Critical Care HESI Practice Exam
The nurse is providing postprocedure care to a client who had a cardiac catheterization. The client
begins to manifest signs and symptoms associated with embolization. Which action should the nurse
take?
a. Notify the primary healthcare provider immediately
b. Apply a warm, moist compress to the incision site
c. Increase the intravenous fluid rate by 20 mL/hr
d. Monitor vital signs more frequently ANS: a
A nurse observes a window washer falling 25 feet (7.6 m) to the ground. The nurse rushes to the scene
and determines that the person is in cardiopulmonary arrest. What should the nurse do first?
a. Feel for a pulse
b. Begin chest compressions
c. Leave to call for assistance
d. Perform the abdominal thrust maneuver ANS: b
A client reports left-sided chest pain after playing racquetball. The client is hospitalized and diagnosed
with left pneumothorax. When assessing the client's left chest area, the nurse expects to identify which
finding?
,a. Dull sound on percussion
b. Vocal fremitus on palpation
c. Rales with rhonchi on auscultation
d. Absence of breath sounds on auscultation ANS: d
A client is admitted to the hospital with partial- and full-thickness burns of the chest and face sustained
while trying to extinguish a brush fire. Which is the nurse's priority concern?
a. Loss of skin integrity caused by the burns
b. Potential infection as a result of the burn injury
c. Inadequate gas exchange caused by smoke inhalation
d. Decreased fluid volume because of the depth of the burns ANS: c
During the first 48 hours after a client has sustained a thermal injury, which conditions should the nurse
assess for?
a. Hypokalemia and hyponatremia
b. Hyperkalemia and hyponatremia
,c. Hypokalemia and hypernatremia
d. Hyperkalemia and hypernatremia ANS: b
A nurse is assessing a client's ECG reading. The client's atrial and ventricular heart rates are equal at 88
beats per min. The PR interval is 0.14 seconds, and the QRS width is 0.10 seconds. Rhythm is regular
with normal P waves and QRS complexes. How will the nurse interpret this rhythm?
a. Normal sinus rhythm
b. Sinus tachycardia
c. Sinus bradycardia
d. Sinus arrhythmia ANS: a
The nurse is caring for a client with a diagnosis of necrotizing fasciitis. Which is the priority concern of
the nurse when caring for this client?
a. Fluid volume
b. Skin integrity
c. Physical mobility
d. Urinary elimination ANS: b
, A client who had extensive pelvic surgery 24 hours ago becomes cyanotic, is gasping for breath, and
reports right-sided chest pain. What should the nurse do first?
a. Obtain vital signs
b. Initiate a cardiac arrest code
c. Administer oxygen using a face mask
d. Encourage the use of an incentive spirometer ANS: c
A nurse is caring for a client with severe burns. The nurse determines that this client is at risk for
hypovolemic shock. Which physiologic finding supports the nurse's conclusion?
a. Decreased rate of glomerular filtration
b. Excessive blood loss through the burned tissues
c. Plasma proteins moving out of the intravascular compartment
d. Sodium retention occurring as a result of the aldosterone mechanism ANS: c
The nurse is caring for a client with burns and reviews the client's laboratory results: blood urea nitrogen
(BUN), 30 mg/dL (10.2 mmol/L); creatinine, 2.4 mg/dL (184 mcmol/L); serum potassium, 6.3 mEq/L (6.3
mmol/L); pH, 7.1; Po 2, 90 mm Hg; and hemoglobin (Hgb), 7.4 g/dL (74 mmol/L). Which condition does
the nurse suspect the client has based upon these findings?
The nurse is providing postprocedure care to a client who had a cardiac catheterization. The client
begins to manifest signs and symptoms associated with embolization. Which action should the nurse
take?
a. Notify the primary healthcare provider immediately
b. Apply a warm, moist compress to the incision site
c. Increase the intravenous fluid rate by 20 mL/hr
d. Monitor vital signs more frequently ANS: a
A nurse observes a window washer falling 25 feet (7.6 m) to the ground. The nurse rushes to the scene
and determines that the person is in cardiopulmonary arrest. What should the nurse do first?
a. Feel for a pulse
b. Begin chest compressions
c. Leave to call for assistance
d. Perform the abdominal thrust maneuver ANS: b
A client reports left-sided chest pain after playing racquetball. The client is hospitalized and diagnosed
with left pneumothorax. When assessing the client's left chest area, the nurse expects to identify which
finding?
,a. Dull sound on percussion
b. Vocal fremitus on palpation
c. Rales with rhonchi on auscultation
d. Absence of breath sounds on auscultation ANS: d
A client is admitted to the hospital with partial- and full-thickness burns of the chest and face sustained
while trying to extinguish a brush fire. Which is the nurse's priority concern?
a. Loss of skin integrity caused by the burns
b. Potential infection as a result of the burn injury
c. Inadequate gas exchange caused by smoke inhalation
d. Decreased fluid volume because of the depth of the burns ANS: c
During the first 48 hours after a client has sustained a thermal injury, which conditions should the nurse
assess for?
a. Hypokalemia and hyponatremia
b. Hyperkalemia and hyponatremia
,c. Hypokalemia and hypernatremia
d. Hyperkalemia and hypernatremia ANS: b
A nurse is assessing a client's ECG reading. The client's atrial and ventricular heart rates are equal at 88
beats per min. The PR interval is 0.14 seconds, and the QRS width is 0.10 seconds. Rhythm is regular
with normal P waves and QRS complexes. How will the nurse interpret this rhythm?
a. Normal sinus rhythm
b. Sinus tachycardia
c. Sinus bradycardia
d. Sinus arrhythmia ANS: a
The nurse is caring for a client with a diagnosis of necrotizing fasciitis. Which is the priority concern of
the nurse when caring for this client?
a. Fluid volume
b. Skin integrity
c. Physical mobility
d. Urinary elimination ANS: b
, A client who had extensive pelvic surgery 24 hours ago becomes cyanotic, is gasping for breath, and
reports right-sided chest pain. What should the nurse do first?
a. Obtain vital signs
b. Initiate a cardiac arrest code
c. Administer oxygen using a face mask
d. Encourage the use of an incentive spirometer ANS: c
A nurse is caring for a client with severe burns. The nurse determines that this client is at risk for
hypovolemic shock. Which physiologic finding supports the nurse's conclusion?
a. Decreased rate of glomerular filtration
b. Excessive blood loss through the burned tissues
c. Plasma proteins moving out of the intravascular compartment
d. Sodium retention occurring as a result of the aldosterone mechanism ANS: c
The nurse is caring for a client with burns and reviews the client's laboratory results: blood urea nitrogen
(BUN), 30 mg/dL (10.2 mmol/L); creatinine, 2.4 mg/dL (184 mcmol/L); serum potassium, 6.3 mEq/L (6.3
mmol/L); pH, 7.1; Po 2, 90 mm Hg; and hemoglobin (Hgb), 7.4 g/dL (74 mmol/L). Which condition does
the nurse suspect the client has based upon these findings?
