WGU C784 Applied Healthcare Statistics OA Actual
Exam 2026/2027 | Questions with Verified Answers |
100% Correct | Pass Guaranteed
SECTION 1: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS & DATA VISUALIZATION
Competency Focus: C784 Competency 1: Describe and visualize healthcare data using
appropriate statistical methods and graphical displays.
Q1: A quality improvement team collects patient satisfaction scores (1-10 scale) from
50 discharged patients. The data shows: mean = 8.2, median = 8.5, mode = 9.0. What
does this distribution suggest about the data's shape?
A. Normal distribution
B. Negatively skewed distribution
C. Positively skewed distribution
D. Uniform distribution
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.1: Analyze distribution characteristics
using measures of central tendency.
Distribution Analysis: When mean < median < mode, this indicates negative (left) skew.
The tail extends toward lower values.
Healthcare Context: Most patients report high satisfaction (mode = 9), but some
outliers with lower scores pull the mean below the median.
Distractor Analysis: A would require mean ≈ median ≈ mode. C would show mean >
median > mode. D would show equal frequencies across values.
,Q2 (Select all that apply): A hospital administrator needs to display the proportion of
different insurance types (Medicare, Medicaid, Private, Uninsured) among 1,000
patients. Which visualizations are most appropriate? (Select all that apply.)
A. Pie chart
B. Bar chart
C. Histogram
D. Box plot
E. Pareto chart
Correct Answer: A, B, E
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.3: Select appropriate graphical displays for
categorical data.
Categorical Data Visualization: Pie charts (A) show proportions effectively. Bar charts
(B) compare categories clearly. Pareto charts (E) highlight the most frequent categories.
Inappropriate Choices: Histograms (C) display continuous data distributions. Box plots
(D) show continuous variable distributions and outliers.
Q3: Calculate the interquartile range (IQR) for the following patient length-of-stay data
(in days): [2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 15, 20, 25, 30, 45]
A. 12 days
B. 15 days
C. 18 days
D. 20 days
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.2: Calculate and interpret measures of
variability.
Calculation Steps:
1. Q1 position: (15+1)/4 = 4th value = 4 days
2. Q3 position: 3(15+1)/4 = 12th value = 20 days
IQR = Q3 - Q1 = 20 - 4 = 15 days
, 3. Distractor Analysis: A (12) is close but incorrect. C (18) and D (20) represent
other spread measures.
Q4: A stem-and-leaf plot displays patient ages as follows: Stem(10s) | Leaf(1s) → 4 | 2 5
8 9, 5 | 0 1 3 6 7 9, 6 | 1 2 4 5 8, 7 | 0 3 5. What percentage of patients are 65 years or
older?
A. 15%
B. 25%
C. 35%
D. 40%
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.4: Interpret stem-and-leaf plots and extract
specific information.
Data Extraction: Total patients = 17. Patients ≥65: 65, 68, 70, 73, 75 = 5 patients.
Percentage Calculation: (5/17) × 100 = 29.4%, closest to 25%.
Healthcare Application: Understanding age distributions helps with resource allocation
and care planning.
Q5: Which measure of central tendency is most appropriate for reporting the "typical"
salary of hospital executives when the data includes one CEO with an extremely high
salary?
A. Mean
B. Median
C. Mode
D. Midrange
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.5: Select appropriate measures of central
tendency based on data characteristics.
Robustness to Outliers: The median is resistant to extreme values, making it ideal for
skewed income data.
Exam 2026/2027 | Questions with Verified Answers |
100% Correct | Pass Guaranteed
SECTION 1: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS & DATA VISUALIZATION
Competency Focus: C784 Competency 1: Describe and visualize healthcare data using
appropriate statistical methods and graphical displays.
Q1: A quality improvement team collects patient satisfaction scores (1-10 scale) from
50 discharged patients. The data shows: mean = 8.2, median = 8.5, mode = 9.0. What
does this distribution suggest about the data's shape?
A. Normal distribution
B. Negatively skewed distribution
C. Positively skewed distribution
D. Uniform distribution
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.1: Analyze distribution characteristics
using measures of central tendency.
Distribution Analysis: When mean < median < mode, this indicates negative (left) skew.
The tail extends toward lower values.
Healthcare Context: Most patients report high satisfaction (mode = 9), but some
outliers with lower scores pull the mean below the median.
Distractor Analysis: A would require mean ≈ median ≈ mode. C would show mean >
median > mode. D would show equal frequencies across values.
,Q2 (Select all that apply): A hospital administrator needs to display the proportion of
different insurance types (Medicare, Medicaid, Private, Uninsured) among 1,000
patients. Which visualizations are most appropriate? (Select all that apply.)
A. Pie chart
B. Bar chart
C. Histogram
D. Box plot
E. Pareto chart
Correct Answer: A, B, E
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.3: Select appropriate graphical displays for
categorical data.
Categorical Data Visualization: Pie charts (A) show proportions effectively. Bar charts
(B) compare categories clearly. Pareto charts (E) highlight the most frequent categories.
Inappropriate Choices: Histograms (C) display continuous data distributions. Box plots
(D) show continuous variable distributions and outliers.
Q3: Calculate the interquartile range (IQR) for the following patient length-of-stay data
(in days): [2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 15, 20, 25, 30, 45]
A. 12 days
B. 15 days
C. 18 days
D. 20 days
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.2: Calculate and interpret measures of
variability.
Calculation Steps:
1. Q1 position: (15+1)/4 = 4th value = 4 days
2. Q3 position: 3(15+1)/4 = 12th value = 20 days
IQR = Q3 - Q1 = 20 - 4 = 15 days
, 3. Distractor Analysis: A (12) is close but incorrect. C (18) and D (20) represent
other spread measures.
Q4: A stem-and-leaf plot displays patient ages as follows: Stem(10s) | Leaf(1s) → 4 | 2 5
8 9, 5 | 0 1 3 6 7 9, 6 | 1 2 4 5 8, 7 | 0 3 5. What percentage of patients are 65 years or
older?
A. 15%
B. 25%
C. 35%
D. 40%
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.4: Interpret stem-and-leaf plots and extract
specific information.
Data Extraction: Total patients = 17. Patients ≥65: 65, 68, 70, 73, 75 = 5 patients.
Percentage Calculation: (5/17) × 100 = 29.4%, closest to 25%.
Healthcare Application: Understanding age distributions helps with resource allocation
and care planning.
Q5: Which measure of central tendency is most appropriate for reporting the "typical"
salary of hospital executives when the data includes one CEO with an extremely high
salary?
A. Mean
B. Median
C. Mode
D. Midrange
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Competency: C784 Competency 1.5: Select appropriate measures of central
tendency based on data characteristics.
Robustness to Outliers: The median is resistant to extreme values, making it ideal for
skewed income data.
