NURSE PRACTITIONER Certification Examination and Practice Preparation FIFTH EDITION

Here are your answer choices: A.intermittent airway inflammation with occasional bronchospasm B. a disease of bronchospasm leading to airway inflammation C. chronic airway inflammation with superimposed bronchospasm D.relatively fixed airway obstruction Let’s again look at the choices and reveal the correct answer. A.intermittent airway inflammation with occasional bronchospasm • Because asthma is a chronic, not intermittent, inflammatory airway disease, this option is incorrect. B. a disease of bronchospasm leading to airway inflammation • Because asthma is first a chronic inflammatory airway disease that leads to airway hyperresponsiveness, this option is incorrect. C. chronic airway inflammation with superimposed bronchospasm • This option most closely matches the definition of asthma and is the best option. D.relatively fixed airway obstruction • Because the airway obstruction in asthma is largely reversible, this option is incorrect. This answer is more descriptive of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Review That Works for You With test design in mind, it’s time to think about planning an efective study strategy. As you learned in your graduate studies, there are many “right” ways to study. Te most important factors to your success, regardless of learning style, depend on an organized and purposeful study plan. Tis issue of time needed for certifcation preparation is unique to each examination candidate. Tat said, one of the major pitfalls in study is the failure to put aside the time to prepare. Map out the demands on your time in the frst months afer completing your NP program, including work hours, family, personal and professional commitments, as well as time you have perhaps set aside for some well-deserved downtime. Afer doing this, set up a schedule of study time, allotting a greater amount of time to areas of knowledge defcit and less to areas in which you only need to refresh your knowledge base. Make sure you cover all areas listed as possible examination content. Plan your date for certifcation only afer a period of well-planned, systematic, certifcation-focused study. Start with reviewing the information on the examination content. Make a list of the areas in which you feel your knowledge base is secure and in which just reviewing material to refresh your memory will likely sufce. Ten make a second list in which you identify areas of weaknesses and areas in which you need to concentrate your review. If you have taken an NP review course, you are likely aware that the content of certain parts of the program were truly review, whereas other sections helped to point out areas in which you needed to expand on your knowledge base. Knowing on which areas to best concentrate your study helps you decide how to allocate your study time. As you study, please keep in mind that the NP certifcation examination tests your ability to know the following: • Why a patient is at risk for a problem. • How a clinical problem has developed. • What is the most likely clinical presentation of the condition. • Why a given intervention is effective. • How that intervention works. • What is the most likely clinical outcome. • Why this clinical problem is of significance to the overall healthcare system. A poor approach to preparing for the examination and practice is to memorize information so you know what to do but not why you are doing it, in both the examination room and as part of the larger healthcare system. A better approach to preparing for the examination and practice is to understand concepts and apply knowledge so you know what to do and why you are doing it. Te Fitzgerald Health Education Associates Inc. NP Certifcation Examination Review and Advanced Practice Update prepares you in the why, how, and what of NP practice, as well as helping to prepare you for success on the NP boards. Using this book will help greatly in building your knowledge base so that you are able to apply information to answer questions to help you in your pursuit of certifcation. As you work through practice questions, and do this only afer working on building your knowledge base, make a note next to each with words or symbols that indicate how certain you are of your answer. For some, you will be “sure” or “confdent” that an answer is correct; for others you may be “mostly” or “somewhat sure”; and for others, you are likely ofering a best guess. Afer you score your pretest, examine how your answers match up with your predicted performance. If you marked yourself “confdent” on an item you got wrong, start by studying the question and answer choices carefully to glean the possible reasons you might have selected the wrong answer for that particular question. Ask yourself the following: Did I understand the context properly? If so, did I misinterpret or misread the question? Was there unfamiliar content or vocabulary that led me to an incorrect conclusion? What was it about the distractors that distracted me? If you correctly answered a question about which you were not completely certain of the best answer, ask yourself what information in the context, action, or answer choices helped to lead you in the right direction. Frequent pretesting will not only help you to become more comfortable on test day, it can also help you to be more efective at unlocking a question. When studying for the NP boards, some people will work best alone, whereas others beneft from collaborating with a