NUR 253-256 Mental Health Final Exam :
2026/2027 Questions and 100% Correct Answers –
Galen
Overview:
NUR 253-256 Mental Health Final Exam overview covering end-of-life care, grief
theories, mourning, palliative and hospice principles, ethical issues in dying.
Includes substance use disorders, alcohol withdrawal, opioid intoxication,
naltrexone, smoking cessation, stages of change. Focuses on eating disorders,
anorexia and bulimia complications and management. Addresses family violence,
neglect, intimate partner abuse, sexual assault, forensic nursing, aggression de-
escalation, safety planning, caregiver burden, dementia care, and therapeutic
communication and exam preparation.
Correct answer highlighted in bold Green + rationales
1. The nurse is providing support to the family of a recently deceased client. A family member
states, "My father took me fishing all the time. He can't physically take me anymore, but he
will be watching over me. I really miss him." The nurse recognizes the family member is
experiencing
A. Mourning
B. Anticipatory grief
C. Disenfranchised grief
D. Bereavement
Rationale: Mourning is the outward expression of grief. The family member is expressing
feelings and sharing memories, which reflects the outward, cultural, and personal expression
of the loss, not anticipatory or disenfranchised grief.
2. The nurse educator is providing an in-service to nursing staff on a unit that has recently
experienced an increase in client deaths. The nurse educator knows that a priority
recommendation for nurses who are struggling to cope with all the loss is
A. Creating sustainable practice of self-care and balance
,B. Working additional shifts to provide support for each other
C. Volunteering on days off to stay busy and make a positive difference
D. Temporarily transferring to another unit with fewer terminal diagnosis
Rationale: Compassion fatigue and burnout are common when dealing with repeated deaths.
Establishing self-care, boundaries, and balance is the evidence-based priority intervention to
prevent burnout and support resilience.
3. The nurse is caring for a client whose spouse of 52 years suddenly died. Which of the
following statements by the nurse is most therapeutic?
A. "Your loved one is no longer in pain: you should be happy for that."
B. "You can be grateful for the time you had together"
C. "Your loved one was very special and will not be replaceable"
D. "I know how you feel: I have had many family members pass away"
Rationale: This statement validates the client's unique loss and does not minimize, give false
reassurance, or shift focus to the nurse. Therapeutic communication acknowledges the
significance and irreplaceability of the relationship.
4. The nurse is caring for a client who is dying and in severe pain. Which of the following
interventions should the nurse consider as the priority?
A. Teach the client the end stages of grief.
B. Enhance the client's quality of life.
C. Encourage the client to speak to a grief counselor.
D. Support the clients family in grieving.
Rationale: While enhancing quality of life is central to palliative care, the highlighted priority
in this exam is supporting the family through anticipatory grief. Pain management plus family
support improves end-of-life outcomes. In practice, pain control and quality of life would be
the clinical priority.
, 5. The nurse is caring for a terminally ill client. Which of the following statements by the nurse
best demonstrates the art of presence?
A. "Would you like to talk about what this experience is like for you?"
B. "I am going to sit here and read a book, just pretend I am not here."
C. "I am going to the other room so you can be alone and reflect on your life; please call out if
you need me."
D. "Are you feeling guilty about leaving your wife and kids behind?"
Rationale: Art of presence means being available, attentive, and inviting the client to share
their lived experience without judgment or assumption. Option A offers open, client-centered
presence.
6. The home health nurse is caring for a client who is dying from acquired immune deficiency
syndrome (AIDS). The client is incompetent and asks the nurse to help with assisted suicide.
The nurse tells the client they will not assist with the request. Which of the following ethical
liberties is the nurse demonstrating?
A. Autonomy
B. Nonmaleficence
C. Individual liberty
D. Beneficence
Rationale: Nonmaleficence is the duty to do no harm. Refusing to participate in assisted
suicide upholds the principle of not causing harm, and assisted suicide is not within the
nurse's scope and is illegal in most states.
7. A nurse is caring for a client in hospice who is in the dying process. The family wants to put
in a feeding tube because the client is refusing to eat. Which of the following statements by
the nurse is appropriate therapeutic communication?
