Community Health Nursing Exam Study Questions
– WGU D120 OBJECTIVE ASSESSMENT ACTUAL
EXAM STUDY GUIDE 2025/2026 COMPLETE
QUESTIONS AND CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
WITH RATIONALES || 100% GUARANTEED PASS
<LATEST VERSION>
1. What is the primary goal of community health nursing?
A) To manage care for individual patients in their homes.
B) To treat acute illnesses in a community clinic setting.
C) To preserve, protect, promote, and maintain the health of populations and communities. ✓
D) To provide direct care to the most vulnerable individuals.
Rationale: Community health nursing focuses on the collective health of the entire population,
emphasizing prevention and health promotion, rather than just individual care.
2. A community health nurse is analyzing data on birth weights, infant mortality, and leading
causes of death. The nurse is assessing which aspect of the community?
A) Social system
B) Core
C) Physical environment
D) Population ✓
Rationale: The "population" component of a community assessment includes demographic
data, vital statistics, and the biological and genetic makeup of the people.
3. Which public health intervention involves monitoring health events through ongoing,
systematic collection, analysis, and interpretation of data?
A) Surveillance ✓
B) Screening
C) Case-finding
D) Outreach
Rationale: Surveillance is the cornerstone of public health, providing the essential data needed
to track trends, identify outbreaks, and plan interventions.
4. The Shattuck Report (1850) was significant because it:
A) Established the first visiting nurse association.
,B) Recommended the establishment of state health departments and sanitary programs. ✓
C) Created the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
D) Initiated the first national vaccination campaign.
Rationale: This landmark report laid the foundation for the modern public health system in the
United States by emphasizing sanitation and public health infrastructure.
5. A nurse is advocating for a smoke-free city ordinance. This is an example of which level of
prevention?
A) Primary Prevention ✓
B) Secondary Prevention
C) Tertiary Prevention
D) Quaternary Prevention
Rationale: A smoke-free ordinance prevents the initiation of smoking and exposure to
secondhand smoke, which is a primary prevention strategy aimed at preventing disease before
it occurs.
6. Which level of government has the primary constitutional responsibility for protecting the
public's health?
A) Federal
B) State ✓
C) County
D) Municipal
Rationale: The 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution reserves powers not delegated to the
federal government, including health protection, to the states.
7. A community health nurse is providing grief counseling to families after a natural disaster.
This intervention is best categorized as:
A) Primary Prevention
B) Secondary Prevention
C) Tertiary Prevention ✓
D) Health Promotion
Rationale: Tertiary prevention focuses on rehabilitation and minimizing the long-term negative
effects of a problem that has already occurred, such as the psychological trauma from a disaster.
8. The concept that all individuals, regardless of their background, should have a fair and just
opportunity for health is known as:
A) Health Equity ✓
B) Health Equality
C) Health Disparity
,D) Social Justice
Rationale: Health equity is about achieving the highest level of health for all people by
addressing avoidable inequalities, historical and contemporary injustices, and the elimination of
health and healthcare disparities.
9. Which agency is the nation's premier public health agency, responsible for protecting the
health of all Americans?
A) The World Health Organization (WHO)
B) The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
C) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ✓
D) The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
Rationale: The CDC is the leading national public health institute of the United States, focusing
on disease control, prevention, and health promotion.
10. A community health nurse is conducting a home visit and notices multiple fall hazards.
The nurse educates the family on removing throw rugs and improving lighting. This is an
example of:
A) Secondary Prevention
B) Health Education
C) Primary Prevention ✓
D) Tertiary Prevention
Rationale: Preventing a fall from occurring in the first place is a classic example of primary
prevention.
11. The process of enabling people to increase control over and improve their health is the
definition of:
A) Health Education
B) Health Promotion ✓
C) Disease Prevention
D) Risk Reduction
Rationale: This is the foundational definition of health promotion from the Ottawa Charter for
Health Promotion (1986).
12. A school nurse implements a handwashing campaign for students. This is an example of
which level of care?
A) Individual-focused
B) Population-focused ✓
C) Secondary
D) Tertiary
, Rationale: The campaign is directed at the entire school population, not just individual students,
making it population-focused care.
13. Which ethical principle is demonstrated when a nurse respects a patient's right to refuse a
vaccination?
A) Beneficence
B) Nonmaleficence
C) Justice
D) Autonomy ✓
Rationale: Autonomy refers to the right of individuals to make informed decisions about their
own care and life.
14. A community health nurse is compiling data on the number of new cases of tuberculosis
in the county over the past year. The nurse is calculating the:
A) Prevalence Rate
B) Incidence Rate ✓
C) Mortality Rate
D) Morbidity Rate
Rationale: Incidence rate refers to the number of new cases of a disease in a population during
a specified time period.
15. The Public Health Intervention Wheel is a model that:
A) Defines the scope of medical practice in public health.
B) Organizes public health nursing activities into 17 distinct interventions. ✓
C) Is used only for disaster preparedness planning.
D) Focuses solely on individual-level care.
Rationale: The Wheel is a population-based model comprising 17 interventions that can be
applied at the individual, community, and systems levels.
16. Which of the following is a key feature of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)?
A) Elimination of private health insurance
B) Mandated individual health insurance coverage ✓
C) Provision of free healthcare for all
D) Decreased focus on preventive services
Rationale: The individual mandate was a cornerstone of the ACA, designed to ensure a broad
and healthy risk pool for insurers.
