, 1. In the hospital where Nurse L. provides care, tradition dictates that oral
temperatures be included in every set of patient vital signs, regardless of patient
diagnosis or acuity. This is most likely an example of which of the following
phenomena?
A) The prioritization of internal evidence over external evidence
B) Practice that lacks evidence to support its application
C) The integration of personal expertise into nursing care
D) Evidence-based practice
2. The clinical nurse educator (CNE) on a postsurgical unit has recently completed
a patient chart review after the implementation of a pilot program aimed at
promoting early ambulation following surgery. Which of the following
components of EBP is the nurse putting into practice?
A) Patient preferences
B) Research utilization
C) Experience
D) Internal evidence
3. Nurse R. has observed that reorienting demented patients as frequently as
possible tends to minimize the patients' level of agitation in the evening. The
nurse has shared this observation with a colleague, who is skeptical, stating that,
“It's best to stick to evidence-based practice.” How can Nurse R. best respond?
A) “EBP can include clinicians' personal expertise.”
B) “Personal experience is often more sound than formal evidence-based practice.”
C) “Traditional practice and EBP are usually shown to be the same.”
D) “My years of experience can be just as valuable as any literature review or
randomized trial.”
4. Which of the following factors provides the most important rationale for the
consistent implementation of EBP?
A) EBP provides for the most cost-effective patient care.
B) EBP is accessible to all healthcare clinicians.
C) EBP provides consistency in care across healthcare settings.
D) EBP improves patient outcomes.
5. The Institute of Medicine's Roundtable on Evidence-Based Medicine has been
established to address EBP. Which of the following issues is the Roundtable
emphasizing?
A) Ensuring that external evidence, rather than internal evidence, is integrated into
care
B) Fostering the level of learning that exists in the American healthcare system
C) Issuing clinical guidelines to ensure best nursing practice
Page 1
,D) Comparing the implementation of EBP in the United States with that of other
Western countries
6. You have become frustrated with some aspects of patient care that you believe
are outdated and ineffective at the long-term care facility where you have
recently begun practicing. Consequently, you have resolved to examine some of
these practices in light of evidence. Which of the following should occur first in
the steps of EBP?
A) Conducting an electronic search of the literature and ranking individual sources
B) Creating “buy-in” from the other clinicians who provide care at the facility
C) Developing an inquisitive and curious mindset
D) Assessing whether the practices in question may, in fact, be evidence-based
7. Which of the following clinical questions best exemplifies the PICOT format?
A) What effect does parents' smoking have on the smoking habits of their children,
ages 13 to 16?
B) Among cancer patients, what role does meditation, rather than benzodiazepines,
have on anxiety levels during the 7 days following hospital admission?
C) Among undergraduate college students, what is the effectiveness of a sexual health
campaign undertaken during the first 4 weeks of the fall semester as measured by
incidence of new gonorrheal and chlamydial infections reported to the campus
medical center?
D) In patients aged 8 to 12, is the effectiveness of a pain scale using faces superior to a
numeric rating scale in the emergency room context?
8. After formulating a clinical question, a nurse has proceeded to search for
evidence for ways to foster restful sleep in patients who are receiving care in the
intensive care unit (ICU). The nurse has identified a relevant meta-analysis in an
electronic database. What will this source of evidence consist of?
A) A statistical summary of the results from several different studies
B) An examination of the theoretical and conceptual underpinnings of the issue
C) An interdisciplinary analysis of the clinical question
D) A qualitative study of different interventions related to the clinical question
9. The nurses on a postpartum unit have noted that many primiparous (first-time)
mothers are giving up on breastfeeding within the 24 hours following delivery,
and the nurses want to create uniform guidelines for promoting breastfeeding on
the unit. Which of the following sources is most likely to provide the best
evidence in their quest for an intervention?