A. "Its natural for clients to refuse food at this stage and can be difficult for family members"
B. "You do understand this can be a painful procedure."
C. "You do not need to worry about that at this stage of the dying process."
D. "It is not unusual for family members to feel guilty"
2026/2027 Questions and 100% Correct Answers –
Galen
Overview:
NUR 253-256 Mental Health Final Exam overview covering end-of-life care, grief
theories, mourning, palliative and hospice principles, ethical issues in dying.
Includes substance use disorders, alcohol withdrawal, opioid intoxication,
naltrexone, smoking cessation, stages of change. Focuses on eating disorders,
anorexia and bulimia complications and management. Addresses family violence,
neglect, intimate partner abuse, sexual assault, forensic nursing, aggression de-
escalation, safety planning, caregiver burden, dementia care, and therapeutic
communication and exam preparation.
Correct answer highlighted in bold Green + rationales
1. The nurse is providing support to the family of a recently deceased client. A family member
states, "My father took me fishing all the time. He can't physically take me anymore, but he
will be watching over me. I really miss him." The nurse recognizes the family member is
experiencing
A. Mourning
B. Anticipatory grief
C. Disenfranchised grief
D. Bereavement
Rationale: Mourning is the outward expression of grief. The family member is expressing
feelings and sharing memories, which reflects the outward, cultural, and personal expression
of the loss, not anticipatory or disenfranchised grief.
2. The nurse educator is providing an in-service to nursing staff on a unit that has recently
experienced an increase in client deaths. The nurse educator knows that a priority
recommendation for nurses who are struggling to cope with all the loss is
A. Creating sustainable practice of self-care and balance
,B. Working additional shifts to provide support for each other
C. Volunteering on days off to stay busy and make a positive difference
D. Temporarily transferring to another unit with fewer terminal diagnosis
Rationale: Compassion fatigue and burnout are common when dealing with repeated deaths.
Establishing self-care, boundaries, and balance is the evidence-based priority intervention to
prevent burnout and support resilience.
3. The nurse is caring for a client whose spouse of 52 years suddenly died. Which of the
following statements by the nurse is most therapeutic?
A. "Your loved one is no longer in pain: you should be happy for that."
B. "You can be grateful for the time you had together"
C. "Your loved one was very special and will not be replaceable"
D. "I know how you feel: I have had many family members pass away"
Rationale: This statement validates the client's unique loss and does not minimize, give false
reassurance, or shift focus to the nurse. Therapeutic communication acknowledges the
significance and irreplaceability of the relationship.
4. The nurse is caring for a client who is dying and in severe pain. Which of the following
interventions should the nurse consider as the priority?
A. Teach the client the end stages of grief.
B. Enhance the client's quality of life.
C. Encourage the client to speak to a grief counselor.
D. Support the clients family in grieving.
Rationale: While enhancing quality of life is central to palliative care, the highlighted priority
in this exam is supporting the family through anticipatory grief. Pain management plus family
support improves end-of-life outcomes. In practice, pain control and quality of life would be
the clinical priority.
, 5. The nurse is caring for a terminally ill client. Which of the following statements by the nurse
best demonstrates the art of presence?
A. "Would you like to talk about what this experience is like for you?"
B. "I am going to sit here and read a book, just pretend I am not here."
C. "I am going to the other room so you can be alone and reflect on your life; please call out if
you need me."
D. "Are you feeling guilty about leaving your wife and kids behind?"
Rationale: Art of presence means being available, attentive, and inviting the client to share
their lived experience without judgment or assumption. Option A offers open, client-centered
presence.
6. The home health nurse is caring for a client who is dying from acquired immune deficiency
syndrome (AIDS). The client is incompetent and asks the nurse to help with assisted suicide.
The nurse tells the client they will not assist with the request. Which of the following ethical
liberties is the nurse demonstrating?
A. Autonomy
B. Nonmaleficence
C. Individual liberty
D. Beneficence
Rationale: Nonmaleficence is the duty to do no harm. Refusing to participate in assisted
suicide upholds the principle of not causing harm, and assisted suicide is not within the
nurse's scope and is illegal in most states.
7. A nurse is caring for a client in hospice who is in the dying process. The family wants to put
in a feeding tube because the client is refusing to eat. Which of the following statements by
the nurse is appropriate therapeutic communication?
A. "Its natural for clients to refuse food at this stage and can be difficult for family members"
B. "You do understand this can be a painful procedure."
C. "You do not need to worry about that at this stage of the dying process."
D. "It is not unusual for family members to feel guilty"