17. A community health nurse is working with a local coalition to increase access to fresh
fruits and vegetables in a low-income neighborhood. This addresses the determinant of
health known as:
– WGU D120 OBJECTIVE ASSESSMENT ACTUAL
EXAM STUDY GUIDE 2025/2026 COMPLETE
QUESTIONS AND CORRECT DETAILED ANSWERS
WITH RATIONALES || 100% GUARANTEED PASS
<LATEST VERSION>
1. What is the primary goal of community health nursing?
A) To manage care for individual patients in their homes.
B) To treat acute illnesses in a community clinic setting.
C) To preserve, protect, promote, and maintain the health of populations and communities. ✓
D) To provide direct care to the most vulnerable individuals.
Rationale: Community health nursing focuses on the collective health of the entire population,
emphasizing prevention and health promotion, rather than just individual care.
2. A community health nurse is analyzing data on birth weights, infant mortality, and leading
causes of death. The nurse is assessing which aspect of the community?
A) Social system
B) Core
C) Physical environment
D) Population ✓
Rationale: The "population" component of a community assessment includes demographic
data, vital statistics, and the biological and genetic makeup of the people.
3. Which public health intervention involves monitoring health events through ongoing,
systematic collection, analysis, and interpretation of data?
A) Surveillance ✓
B) Screening
C) Case-finding
D) Outreach
Rationale: Surveillance is the cornerstone of public health, providing the essential data needed
to track trends, identify outbreaks, and plan interventions.
4. The Shattuck Report (1850) was significant because it:
A) Established the first visiting nurse association.
,B) Recommended the establishment of state health departments and sanitary programs. ✓
C) Created the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
D) Initiated the first national vaccination campaign.
Rationale: This landmark report laid the foundation for the modern public health system in the
United States by emphasizing sanitation and public health infrastructure.
5. A nurse is advocating for a smoke-free city ordinance. This is an example of which level of
prevention?
A) Primary Prevention ✓
B) Secondary Prevention
C) Tertiary Prevention
D) Quaternary Prevention
Rationale: A smoke-free ordinance prevents the initiation of smoking and exposure to
secondhand smoke, which is a primary prevention strategy aimed at preventing disease before
it occurs.
6. Which level of government has the primary constitutional responsibility for protecting the
public's health?
A) Federal
B) State ✓
C) County
D) Municipal
Rationale: The 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution reserves powers not delegated to the
federal government, including health protection, to the states.
7. A community health nurse is providing grief counseling to families after a natural disaster.
This intervention is best categorized as:
A) Primary Prevention
B) Secondary Prevention
C) Tertiary Prevention ✓
D) Health Promotion
Rationale: Tertiary prevention focuses on rehabilitation and minimizing the long-term negative
effects of a problem that has already occurred, such as the psychological trauma from a disaster.
8. The concept that all individuals, regardless of their background, should have a fair and just
opportunity for health is known as:
A) Health Equity ✓
B) Health Equality
C) Health Disparity
,D) Social Justice
Rationale: Health equity is about achieving the highest level of health for all people by
addressing avoidable inequalities, historical and contemporary injustices, and the elimination of
health and healthcare disparities.
9. Which agency is the nation's premier public health agency, responsible for protecting the
health of all Americans?
A) The World Health Organization (WHO)
B) The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
C) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ✓
D) The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
Rationale: The CDC is the leading national public health institute of the United States, focusing
on disease control, prevention, and health promotion.
10. A community health nurse is conducting a home visit and notices multiple fall hazards.
The nurse educates the family on removing throw rugs and improving lighting. This is an
example of:
A) Secondary Prevention
B) Health Education
C) Primary Prevention ✓
D) Tertiary Prevention
Rationale: Preventing a fall from occurring in the first place is a classic example of primary
prevention.
11. The process of enabling people to increase control over and improve their health is the
definition of:
A) Health Education
B) Health Promotion ✓
C) Disease Prevention
D) Risk Reduction
Rationale: This is the foundational definition of health promotion from the Ottawa Charter for
Health Promotion (1986).
12. A school nurse implements a handwashing campaign for students. This is an example of
which level of care?
A) Individual-focused
B) Population-focused ✓
C) Secondary
D) Tertiary
, Rationale: The campaign is directed at the entire school population, not just individual students,
making it population-focused care.
13. Which ethical principle is demonstrated when a nurse respects a patient's right to refuse a
vaccination?
A) Beneficence
B) Nonmaleficence
C) Justice
D) Autonomy ✓
Rationale: Autonomy refers to the right of individuals to make informed decisions about their
own care and life.
14. A community health nurse is compiling data on the number of new cases of tuberculosis
in the county over the past year. The nurse is calculating the:
A) Prevalence Rate
B) Incidence Rate ✓
C) Mortality Rate
D) Morbidity Rate
Rationale: Incidence rate refers to the number of new cases of a disease in a population during
a specified time period.
15. The Public Health Intervention Wheel is a model that:
A) Defines the scope of medical practice in public health.
B) Organizes public health nursing activities into 17 distinct interventions. ✓
C) Is used only for disaster preparedness planning.
D) Focuses solely on individual-level care.
Rationale: The Wheel is a population-based model comprising 17 interventions that can be
applied at the individual, community, and systems levels.
16. Which of the following is a key feature of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)?
A) Elimination of private health insurance
B) Mandated individual health insurance coverage ✓
C) Provision of free healthcare for all
D) Decreased focus on preventive services
Rationale: The individual mandate was a cornerstone of the ACA, designed to ensure a broad
and healthy risk pool for insurers.
17. A community health nurse is working with a local coalition to increase access to fresh
fruits and vegetables in a low-income neighborhood. This addresses the determinant of
health known as:
