lOMoAR cP SD |12827 373
Chapter 08: Environmental Health
Stanhope: Foundations for Population Health in Community/Public Health Nursing,
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. A nurse wants to have a better understanding of the physiological effects of selected chemicals. Which
would provide the most useful information to the nurse?
a. Chemist
b. Epidemiologist
c. Pharmacist
d. Toxicologist
ANS: D
Toxicology is the basic science that studies the health effects associated with chemical exposures. A ch
pharmacist would probably be able to provide some information, but the toxicologist would most likel
related to physiological processes.
2. A nurse wants to find information about environmental threats that are present in the community. Whi
the best source of data for the nurse?
a. Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL) database
b. National Library of Medicine
c. State health department
d. Closest local library
ANS: B
Technology helps us understand environmental threats. The National Library of Medicine (NLM) data
accessible on the Internet. The NLM website provides access to medical databases such as PubMed an
searched for possible environmental linkages to illnesses using key terms. The CINAHL database prov
related to nursing and allied health journals and would not be as comprehensive as the National Librar
difficult to access information easily through the health department. The information that is available a
dependent on the community in which one lived.
3. A nurse is assessing potential environmental health risks in the community. Which of the following wo
nurse should take?
a. Conduct health risk assessments of randomly selected individuals.
b. Perform a windshield survey.
c. Review facility permits and consumer confidence reports.
d. Survey community members.
ANS: B
Conducting a windshield survey is a useful first step to understanding potential environmental health r
information about the community and areas of concern that must be investigated. Conducting health ri
selected individuals or surveying community members does not give the nurse a good assessment of p
risks of the entire community. Reviewing facility permits and consumer confidence reports would not
to assess the environment of a community.
4. A community citizen reports to the public health nurse that the city water in one neighborhood has had
past few months. Which of the following actions should the nurse take first?
a. Check the most recent consumer confidence report.
b. Consult the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
c. Notify the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
d. Place a call to the poison control center.
ANS: A
The consumer confidence report (also known as the right-to-know report) reports the condition of drin
only one citizen, whose sense of taste may be affected by many conditions, it would not be appropria
governmental agencies or poison control first. Even so, in case one needed to contact an authority, it w
with local governmental agencies such as the city water department rather than federal agencies.
, lOMoAR cP SD |12827 373
6. Which of the following statements about children and environmental hazards is correct?
a. The prevalence of autism is directly related to the increase in environmental
toxins.
b. Children are more susceptible to environmental toxins because of their smaller
size.
c. The incidence of asthma among children has been decreasing.
d. Children are more susceptible to cancer if they have a family history of the
disease.
ANS: B
Because of the smaller size of children, they are exposed to higher doses of pesticide residues in the fo
Infants and young children drink more fluids per body weight than adults, and this increases the dose o
drinking water, milk (hormones and antibiotics), and juices (particularly pesticides). Only a small perc
are associated with heredity. However, exposure to ionizing radiation increases the risk of childhood le
cancers. All of the causes of autism spectrum disorder are not currently known. Environmental factors
cause, as are biologic and genetic factors. Asthma is common among children, and the strongest risk fa
inhaled substances and particles that provoke an allergic reaction or irritate the airways. Indoor air qua
because of the alarming rise in the incidence of asthma in the United States, particularly among childre
7. Which of the following actions represents the use of secondary prevention to reduce environmental he
a. Collecting blood specimens from preschool children to check for lead levels
b. Meeting with local government officials to request that the city clean up a
hazardous vacant lot
c. Referring a child with toxic lead levels to a neurologist
d. Teaching parents of a 2-year-old about the dangers of lead-based paint in older
homes
ANS: A
Secondary prevention refers to actions such as surveillance and screening, which are undertaken so tha
at early stages. Meeting with local government officials to request that the city clean up a hazardous va
with toxic lead levels to a neurologist are examples of tertiary prevention as the problem already exists
exposure is part of primary prevention which relates to teaching parents about the dangers of lead-base
8. An occupational health nurse at a local factory is using primary prevention strategies to reduce the env
risks among the employees. Which of the following activities would the nurse most likely implement?
a. Checking radiation detectors to monitor for unsafe levels of radiation exposure
b. Irrigating the eyes of an employee who has had a chemical splash to the face
c. Teaching new employees who will work outdoors about the signs and symptoms
of heat-related illness
d. Using spirometry to rule out obstructive or restrictive lung disease for
workers who will be wearing mask respirators
ANS: C
Education is a primary preventive strategy. When examining the sources of environmental health risks
planning intervention strategies, it is important to apply the basic principles of disease prevention. Che
using spirometry are both examples of screening for potential exposure which is part of secondary p
of an employee who had a chemical splash to the face addresses tertiary prevention as a problem has a
9. A nurse wants to help keep the community environment safe. Which of the following is the most appro
take?
a. Conserve water by bathing less often.
b. Downsize to a smaller living space.
c. Reduce, reuse, and recycle.
d. Replace all his or her appliances with new energy-efficient ones.
