PSYCHIATRIC-MENTAL HEALTH NURSING
10TH EDITION
• AUTHOR(S)SHEILA L. VIDEBECK
TEST BANK
UNIT 1 — CURRENT THEORIES & PRACTICE
1
Reference: Ch. 1 — Introduction / Mental Health and Mental
Illness
Stem: A 22-year-old college student tells the campus nurse, “I
can’t sleep, I’ve stopped going to class, and I’ve been thinking
that nobody would notice if I weren’t here.” She has a flat affect
and poor eye contact. Which nurse action is the most
appropriate first step?
A. Arrange for a psychiatric consultation and safety planning
before she leaves campus.
B. Encourage her to attend classes and improve sleep hygiene
,immediately.
C. Provide a written list of counseling resources and suggest
follow-up next week.
D. Ask whether she has a specific plan or means to harm
herself.
Correct answer: D
Rationales:
• Correct (D): Asking directly about a plan and means is the
priority assessment for suicide risk; it determines
imminent safety needs and guides urgent interventions.
This question requires immediate clinical judgment to
identify lethality.
• Incorrect (A): Psychiatric consultation and safety planning
may be necessary but are premature before assessing
current suicidal intent and plan.
• Incorrect (B): Encouraging class attendance and sleep
hygiene is supportive but inadequate when suicidal
ideation is present.
• Incorrect (C): Providing resources without immediate risk
assessment delays urgent safety measures for a potentially
high-risk patient.
Teaching point: Directly assess suicidal intent, plan, and
means first to determine immediate safety.
Citation: Videbeck, S. L. (2025). Psychiatric–Mental Health
Nursing (10th ed.). Ch. 1.
,2
Reference: Ch. 1 — Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders (DSM)
Stem: A nurse assesses a 35-year-old patient whose mood has
been elevated for two weeks, with decreased need for sleep
and pressured speech. The nurse must decide whether to
communicate findings to the provider as possible hypomania
versus mania. Which clinical detail most helps the nurse
distinguish hypomania from mania during reporting?
A. Presence of pressured speech.
B. Degree of functional impairment or need for hospitalization.
C. Reduced need for sleep.
D. Increased goal-directed activity.
Correct answer: B
Rationales:
• Correct (B): DSM differentiation between hypomania and
mania hinges on functional impairment or hospitalization;
mania causes marked impairment or psychotic features,
guiding level-of-care decisions.
• Incorrect (A): Pressured speech occurs in both hypomania
and mania and is not definitive for differentiation.
• Incorrect (C): Reduced need for sleep is common to both
conditions; it does not determine severity.
, • Incorrect (D): Increased goal-directed activity is
characteristic of both; degree of impairment is the key
discriminator.
Teaching point: Use level of functional
impairment/hospitalization to distinguish hypomania from
mania.
Citation: Videbeck, S. L. (2025). Psychiatric–Mental Health
Nursing (10th ed.). Ch. 1.
3
Reference: Ch. 1 — Historical Perspectives of the Treatment of
Mental Illness
Stem: A nursing student asks why modern psychiatric nursing
emphasizes patient dignity and autonomy compared with
earlier institutional models. Which faculty response best
integrates historical context into current ethical practice?
A. “Past institutions focused on containment and custodial care;
modern care emphasizes recovery, autonomy, and therapeutic
relationships.”
B. “We no longer use restraints, so dignity is automatically
preserved.”
C. “Historical treatments were less effective because nurses
were less educated.”
D. “Contemporary care only differs because medications
became available.”
10TH EDITION
• AUTHOR(S)SHEILA L. VIDEBECK
TEST BANK
UNIT 1 — CURRENT THEORIES & PRACTICE
1
Reference: Ch. 1 — Introduction / Mental Health and Mental
Illness
Stem: A 22-year-old college student tells the campus nurse, “I
can’t sleep, I’ve stopped going to class, and I’ve been thinking
that nobody would notice if I weren’t here.” She has a flat affect
and poor eye contact. Which nurse action is the most
appropriate first step?
A. Arrange for a psychiatric consultation and safety planning
before she leaves campus.
B. Encourage her to attend classes and improve sleep hygiene
,immediately.
C. Provide a written list of counseling resources and suggest
follow-up next week.
D. Ask whether she has a specific plan or means to harm
herself.
Correct answer: D
Rationales:
• Correct (D): Asking directly about a plan and means is the
priority assessment for suicide risk; it determines
imminent safety needs and guides urgent interventions.
This question requires immediate clinical judgment to
identify lethality.
• Incorrect (A): Psychiatric consultation and safety planning
may be necessary but are premature before assessing
current suicidal intent and plan.
• Incorrect (B): Encouraging class attendance and sleep
hygiene is supportive but inadequate when suicidal
ideation is present.
• Incorrect (C): Providing resources without immediate risk
assessment delays urgent safety measures for a potentially
high-risk patient.
Teaching point: Directly assess suicidal intent, plan, and
means first to determine immediate safety.
Citation: Videbeck, S. L. (2025). Psychiatric–Mental Health
Nursing (10th ed.). Ch. 1.
,2
Reference: Ch. 1 — Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders (DSM)
Stem: A nurse assesses a 35-year-old patient whose mood has
been elevated for two weeks, with decreased need for sleep
and pressured speech. The nurse must decide whether to
communicate findings to the provider as possible hypomania
versus mania. Which clinical detail most helps the nurse
distinguish hypomania from mania during reporting?
A. Presence of pressured speech.
B. Degree of functional impairment or need for hospitalization.
C. Reduced need for sleep.
D. Increased goal-directed activity.
Correct answer: B
Rationales:
• Correct (B): DSM differentiation between hypomania and
mania hinges on functional impairment or hospitalization;
mania causes marked impairment or psychotic features,
guiding level-of-care decisions.
• Incorrect (A): Pressured speech occurs in both hypomania
and mania and is not definitive for differentiation.
• Incorrect (C): Reduced need for sleep is common to both
conditions; it does not determine severity.
, • Incorrect (D): Increased goal-directed activity is
characteristic of both; degree of impairment is the key
discriminator.
Teaching point: Use level of functional
impairment/hospitalization to distinguish hypomania from
mania.
Citation: Videbeck, S. L. (2025). Psychiatric–Mental Health
Nursing (10th ed.). Ch. 1.
3
Reference: Ch. 1 — Historical Perspectives of the Treatment of
Mental Illness
Stem: A nursing student asks why modern psychiatric nursing
emphasizes patient dignity and autonomy compared with
earlier institutional models. Which faculty response best
integrates historical context into current ethical practice?
A. “Past institutions focused on containment and custodial care;
modern care emphasizes recovery, autonomy, and therapeutic
relationships.”
B. “We no longer use restraints, so dignity is automatically
preserved.”
C. “Historical treatments were less effective because nurses
were less educated.”
D. “Contemporary care only differs because medications
became available.”