A) Evidence from a randomized control trial that had more than 2500 participants
B) Evidence from a study that is widely regarded as a classic within the obstetrical
nursing community
Page 2
, C) Evidence from a systematic review of breastfeeding-promotion studies that one of
the nurses identified in an electronic database
D) The consensus opinion of the most senior nurses on the unit
10. The nurse educator on an acute medicine unit is advocating for the use of
evidence-based clinical practice guidelines on wound care in order to standardize
and optimize the practice of the nurses on the unit. Which of the following
statements best describes clinical practice guidelines?
A) The result of replication studies of existing research by an impartial third party
B) A collection of authorized interventions that are required by law
C) A number of interventions that are the result of a large, publically-funded RCT
D) A group of practice recommendations that result from a rigorous review of the
literature
11. A nurse is conducting a literature review on the evidence regarding the use of
vacuum dressings on stage IV pressure ulcers. After locating a recent study that
appears to be relevant, which of the following questions would the nurse consider
first when critically appraising the study?
A) “Are the findings of this study cost-effective in our clinical context?”
B) "How would the implementation of this intervention affect our staffing needs?"
C) “Were the patients in the study similar to the patients on my unit?”
D) “Are the findings of the study significantly different from what we are currently
doing on the unit?
12. The primary care provider of a 49-year-old male patient has examined and briefly
explained the evidence that supports beginning regular digital-rectal exams.
Which of the following factors would justify not performing digital-rectal
examinations in this patient's care?
A) The patient is vehemently opposed to undergoing a digital-rectal exam.
B) Clinical practice guidelines for prostate care have not been published.
C) The clinician has been unable to find any large RCTs in a literature review.
D) The clinician has previously waited until patients are 55 to begin regular digital-
rectal exams.
13. The implementation of a new, evidence-based infection-control regimen in a
community hospital has resulted in a significant reduction in the incidence of
nosocomial (hospital-acquired) infections. What should constitute the final step
in the nurses' evidence-based practice?
A) Calculating the cost-savings that will be realized by using the new regimen
B) Sharing their experience with other healthcare professionals
C) Implementing enforcement measures to ensure compliance with the new regimen
D) Conducting a meta-analysis of other infection-control measures
Page 3
temperatures be included in every set of patient vital signs, regardless of patient
diagnosis or acuity. This is most likely an example of which of the following
phenomena?
A) The prioritization of internal evidence over external evidence
B) Practice that lacks evidence to support its application
C) The integration of personal expertise into nursing care
D) Evidence-based practice
2. The clinical nurse educator (CNE) on a postsurgical unit has recently completed
a patient chart review after the implementation of a pilot program aimed at
promoting early ambulation following surgery. Which of the following
components of EBP is the nurse putting into practice?
A) Patient preferences
B) Research utilization
C) Experience
D) Internal evidence
3. Nurse R. has observed that reorienting demented patients as frequently as
possible tends to minimize the patients' level of agitation in the evening. The
nurse has shared this observation with a colleague, who is skeptical, stating that,
“It's best to stick to evidence-based practice.” How can Nurse R. best respond?
A) “EBP can include clinicians' personal expertise.”
B) “Personal experience is often more sound than formal evidence-based practice.”
C) “Traditional practice and EBP are usually shown to be the same.”
D) “My years of experience can be just as valuable as any literature review or
randomized trial.”
4. Which of the following factors provides the most important rationale for the
consistent implementation of EBP?
A) EBP provides for the most cost-effective patient care.
B) EBP is accessible to all healthcare clinicians.
C) EBP provides consistency in care across healthcare settings.
D) EBP improves patient outcomes.
5. The Institute of Medicine's Roundtable on Evidence-Based Medicine has been
established to address EBP. Which of the following issues is the Roundtable
emphasizing?
A) Ensuring that external evidence, rather than internal evidence, is integrated into
care
B) Fostering the level of learning that exists in the American healthcare system
C) Issuing clinical guidelines to ensure best nursing practice
Page 1
,D) Comparing the implementation of EBP in the United States with that of other
Western countries
6. You have become frustrated with some aspects of patient care that you believe
are outdated and ineffective at the long-term care facility where you have
recently begun practicing. Consequently, you have resolved to examine some of
these practices in light of evidence. Which of the following should occur first in
the steps of EBP?
