Critical Care Nursing:
Diagnosis and
Management
UNIT I: FOUNDATIONS OF CRITICAL CARE NURSING
Chapter 1: Critical Care Nursing Practice
1. During World War II, what type of wards were developed to care for critically injured patients?
A) Intensive care
B) Triage
C) Shock
D) Postoperative
Correct Answer: C – Shock
Rationale: During World War II, shock wards were established to care for critically injured patients.
Triage wards establish the order in which patients are seen. Postoperative wards were developed in 1900
and later evolved into intensive care units.
2. What type of practitioner has a broad depth of specialty knowledge and expertise and manages
complex clinical and system issues?
A) Registered nurses
B) Advanced practice nurses
C) Clinical nurse leaders
D) Intensivists
Correct Answer: B – Advanced practice nurses
Rationale: Advanced practice nurses (APNs) have a broad depth of knowledge and expertise in their
specialty area and manage complex clinical and systems issues. Intensivists are medical practitioners
who manage critically ill patients.
3. What type of practitioner is instrumental in ensuring care that is evidence based and that safety
programs are in place?
,A) Clinical nurse specialist
B) Advanced practice nurse
C) Registered nurse
D) Nurse practitioner
Correct Answer: A – Clinical nurse specialist
Rationale: Clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) serve in specialty roles using clinical, teaching, research,
leadership, and consultative abilities. They are instrumental in ensuring care is evidence based and safety
programs are in place.
4. Which professional organization administers critical care certification exams for registered nurses?
A) State Board of Registered Nurses
B) National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists
C) Society of Critical Care Medicine
D) American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
Correct Answer: D – American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
Rationale: The AACN administers certification exams for registered nurses. The SBON, NACNS, and SCCM
do not administer nursing certification exams.
5. Emphasis is on human integrity and stresses the theory that the body, mind, and spirit are
interdependent and inseparable. This statement describes which methodology of care?
A) Holistic care
B) Individualized care
C) Cultural care
D) Interdisciplinary care
Correct Answer: A – Holistic care
Rationale: Holistic care focuses on human integrity and stresses that the body, mind, and spirit are
interdependent and inseparable. Individualized care recognizes each patient's uniqueness.
6. The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) has developed short directives that can be
used as quick references for clinical use that are known as:
A) Critical Care Protocols
B) Practice Policies
C) Evidence-Based Research
D) Practice Alerts
Correct Answer: D – Practice Alerts
Rationale: The AACN has promulgated several evidence-based practice summaries in the form of
"Practice Alerts".
, 7. What type of therapy is an option to conventional treatment?
A) Alternative
B) Holistic
C) Complementary
D) Individualized
Correct Answer: A – Alternative
Rationale: The term alternative denotes that a specific therapy is an option or alternative to what is
considered conventional treatment of a condition or state.
8. Prayer, guided imagery, and massage are all examples of what type of treatment?
A) Alternative therapy
B) Holistic care
C) Complementary care
D) Individualized care
Correct Answer: C – Complementary care
Rationale: The term complementary describes therapies that can be used to complement or support
conventional treatments. Spirituality, prayer, guided imagery, massage, and animal-assisted therapy are
all examples.
9. What is the systematic decision-making model used by nurses termed?
A) Nursing diagnosis
B) Nursing interventions
C) Nursing evaluations
D) Nursing process
Correct Answer: D – Nursing process
Rationale: The nursing process is a systematic decision-making model that is cyclic, not linear. It includes
assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation.
10. What is a health condition primarily resolved by nursing interventions or therapies called?
A) Nursing diagnosis
B) Nursing interventions
C) Nursing outcomes
D) Nursing process
Correct Answer: A – Nursing diagnosis
Rationale: An essential and distinguishing feature of any nursing diagnosis is that it describes a health
condition that nurses can treat independently.
Diagnosis and
Management
UNIT I: FOUNDATIONS OF CRITICAL CARE NURSING
Chapter 1: Critical Care Nursing Practice
1. During World War II, what type of wards were developed to care for critically injured patients?
A) Intensive care
B) Triage
C) Shock
D) Postoperative
Correct Answer: C – Shock
Rationale: During World War II, shock wards were established to care for critically injured patients.
Triage wards establish the order in which patients are seen. Postoperative wards were developed in 1900
and later evolved into intensive care units.
2. What type of practitioner has a broad depth of specialty knowledge and expertise and manages
complex clinical and system issues?
A) Registered nurses
B) Advanced practice nurses
C) Clinical nurse leaders
D) Intensivists
Correct Answer: B – Advanced practice nurses
Rationale: Advanced practice nurses (APNs) have a broad depth of knowledge and expertise in their
specialty area and manage complex clinical and systems issues. Intensivists are medical practitioners
who manage critically ill patients.
3. What type of practitioner is instrumental in ensuring care that is evidence based and that safety
programs are in place?
,A) Clinical nurse specialist
B) Advanced practice nurse
C) Registered nurse
D) Nurse practitioner
Correct Answer: A – Clinical nurse specialist
Rationale: Clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) serve in specialty roles using clinical, teaching, research,
leadership, and consultative abilities. They are instrumental in ensuring care is evidence based and safety
programs are in place.
4. Which professional organization administers critical care certification exams for registered nurses?
A) State Board of Registered Nurses
B) National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists
C) Society of Critical Care Medicine
D) American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
Correct Answer: D – American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
Rationale: The AACN administers certification exams for registered nurses. The SBON, NACNS, and SCCM
do not administer nursing certification exams.
5. Emphasis is on human integrity and stresses the theory that the body, mind, and spirit are
interdependent and inseparable. This statement describes which methodology of care?
A) Holistic care
B) Individualized care
C) Cultural care
D) Interdisciplinary care
Correct Answer: A – Holistic care
Rationale: Holistic care focuses on human integrity and stresses that the body, mind, and spirit are
interdependent and inseparable. Individualized care recognizes each patient's uniqueness.
6. The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) has developed short directives that can be
used as quick references for clinical use that are known as:
A) Critical Care Protocols
B) Practice Policies
C) Evidence-Based Research
D) Practice Alerts
Correct Answer: D – Practice Alerts
Rationale: The AACN has promulgated several evidence-based practice summaries in the form of
"Practice Alerts".
, 7. What type of therapy is an option to conventional treatment?
A) Alternative
B) Holistic
C) Complementary
D) Individualized
Correct Answer: A – Alternative
Rationale: The term alternative denotes that a specific therapy is an option or alternative to what is
considered conventional treatment of a condition or state.
8. Prayer, guided imagery, and massage are all examples of what type of treatment?
A) Alternative therapy
B) Holistic care
C) Complementary care
D) Individualized care
Correct Answer: C – Complementary care
Rationale: The term complementary describes therapies that can be used to complement or support
conventional treatments. Spirituality, prayer, guided imagery, massage, and animal-assisted therapy are
all examples.
9. What is the systematic decision-making model used by nurses termed?
A) Nursing diagnosis
B) Nursing interventions
C) Nursing evaluations
D) Nursing process
Correct Answer: D – Nursing process
Rationale: The nursing process is a systematic decision-making model that is cyclic, not linear. It includes
assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation.
10. What is a health condition primarily resolved by nursing interventions or therapies called?
A) Nursing diagnosis
B) Nursing interventions
C) Nursing outcomes
D) Nursing process
Correct Answer: A – Nursing diagnosis
Rationale: An essential and distinguishing feature of any nursing diagnosis is that it describes a health
condition that nurses can treat independently.
