NCLEX-RN Practice Quiz Test Bank 2 | 75 Verified
Questions & Answers for 2026 Exam Prep
A nurse forgets to administer a client's diuretic
and the client experiences an episode of
pulmonary edema. The charge nurse would
consider the medication error to constitute
negligence because the situation contains which
element?
1. Purposeful failure to perform a health care
procedure
2. Unintentional failure to perform a health care
procedure
3. Act of substituting a different medication for
the one ordered
4. Failure to follow a direct order by a physician
Answer: 2
Rationale: Negligence is the unintentional failure
of an individual to perform or not perform an act
that a reasonable person would or would not do
in the same or similar circumstances. A purposeful
failure to perform a procedure would be the
,opposite of negligence, which is unintentional.
Substituting a different medication does not fit the
description of the situation in the question. Failure
to follow a direct order does not fit the
description in the situation in the question.
Cognitive Level: Applying
Client Need: Management of Care
Integrated Process: Nursing Process: Assessment
Content Area: Fundamentals
Strategy: Two options are opposites, which is a
clue that one of them may be correct. Choose
unintentional failure to carry out a procedure over
purposeful failure because it matches the
definition of negligence.
A client asks why a diagnostic test has been
ordered and the nurse replies, "I'm unsure but will
find out for you." When the nurse later returns
and provides an explanation, the nurse is acting
under which principle?
1. Nonmaleficence
2. Veracity
,3. Beneficence
4. Fidelity
Answer: 4
Rationale: Fidelity means being faithful to
agreements and promises. This nurse is acting on
the client's behalf to obtain needed information
and report it back to the client. Nonmaleficence is
the duty to do no harm. Veracity refers to telling
the truth for example, not lying to a client about a
serious prognosis. Beneficence means doing good,
such as by implementing actions (e.g. keeping a
salt shaker out of sight) that benefit a client (heart
condition requiring sodium-restricted diet).
Cognitive Level: Understanding
Client Need: Management of Care
Integrated Process: Nursing Process:
Implementation
Content Area: Fundamentals
Strategy: Use the process of elimination. The
correct answer is the one that matches the
description in the stem; that is, the nurse made a
promise to a client and kept it, which constitutes
fidelity.
, An individual has a seizure while walking down
the street. During the seizure, a nurse from a
physician's office is noticed driving past without
stopping to assist. The individual sues the nurse
for negligence but fails to win a judgement for
which reason?
1. The nurse had no duty to the individual.
2. The nurse did what most nurses would do in the
same circumstance.
3. The nurse did not cause the client's injuries.
4. The nurse was off-duty at the time.
Answer: 1
Rationale: To be guilty of negligence, the nurse
must have a relationship with the client that
involves a duty to provide care. The relationship is
usually a component of employment. The nurse
did not necessarily do what others would do in
this situation. Although the nurse did not cause
the client's injuries, it does not prevent the nurse
from assisting in this situation. Although the nurse
was off-duty, the nurse could have assisted if
motivated to do so.
Questions & Answers for 2026 Exam Prep
A nurse forgets to administer a client's diuretic
and the client experiences an episode of
pulmonary edema. The charge nurse would
consider the medication error to constitute
negligence because the situation contains which
element?
1. Purposeful failure to perform a health care
procedure
2. Unintentional failure to perform a health care
procedure
3. Act of substituting a different medication for
the one ordered
4. Failure to follow a direct order by a physician
Answer: 2
Rationale: Negligence is the unintentional failure
of an individual to perform or not perform an act
that a reasonable person would or would not do
in the same or similar circumstances. A purposeful
failure to perform a procedure would be the
,opposite of negligence, which is unintentional.
Substituting a different medication does not fit the
description of the situation in the question. Failure
to follow a direct order does not fit the
description in the situation in the question.
Cognitive Level: Applying
Client Need: Management of Care
Integrated Process: Nursing Process: Assessment
Content Area: Fundamentals
Strategy: Two options are opposites, which is a
clue that one of them may be correct. Choose
unintentional failure to carry out a procedure over
purposeful failure because it matches the
definition of negligence.
A client asks why a diagnostic test has been
ordered and the nurse replies, "I'm unsure but will
find out for you." When the nurse later returns
and provides an explanation, the nurse is acting
under which principle?
1. Nonmaleficence
2. Veracity
,3. Beneficence
4. Fidelity
Answer: 4
Rationale: Fidelity means being faithful to
agreements and promises. This nurse is acting on
the client's behalf to obtain needed information
and report it back to the client. Nonmaleficence is
the duty to do no harm. Veracity refers to telling
the truth for example, not lying to a client about a
serious prognosis. Beneficence means doing good,
such as by implementing actions (e.g. keeping a
salt shaker out of sight) that benefit a client (heart
condition requiring sodium-restricted diet).
Cognitive Level: Understanding
Client Need: Management of Care
Integrated Process: Nursing Process:
Implementation
Content Area: Fundamentals
Strategy: Use the process of elimination. The
correct answer is the one that matches the
description in the stem; that is, the nurse made a
promise to a client and kept it, which constitutes
fidelity.
, An individual has a seizure while walking down
the street. During the seizure, a nurse from a
physician's office is noticed driving past without
stopping to assist. The individual sues the nurse
for negligence but fails to win a judgement for
which reason?
1. The nurse had no duty to the individual.
2. The nurse did what most nurses would do in the
same circumstance.
3. The nurse did not cause the client's injuries.
4. The nurse was off-duty at the time.
Answer: 1
Rationale: To be guilty of negligence, the nurse
must have a relationship with the client that
involves a duty to provide care. The relationship is
usually a component of employment. The nurse
did not necessarily do what others would do in
this situation. Although the nurse did not cause
the client's injuries, it does not prevent the nurse
from assisting in this situation. Although the nurse
was off-duty, the nurse could have assisted if
motivated to do so.
