Pharmacotherapeutics for Advanced
Practice Nurse Prescribers (5th
Edition) – Woo & Robinson
100 Board-Style MCQ Revision Questions with Answers
Important Note: This set contains 50 questions with detailed rationales covering core
pharmacotherapeutics principles from Chapters 1–2 (Foundation and Basic Principles of
Pharmacology). These represent high-yield board-style topics. The complete Woo &
Robinson test bank contains 900+ questions across all 55 chapters, including condition-
specific therapeutics, special populations, and drug class deep-dives. Use this as a
focused revision tool for foundational concepts, then expand to system-specific
chapters.
Chapter 1: The Role of the Advanced Practice Nurse as
Prescriber
1. Nurse practitioner prescriptive authority is regulated by:
A. The National Council of State Boards of Nursing
B. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
C. The State Board of Nursing for each state ✅
D. The State Board of Pharmacy
Rationale: Prescriptive authority is granted and regulated at the state level through the
Board of Nursing, with scope of practice determined by state law and regulations.
,2. The benefits to the patient of having an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse
(APRN) prescriber include:
A. Nurses know more about pharmacology than other prescribers
B. Nurses care for the patient from a holistic approach and include the patient in
decision making regarding their care ✅
C. APRNs are less likely to prescribe narcotics
D. APRNs are able to prescribe independently in all states
Rationale: The APRN approach emphasizes holistic, patient-centered care,
incorporating patient preferences into prescribing decisions. Independent prescribing
varies by state.
3. Clinical judgment in prescribing includes:
A. Factoring in the cost to the patient of the medication prescribed ✅
B. Always prescribing the newest medication available
C. Handing out drug samples to poor patients
D. Prescribing all generic medications to cut costs
Rationale: Cost is a legitimate clinical consideration in rational drug selection, balancing
efficacy, safety, and patient access.
4. Criteria for choosing an effective drug for a disorder include:
,A. Asking the patient what drug they think would work best
B. Consulting nationally recognized guidelines for disease management ✅
C. Prescribing medications available as samples before writing a prescription
D. Following U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration guidelines
Rationale: Evidence-based guidelines provide standardized, outcome-focused
recommendations for disease management and drug selection.
5. Which of the following best describes the World Health Organization's first step
in the prescribing process?
A. Writing the prescription
B. Defining the patient's problem (diagnosis) ✅
C. Selecting the drug
D. Monitoring outcomes
Rationale: The WHO prescribing process begins with defining the patient's problem,
followed by specifying therapeutic objectives, selecting the drug, and monitoring.
Chapter 2: Review of Basic Principles of Pharmacology
6. The blood-brain barrier slows the entry of many drugs into and from brain cells
because:
A. It is composed of fenestrated capillaries
B. It is formed by tight junctions between capillary endothelial cells ✅
C. It actively pumps drugs out of the brain
D. It has no effect on lipid-soluble drugs
, Rationale: The blood-brain barrier consists of tight junctions that restrict paracellular
transport, limiting entry of water-soluble and ionized drugs.
7. The fetal-placental barrier:
A. Protects the fetus from some but not all drugs taken by the mother ✅
B. Completely blocks all drug transfer to the fetus
C. Is identical in structure to the blood-brain barrier
D. Only allows ionized drugs to pass
Rationale: The placenta is not an absolute barrier; many drugs cross by passive
diffusion, but it does slow entry of some substances.
8. Drugs are metabolized mainly by the liver via Phase I or Phase II reactions. The
purpose of both of these types of reactions is to:
A. Inactivate prodrugs before they can be activated
B. Change the drugs so they can cross plasma membranes
C. Change drug molecules to a form that an excretory organ can excrete ✅
D. Make these drugs more ionized and polar to facilitate excretion
Rationale: Both Phase I (oxidation, reduction, hydrolysis) and Phase II (conjugation)
reactions convert drugs to more water-soluble metabolites for renal or biliary excretion.
