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ADVANCED COMMUNITY HEALTH PUBLIC HEALTH NURSING
EXAM LATEST VERSION QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 2026
EDITION
Advanced Community Health HESI Exam: Public Health Nursing Practice
Questions with Rationales
SECTION 1: COMMUNITY HEALTH NURSING FOUNDATIONS (Questions 1-50)
1. A community health nurse is conducting a windshield survey of a low-income
neighborhood. Which type of data would the nurse collect during this assessment?
A. Community members' health beliefs and cultural practices
B. Vital statistics, morbidity, and mortality rates
C. Quality of housing, presence of parks, and transportation options
D. Hospital admission records and emergency department utilization
Answer: C. Quality of housing, presence of parks, and transportation options
Rationale: A windshield survey involves driving through a community to observe
physical characteristics, including housing quality, green spaces, public transportation,
sidewalks, grocery stores, and safety indicators. This provides observable
environmental data, not individual beliefs or statistical records . The windshield survey
is a direct data collection method used to better understand community
characteristics .
2. Which of the following statements best describes the primary focus of
community health nursing practice?
A. Providing direct bedside care to acutely ill patients in hospital settings
B. Promoting and protecting the health of populations and communities
C. Managing hospital staffing and resource allocation
D. Treating chronic conditions in individual patients
Answer: B. Promoting and protecting the health of populations and communities
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Rationale: Community health nursing focuses on promoting and protecting the health of
populations rather than solely individual patients. While direct care may be provided,
the distinguishing feature is the focus on aggregates, communities, and populations .
The core functions of public health nursing include assessment, policy development,
and assurance .
3. A nurse is using the epidemiological triangle to investigate an outbreak of
hepatitis A in a community. Which component represents the "agent" in this
model?
A. Contaminated water supply
B. Restaurant workers who did not wash hands
C. The hepatitis A virus
D. Elderly residents in a nursing home
Answer: C. The hepatitis A virus
Rationale: In the epidemiological triangle, the agent is the causative factor or pathogen,
which in hepatitis A is the virus itself. The contaminated water supply is a vehicle or
mode of transmission. Restaurant workers who did not wash hands may be vectors.
Elderly residents are hosts .
4. A community health nurse is planning a primary prevention strategy for a
population. Which of the following is the best example of a primary prevention
intervention?
A. Providing case management for a patient with diabetes
B. Administering influenza vaccines at a community clinic
C. Leading a support group for stroke survivors
D. Referring a patient for mammography after finding a suspicious breast lump
Answer: B. Administering influenza vaccines at a community clinic
Rationale: Primary prevention activities are those taken to keep illness or injuries from
occurring. Vaccination prevents influenza infection and is a classic example of primary
prevention. Case management for diabetes and support groups for stroke survivors are
tertiary prevention. Mammography after finding a suspicious lump is secondary
prevention (early detection) .
5. The Public Health Service nurse working with the Indian Health Service is
working with a client diagnosed with cancer. The client uses sweat lodges to "cure
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the disease." The nurse understands that within the culture, disease is often
perceived as disharmony. How should the nurse approach this client's healing
practices?
A. Encourage the client to stop using sweat lodges because they may interfere with
Western medical treatment
B. Refer the client to a local folk healer without involving Western medicine
C. Recognize that safe, effective nontraditional healing methods can be blended with
Western medicine
D. Attempt to understand the practices primarily to help the client give them up
Answer: C. Recognize that safe, effective nontraditional healing methods can be
blended with Western medicine
Rationale: Nurses need to understand the nontraditional healing practices that their
clients use. Many of these treatments have proven effective and can be blended with
traditional Western medicine in a culturally competent manner . Dismissing or forcing
abandonment of cultural practices undermines trust and cultural competence.
6. Which of the following is an example of a significant outcome for the Leading
Health Indicators of Healthy People 2020/2030?
A. A community has adopted a no smoking policy
B. The number of hospital beds has increased
C. More physicians have been hired in the community
D. The community has built a new shopping center
Answer: A. A community has adopted a no smoking policy
Rationale: The Leading Health Indicators focus on major public health priorities
including tobacco use, physical activity, obesity, and access to health care. A
community adopting a no smoking policy directly addresses the tobacco use indicator .
This represents a significant community-level outcome measure.
7. A community health nurse is preparing a presentation for nursing students about
community health nursing. Which statement about the health continuum should
the nurse include in the description?
A. Wellness is a relative concept, not an absolute, and illness is a state of being
relatively unhealthy
B. A client's placement on the health continuum is static throughout time
C. Health is best described as cyclic
D. The health continuum can only be applied to individuals
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Answer: A. Wellness is a relative concept, not an absolute, and illness is a state of
being relatively unhealthy
Rationale: The health continuum can change over time. Health involves a range of
degrees from optimal health at one end to total disability or death at the other. The
health continuum applies not only to individuals but also to families and communities .
Wellness is relative, not absolute.
8. Which of the following best describes the concept of secondary prevention in
community health nursing?
A. Preventing disease before it occurs through immunization and health education
B. Early detection and prompt intervention to halt the progression of disease
C. Rehabilitation and restoration of function after disease has occurred
D. Providing hospice care for terminally ill patients
Answer: B. Early detection and prompt intervention to halt the progression of
disease
Rationale: Secondary prevention focuses on early detection and prompt intervention.
Examples include screening programs (blood pressure screening, cholesterol testing,
TB skin testing) and early treatment to prevent disease progression . Secondary
prevention identifies disease at an early stage when treatment is most effective.
9. A nurse in community health schedules a ride through a low-income community
to better understand the community and what factors affect the health of that
community. This direct data collection method is referred to as:
A. Composite database
B. Participant observation
C. Secondary analysis
D. Windshield survey
Answer: D. Windshield survey
Rationale: A windshield survey is a direct data collection method where the nurse drives
through a community to observe physical characteristics, housing quality,
environmental conditions, and other observable factors affecting community health .
This provides a visual overview and helps identify community assets and needs.
ADVANCED COMMUNITY HEALTH PUBLIC HEALTH NURSING
EXAM LATEST VERSION QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 2026
EDITION
Advanced Community Health HESI Exam: Public Health Nursing Practice
Questions with Rationales
SECTION 1: COMMUNITY HEALTH NURSING FOUNDATIONS (Questions 1-50)
1. A community health nurse is conducting a windshield survey of a low-income
neighborhood. Which type of data would the nurse collect during this assessment?
A. Community members' health beliefs and cultural practices
B. Vital statistics, morbidity, and mortality rates
C. Quality of housing, presence of parks, and transportation options
D. Hospital admission records and emergency department utilization
Answer: C. Quality of housing, presence of parks, and transportation options
Rationale: A windshield survey involves driving through a community to observe
physical characteristics, including housing quality, green spaces, public transportation,
sidewalks, grocery stores, and safety indicators. This provides observable
environmental data, not individual beliefs or statistical records . The windshield survey
is a direct data collection method used to better understand community
characteristics .
2. Which of the following statements best describes the primary focus of
community health nursing practice?
A. Providing direct bedside care to acutely ill patients in hospital settings
B. Promoting and protecting the health of populations and communities
C. Managing hospital staffing and resource allocation
D. Treating chronic conditions in individual patients
Answer: B. Promoting and protecting the health of populations and communities
, Page 2 of 76
Rationale: Community health nursing focuses on promoting and protecting the health of
populations rather than solely individual patients. While direct care may be provided,
the distinguishing feature is the focus on aggregates, communities, and populations .
The core functions of public health nursing include assessment, policy development,
and assurance .
3. A nurse is using the epidemiological triangle to investigate an outbreak of
hepatitis A in a community. Which component represents the "agent" in this
model?
A. Contaminated water supply
B. Restaurant workers who did not wash hands
C. The hepatitis A virus
D. Elderly residents in a nursing home
Answer: C. The hepatitis A virus
Rationale: In the epidemiological triangle, the agent is the causative factor or pathogen,
which in hepatitis A is the virus itself. The contaminated water supply is a vehicle or
mode of transmission. Restaurant workers who did not wash hands may be vectors.
Elderly residents are hosts .
4. A community health nurse is planning a primary prevention strategy for a
population. Which of the following is the best example of a primary prevention
intervention?
A. Providing case management for a patient with diabetes
B. Administering influenza vaccines at a community clinic
C. Leading a support group for stroke survivors
D. Referring a patient for mammography after finding a suspicious breast lump
Answer: B. Administering influenza vaccines at a community clinic
Rationale: Primary prevention activities are those taken to keep illness or injuries from
occurring. Vaccination prevents influenza infection and is a classic example of primary
prevention. Case management for diabetes and support groups for stroke survivors are
tertiary prevention. Mammography after finding a suspicious lump is secondary
prevention (early detection) .
5. The Public Health Service nurse working with the Indian Health Service is
working with a client diagnosed with cancer. The client uses sweat lodges to "cure
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the disease." The nurse understands that within the culture, disease is often
perceived as disharmony. How should the nurse approach this client's healing
practices?
A. Encourage the client to stop using sweat lodges because they may interfere with
Western medical treatment
B. Refer the client to a local folk healer without involving Western medicine
C. Recognize that safe, effective nontraditional healing methods can be blended with
Western medicine
D. Attempt to understand the practices primarily to help the client give them up
Answer: C. Recognize that safe, effective nontraditional healing methods can be
blended with Western medicine
Rationale: Nurses need to understand the nontraditional healing practices that their
clients use. Many of these treatments have proven effective and can be blended with
traditional Western medicine in a culturally competent manner . Dismissing or forcing
abandonment of cultural practices undermines trust and cultural competence.
6. Which of the following is an example of a significant outcome for the Leading
Health Indicators of Healthy People 2020/2030?
A. A community has adopted a no smoking policy
B. The number of hospital beds has increased
C. More physicians have been hired in the community
D. The community has built a new shopping center
Answer: A. A community has adopted a no smoking policy
Rationale: The Leading Health Indicators focus on major public health priorities
including tobacco use, physical activity, obesity, and access to health care. A
community adopting a no smoking policy directly addresses the tobacco use indicator .
This represents a significant community-level outcome measure.
7. A community health nurse is preparing a presentation for nursing students about
community health nursing. Which statement about the health continuum should
the nurse include in the description?
A. Wellness is a relative concept, not an absolute, and illness is a state of being
relatively unhealthy
B. A client's placement on the health continuum is static throughout time
C. Health is best described as cyclic
D. The health continuum can only be applied to individuals
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Answer: A. Wellness is a relative concept, not an absolute, and illness is a state of
being relatively unhealthy
Rationale: The health continuum can change over time. Health involves a range of
degrees from optimal health at one end to total disability or death at the other. The
health continuum applies not only to individuals but also to families and communities .
Wellness is relative, not absolute.
8. Which of the following best describes the concept of secondary prevention in
community health nursing?
A. Preventing disease before it occurs through immunization and health education
B. Early detection and prompt intervention to halt the progression of disease
C. Rehabilitation and restoration of function after disease has occurred
D. Providing hospice care for terminally ill patients
Answer: B. Early detection and prompt intervention to halt the progression of
disease
Rationale: Secondary prevention focuses on early detection and prompt intervention.
Examples include screening programs (blood pressure screening, cholesterol testing,
TB skin testing) and early treatment to prevent disease progression . Secondary
prevention identifies disease at an early stage when treatment is most effective.
9. A nurse in community health schedules a ride through a low-income community
to better understand the community and what factors affect the health of that
community. This direct data collection method is referred to as:
A. Composite database
B. Participant observation
C. Secondary analysis
D. Windshield survey
Answer: D. Windshield survey
Rationale: A windshield survey is a direct data collection method where the nurse drives
through a community to observe physical characteristics, housing quality,
environmental conditions, and other observable factors affecting community health .
This provides a visual overview and helps identify community assets and needs.