A) Conducting an electronic search of the literature and ranking individual sources
B) Creating “buy-in” from the other clinicians who provide care at the facility
C) Developing an inquisitive and curious mindset
D) Assessing whether the practices in question may, in fact, be evidence-based
7. Which of the following clinical questions best exemplifies the PICOT format?
A) What effect does parents' smoking have on the smoking habits of their children,
ages 13 to 16?
B) Among cancer patients, what role does meditation, rather than benzodiazepines,
have on anxiety levels during the 7 days following hospital admission?
C) Among undergraduate college students, what is the effectiveness of a sexual health
campaign undertaken during the first 4 weeks of the fall semester as measured by
incidence of new gonorrheal and chlamydial infections reported to the campus
medical center?
D) In patients aged 8 to 12, is the effectiveness of a pain scale using faces superior to a
numeric rating scale in the emergency room context?
8. After formulating a clinical question, a nurse has proceeded to search for
evidence for ways to foster restful sleep in patients who are receiving care in the
intensive care unit (ICU). The nurse has identified a relevant meta-analysis in an
electronic database. What will this source of evidence consist of?
A) A statistical summary of the results from several different studies
B) An examination of the theoretical and conceptual underpinnings of the issue
C) An interdisciplinary analysis of the clinical question
D) A qualitative study of different interventions related to the clinical question
9. The nurses on a postpartum unit have noted that many primiparous (first-time)
mothers are giving up on breastfeeding within the 24 hours following delivery,
and the nurses want to create uniform guidelines for promoting breastfeeding on
the unit. Which of the following sources is most likely to provide the best
evidence in their quest for an intervention?
A) Evidence from a randomized control trial that had more than 2500 participants
B) Evidence from a study that is widely regarded as a classic within the obstetrical
nursing community
Page 2
, C) Evidence from a systematic review of breastfeeding-promotion studies that one of
the nurses identified in an electronic database
D) The consensus opinion of the most senior nurses on the unit
10. The nurse educator on an acute medicine unit is advocating for the use of
evidence-based clinical practice guidelines on wound care in order to standardize
and optimize the practice of the nurses on the unit. Which of the following
statements best describes clinical practice guidelines?
A) The result of replication studies of existing research by an impartial third party
B) A collection of authorized interventions that are required by law
C) A number of interventions that are the result of a large, publically-funded RCT
D) A group of practice recommendations that result from a rigorous review of the
literature
11. A nurse is conducting a literature review on the evidence regarding the use of
vacuum dressings on stage IV pressure ulcers. After locating a recent study that
appears to be relevant, which of the following questions would the nurse consider
first when critically appraising the study?
A) “Are the findings of this study cost-effective in our clinical context?”
B) "How would the implementation of this intervention affect our staffing needs?"
C) “Were the patients in the study similar to the patients on my unit?”
D) “Are the findings of the study significantly different from what we are currently
doing on the unit?
12. The primary care provider of a 49-year-old male patient has examined and briefly
explained the evidence that supports beginning regular digital-rectal exams.
Which of the following factors would justify not performing digital-rectal
examinations in this patient's care?
A) The patient is vehemently opposed to undergoing a digital-rectal exam.
B) Clinical practice guidelines for prostate care have not been published.
C) The clinician has been unable to find any large RCTs in a literature review.
D) The clinician has previously waited until patients are 55 to begin regular digital-
rectal exams.
13. The implementation of a new, evidence-based infection-control regimen in a
community hospital has resulted in a significant reduction in the incidence of
nosocomial (hospital-acquired) infections. What should constitute the final step
in the nurses' evidence-based practice?
A) Calculating the cost-savings that will be realized by using the new regimen
B) Sharing their experience with other healthcare professionals
C) Implementing enforcement measures to ensure compliance with the new regimen
D) Conducting a meta-analysis of other infection-control measures
Page 3