ANS: C
All persons can engage in minimizing their impact on the environment by reducing, reusing, and recyc
products they currently consume. Although it would be nice to replace all appliances for energy-efficie
people can’t afford that—furthermore, it is an environmental issue to discard the used models. Similarl
living space could help the environment, because the nurse would use less energy, but again, not every
Chapter 08: Environmental Health
Stanhope: Foundations for Population Health in Community/Public Health Nursing,
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. A nurse wants to have a better understanding of the physiological effects of selected chemicals. Which
would provide the most useful information to the nurse?
a. Chemist
b. Epidemiologist
c. Pharmacist
d. Toxicologist
ANS: D
Toxicology is the basic science that studies the health effects associated with chemical exposures. A ch
pharmacist would probably be able to provide some information, but the toxicologist would most likel
related to physiological processes.
2. A nurse wants to find information about environmental threats that are present in the community. Whi
the best source of data for the nurse?
a. Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL) database
b. National Library of Medicine
c. State health department
d. Closest local library
ANS: B
Technology helps us understand environmental threats. The National Library of Medicine (NLM) data
accessible on the Internet. The NLM website provides access to medical databases such as PubMed an
searched for possible environmental linkages to illnesses using key terms. The CINAHL database prov
related to nursing and allied health journals and would not be as comprehensive as the National Librar
difficult to access information easily through the health department. The information that is available a
dependent on the community in which one lived.
3. A nurse is assessing potential environmental health risks in the community. Which of the following wo
nurse should take?
a. Conduct health risk assessments of randomly selected individuals.
b. Perform a windshield survey.
c. Review facility permits and consumer confidence reports.
d. Survey community members.
ANS: B
Conducting a windshield survey is a useful first step to understanding potential environmental health r
information about the community and areas of concern that must be investigated. Conducting health ri
selected individuals or surveying community members does not give the nurse a good assessment of p
risks of the entire community. Reviewing facility permits and consumer confidence reports would not
to assess the environment of a community.
4. A community citizen reports to the public health nurse that the city water in one neighborhood has had
past few months. Which of the following actions should the nurse take first?
a. Check the most recent consumer confidence report.
b. Consult the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
c. Notify the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
d. Place a call to the poison control center.
ANS: A
The consumer confidence report (also known as the right-to-know report) reports the condition of drin
only one citizen, whose sense of taste may be affected by many conditions, it would not be appropria
governmental agencies or poison control first. Even so, in case one needed to contact an authority, it w
with local governmental agencies such as the city water department rather than federal agencies.
, lOMoAR cP SD |12827 373
6. Which of the following statements about children and environmental hazards is correct?
a. The prevalence of autism is directly related to the increase in environmental
toxins.
b. Children are more susceptible to environmental toxins because of their smaller
size.
c. The incidence of asthma among children has been decreasing.
d. Children are more susceptible to cancer if they have a family history of the
disease.
ANS: B
Because of the smaller size of children, they are exposed to higher doses of pesticide residues in the fo
Infants and young children drink more fluids per body weight than adults, and this increases the dose o
drinking water, milk (hormones and antibiotics), and juices (particularly pesticides). Only a small perc
are associated with heredity. However, exposure to ionizing radiation increases the risk of childhood le
cancers. All of the causes of autism spectrum disorder are not currently known. Environmental factors
cause, as are biologic and genetic factors. Asthma is common among children, and the strongest risk fa
inhaled substances and particles that provoke an allergic reaction or irritate the airways. Indoor air qua
because of the alarming rise in the incidence of asthma in the United States, particularly among childre
7. Which of the following actions represents the use of secondary prevention to reduce environmental he
a. Collecting blood specimens from preschool children to check for lead levels
b. Meeting with local government officials to request that the city clean up a
hazardous vacant lot
c. Referring a child with toxic lead levels to a neurologist
d. Teaching parents of a 2-year-old about the dangers of lead-based paint in older
homes
ANS: A
Secondary prevention refers to actions such as surveillance and screening, which are undertaken so tha
at early stages. Meeting with local government officials to request that the city clean up a hazardous va
with toxic lead levels to a neurologist are examples of tertiary prevention as the problem already exists
exposure is part of primary prevention which relates to teaching parents about the dangers of lead-base
8. An occupational health nurse at a local factory is using primary prevention strategies to reduce the env
risks among the employees. Which of the following activities would the nurse most likely implement?
a. Checking radiation detectors to monitor for unsafe levels of radiation exposure
b. Irrigating the eyes of an employee who has had a chemical splash to the face
c. Teaching new employees who will work outdoors about the signs and symptoms
of heat-related illness
d. Using spirometry to rule out obstructive or restrictive lung disease for
workers who will be wearing mask respirators
ANS: C
Education is a primary preventive strategy. When examining the sources of environmental health risks
planning intervention strategies, it is important to apply the basic principles of disease prevention. Che
using spirometry are both examples of screening for potential exposure which is part of secondary p
of an employee who had a chemical splash to the face addresses tertiary prevention as a problem has a
9. A nurse wants to help keep the community environment safe. Which of the following is the most appro
take?
a. Conserve water by bathing less often.
b. Downsize to a smaller living space.
c. Reduce, reuse, and recycle.
d. Replace all his or her appliances with new energy-efficient ones.
ANS: C
All persons can engage in minimizing their impact on the environment by reducing, reusing, and recyc
products they currently consume. Although it would be nice to replace all appliances for energy-efficie
people can’t afford that—furthermore, it is an environmental issue to discard the used models. Similarl
living space could help the environment, because the nurse would use less energy, but again, not every