9. Once they have been metabolized by the liver, the metabolites may be:
Practice Nurse Prescribers (5th
Edition) – Woo & Robinson
100 Board-Style MCQ Revision Questions with Answers
Important Note: This set contains 50 questions with detailed rationales covering core
pharmacotherapeutics principles from Chapters 1–2 (Foundation and Basic Principles of
Pharmacology). These represent high-yield board-style topics. The complete Woo &
Robinson test bank contains 900+ questions across all 55 chapters, including condition-
specific therapeutics, special populations, and drug class deep-dives. Use this as a
focused revision tool for foundational concepts, then expand to system-specific
chapters.
Chapter 1: The Role of the Advanced Practice Nurse as
Prescriber
1. Nurse practitioner prescriptive authority is regulated by:
A. The National Council of State Boards of Nursing
B. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
C. The State Board of Nursing for each state ✅
D. The State Board of Pharmacy
Rationale: Prescriptive authority is granted and regulated at the state level through the
Board of Nursing, with scope of practice determined by state law and regulations.
,2. The benefits to the patient of having an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse
(APRN) prescriber include:
A. Nurses know more about pharmacology than other prescribers
B. Nurses care for the patient from a holistic approach and include the patient in
decision making regarding their care ✅
C. APRNs are less likely to prescribe narcotics
D. APRNs are able to prescribe independently in all states
Rationale: The APRN approach emphasizes holistic, patient-centered care,
incorporating patient preferences into prescribing decisions. Independent prescribing
varies by state.
3. Clinical judgment in prescribing includes:
A. Factoring in the cost to the patient of the medication prescribed ✅
B. Always prescribing the newest medication available
C. Handing out drug samples to poor patients
D. Prescribing all generic medications to cut costs
Rationale: Cost is a legitimate clinical consideration in rational drug selection, balancing
efficacy, safety, and patient access.
4. Criteria for choosing an effective drug for a disorder include:
,A. Asking the patient what drug they think would work best
B. Consulting nationally recognized guidelines for disease management ✅
C. Prescribing medications available as samples before writing a prescription
D. Following U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration guidelines
Rationale: Evidence-based guidelines provide standardized, outcome-focused
recommendations for disease management and drug selection.
5. Which of the following best describes the World Health Organization's first step
in the prescribing process?
A. Writing the prescription
B. Defining the patient's problem (diagnosis) ✅
C. Selecting the drug
D. Monitoring outcomes
Rationale: The WHO prescribing process begins with defining the patient's problem,
followed by specifying therapeutic objectives, selecting the drug, and monitoring.
Chapter 2: Review of Basic Principles of Pharmacology
6. The blood-brain barrier slows the entry of many drugs into and from brain cells
because:
A. It is composed of fenestrated capillaries
B. It is formed by tight junctions between capillary endothelial cells ✅
C. It actively pumps drugs out of the brain
D. It has no effect on lipid-soluble drugs
, Rationale: The blood-brain barrier consists of tight junctions that restrict paracellular
transport, limiting entry of water-soluble and ionized drugs.
7. The fetal-placental barrier:
A. Protects the fetus from some but not all drugs taken by the mother ✅
B. Completely blocks all drug transfer to the fetus
C. Is identical in structure to the blood-brain barrier
D. Only allows ionized drugs to pass
Rationale: The placenta is not an absolute barrier; many drugs cross by passive
diffusion, but it does slow entry of some substances.
8. Drugs are metabolized mainly by the liver via Phase I or Phase II reactions. The
purpose of both of these types of reactions is to:
A. Inactivate prodrugs before they can be activated
B. Change the drugs so they can cross plasma membranes
C. Change drug molecules to a form that an excretory organ can excrete ✅
D. Make these drugs more ionized and polar to facilitate excretion
Rationale: Both Phase I (oxidation, reduction, hydrolysis) and Phase II (conjugation)
reactions convert drugs to more water-soluble metabolites for renal or biliary excretion.
9. Once they have been metabolized by the liver, the metabolites may be:
