documentation. Erasing data from the client's record and
the use of whiteout are prohibited
8. Which identifies accurate nursing documentation notations? Select all that apply
a. The client slept through the night
b. Abdominal wound dressing is dry and intact without drainage
c. The client seemed angry when awakened for vital sign measurement
d. The client appears to become anxious when it is time for respiratory treatments
e. The client's left lower medial leg wound is 3 cm in length without redness, drainage, or edema - ans8.
A, B, E- Factual documentation contains descriptive, objective information about what the nurse sees,
hears, feels, or smells. The use of inferences without supporting factual data is not acceptable because it
can be misunderstood. The use of vague terms, such as seemed or appears is not acceptable because
these words suggest that the nurse is stating an opinion.
9. A nursing instructor delivers a lecture to nursing students regarding the issue of client's rights and asks
a nursing student to identify a situation that represents an example of invasion of client privacy. Which
situation, if identified by the student, indicates an understanding of a violation of this client right?
a. Performing a procedure without consent
b. Threatening to give a client a medication
c. Telling the client that he or she cannot leave the hospital
d. Observing care provided to the client without the client's permission - ans9. D- Invasion of privacy
occurs with unreasonable intrusion into an individual's private affairs. Performing a procedure without
AND ANSWERS LATEST 2024 VERSION VERIFIED
RATIONALE GRADED A+
4. The nurse arrives at work and is told to report (float) to the intensive care unit (ICU) for the day
because the ICU is understaffed and needs additional nurses to care for the clients. The nurse has never
worked in the ICU. The nurse should take which action first?
a. Call the hospital lawyer
b. Refuse to float to the ICU
c. Call the nursing supervisor
d. Identify tasks that can be performed safely in the ICU - ans4. D- Floating is an acceptable legal
practice used by hospitals to solve understaffing problems. Legally, the nurse cannot refuse to float
unless a union contract guarantees that nurses can work only in a specified area or the nurse can prove
the lack of knowledge for the performance of assigned tasks. When encountering this situation, the nurse
should set priorities and identify potential areas of harm to the client. The nursing supervisor is called if
the nurse is expected to perform tasks that he or she cannot safely perform. Calling the hospital lawyer is
a premature action.
5. The nurse who works on the night shift enters the medication room and finds a co-worker with a
tourniquet wrapped around the upper arm. The co-worker is about to insert a needle, attached to a
syringe containing clear liquid, in the antecubital area. Which is the most appropriate action by the nurse?
a. Call security
b. Call the police
c. Call the nursing supervisor
d. Lock the co-worker in the medication room until help is obtain - ans5. C- Nurse practice acts require
reporting impaired nurses. The board of nursing has jurisdiction over the practice of nursing and may
develop plans for treatment and supervision of the impaired nurse. This incident needs to be reported to
the nursing supervisor, who will then report to the board of nursing and other authorities, such as the
police, as required. The nurse may call security if a disturbance occurs, but no information in the question
supports this need, and so this is not the appropriate action. Option 4 is an inappropriate and unsafe
action.
6. A hospitalized client tells the nurse that a living will is being prepared and that the lawyer will be
bringing the will to the hospital today for witness signatures. The client asks the nurse for assistance
obtaining a witness to the will. Which is the most appropriate response to the client?
a. "I will sign as a witness to your signature."
b. "You will need to find a witness on your own.'
c. "Whoever is available at the time will sign as a witness for you."
d. "I will call the nursing supervisor to seek assistance regarding your request." - ans6. D- Living wills,
also known as natural death acts in some states, are required to be in writing and signed by the client.
The client's signature must be witnessed by specified individuals or notarized. Laws and guidelines
, ETHICAL AND LEGAL ISSUES NCLEX QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS LATEST 2024 VERSION VERIFIED
RATIONALE GRADED A+
regarding living wills vary from state to state, and it is the responsibility of the nurse to know the laws.
Many states prohibit any employee, including the nurse of a facility where the client is receiving care, from
being a witness. Option 2 is nontherapeutic and not a helpful response. The nurse should seek the
assistance of the nursing supervisor.
7. The nurse has made an error in a narrative documentation of an assessment finding on a client and
obtains the client's record to correct the error. The nurse should take which action to correct the error?
a. Documenting a late entry into the client's record
b. Trying to erase the error for space to write in the correct data
c. Using whiteout to delete the error to write in the correct data
d. Drawing one line through the error, initialing and dating, and then documenting the correct information.
- ans7. D- If the nurse makes an error in narrative documentation in the client's record, the nurse should
follow agency policies to correct the error. This includes drawing one line through the error, initializing and
dating the line, and then documenting the correct information. A late entry is used to document additional
information not remembered at the initial time of documentation. Erasing data from the client's record and
the use of whiteout are prohibited
8. Which identifies accurate nursing documentation notations? Select all that apply
a. The client slept through the night
b. Abdominal wound dressing is dry and intact without drainage
c. The client seemed angry when awakened for vital sign measurement
d. The client appears to become anxious when it is time for respiratory treatments
e. The client's left lower medial leg wound is 3 cm in length without redness, drainage, or edema - ans8.
A, B, E- Factual documentation contains descriptive, objective information about what the nurse sees,
hears, feels, or smells. The use of inferences without supporting factual data is not acceptable because it
can be misunderstood. The use of vague terms, such as seemed or appears is not acceptable because
these words suggest that the nurse is stating an opinion.
9. A nursing instructor delivers a lecture to nursing students regarding the issue of client's rights and asks
a nursing student to identify a situation that represents an example of invasion of client privacy. Which
situation, if identified by the student, indicates an understanding of a violation of this client right?
a. Performing a procedure without consent
b. Threatening to give a client a medication
c. Telling the client that he or she cannot leave the hospital
d. Observing care provided to the client without the client's permission - ans9. D- Invasion of privacy
occurs with unreasonable intrusion into an individual's private affairs. Performing a procedure without
