ANCC AGACNP ADULT-GERONTOLOGY ACUTE CARE NURSE
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Question 1
An Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner's (AGACNP) legal authority to practice,
including the ability to diagnose and treat patients, is primarily defined by:
A) The American Nurses Association (ANA)
B) The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)
C) The individual state's Nurse Practice Act
D) The hospital's medical staff bylaws
E) The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
Correct Answer: C) The individual state's Nurse Practice Act
Rationale: The scope of practice for any nurse, including an advanced practice nurse, is
legally defined at the state level. Each state's Nurse Practice Act, enforced by the state
Board of Nursing, provides the statutory authority and specific guidelines for nursing
practice, including prescriptive authority and other advanced functions.
Question 2
Which organization is primarily responsible for delineating the national Standards of Advanced
Practice for nursing, which measure the quality of practice, service, and education?
A) The Joint Commission
B) The American Nurses Association (ANA)
C) The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
D) State Boards of Nursing
E) The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN)
Correct Answer: B) The American Nurses Association (ANA)
Rationale: The ANA is the professional organization that establishes the overarching
standards and scope of practice for all levels of nursing in the United States. These
standards provide a framework for quality and are often used as a benchmark in legal and
regulatory matters.
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Question 3
A nurse practitioner is granted a DEA registration number. This allows the NP to:
A) Prescribe any medication without restriction.
B) Prescribe controlled substances in accordance with state and federal law.
C) Diagnose and treat patients in any state.
D) Bill for services under their own provider number.
E) Admit patients to a hospital.
Correct Answer: B) To prescribe controlled substances in accordance with state and federal
law.
Rationale: A DEA registration number is specifically for the purpose of prescribing
medications listed on the Controlled Substances Act schedules. While the DEA grants this
federal registration, the extent and specific limitations of the NP's prescriptive authority
are still dictated by their individual state's Nurse Practice Act.
Question 4
What is the difference between licensure and certification for a nurse practitioner?
A) Licensure is granted by a governmental body (State Board of Nursing), while certification is
granted by a nongovernmental agency (like ANCC).
B) Certification is required to practice, while licensure is optional.
C) Licensure signifies mastery of a specialty, while certification establishes a minimal level of
competence.
D) Licensure is a federal process, while certification is a state process.
E) There is no significant difference; the terms are interchangeable.
Correct Answer: A) Licensure is granted by a governmental body (State Board of Nursing),
while certification is granted by a nongovernmental agency (like ANCC).
Rationale: Licensure is the legal right to practice, granted by a state government entity.
Certification is a process by which a non-governmental professional organization attests
that an individual has met certain predetermined standards of knowledge and skill in a
specialty. Most states require national certification as a prerequisite for licensure as an NP.
Question 5
The process by which a hospital's credentialing committee grants a nurse practitioner permission
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to provide specific services and care to patients within that institution is known as:
A) Licensure
B) Certification
C) Accreditation
D) Privileging
E) Registration
Correct Answer: D) Privileging
Rationale: Credentialing is the process of verifying an NP's education, licensure, and
certification. Privileging is the subsequent process where the hospital's medical staff
committee reviews the NP's qualifications and grants them specific "privileges," which is a
list of the specific procedures and scope of practice they are permitted to perform within
that hospital.
Question 6
An AGACNP is caring for a critically ill patient in the ICU. The NP's shift ends, and the
oncoming NP has not yet arrived. The current NP leaves the hospital. This action could be
considered:
A) A reportable sentinel event.
B) A violation of HIPAA.
C) Patient medical abandonment.
D) An acceptable sign-out procedure.
E) A fulfillment of the NP's duty.
Correct Answer: C) Patient medical abandonment.
Rationale: Patient abandonment occurs when a provider terminates the provider-patient
relationship without making reasonable arrangements for the continuation of care. Leaving
a critically ill patient without a formal, safe handoff to another qualified provider
constitutes abandonment.
Question 7
A systematic effort to reduce risk within a healthcare organization, often involving the use of
incident reports, satisfaction surveys, and complaint tracking, is known as:
A) Quality Assurance
, [Type here]
B) Root Cause Analysis
C) Risk Management
D) Credentialing
E) Utilization Review
Correct Answer: C) Risk Management
Rationale: Risk management is a proactive, organization-wide program designed to
identify potential risks to patients, staff, and the institution; to prevent incidents and
injuries; and to minimize financial losses from claims and lawsuits.
Question 8
An intervention that is unlikely to produce any significant benefit for a patient is best described
as:
A) Palliative care
B) A sentinel event
C) A standard of care
D) Medical futility
E) An adverse event
Correct Answer: D) Medical futility
Rationale: Medical futility refers to interventions that are highly unlikely to achieve their
intended therapeutic goal or produce a benefit for the patient that outweighs the burdens of
the treatment. It can be quantitative (low likelihood of success) or qualitative (poor quality
of life even if successful).
Question 9
For a patient to provide valid informed consent, they must have decisional capability. This
implies that the patient can:
A) Agree with everything the provider recommends.
B) Understand, reason, differentiate good and bad, and communicate a choice.
C) Read and write at an eighth-grade level.
D) Have a family member present to co-sign the consent form.
E) Recite the risks of the procedure from memory.
PRACTITIONER (AGACNP-BC) EXAM BANK | ACCURATE CURRENTLY
TESTING ALL EXAM QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS WITH RATIONALES |
EXPERT VERIFIED FOR GUARANTEED PASS | LATEST UPDATE
Question 1
An Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner's (AGACNP) legal authority to practice,
including the ability to diagnose and treat patients, is primarily defined by:
A) The American Nurses Association (ANA)
B) The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)
C) The individual state's Nurse Practice Act
D) The hospital's medical staff bylaws
E) The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
Correct Answer: C) The individual state's Nurse Practice Act
Rationale: The scope of practice for any nurse, including an advanced practice nurse, is
legally defined at the state level. Each state's Nurse Practice Act, enforced by the state
Board of Nursing, provides the statutory authority and specific guidelines for nursing
practice, including prescriptive authority and other advanced functions.
Question 2
Which organization is primarily responsible for delineating the national Standards of Advanced
Practice for nursing, which measure the quality of practice, service, and education?
A) The Joint Commission
B) The American Nurses Association (ANA)
C) The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
D) State Boards of Nursing
E) The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN)
Correct Answer: B) The American Nurses Association (ANA)
Rationale: The ANA is the professional organization that establishes the overarching
standards and scope of practice for all levels of nursing in the United States. These
standards provide a framework for quality and are often used as a benchmark in legal and
regulatory matters.
,[Type here]
Question 3
A nurse practitioner is granted a DEA registration number. This allows the NP to:
A) Prescribe any medication without restriction.
B) Prescribe controlled substances in accordance with state and federal law.
C) Diagnose and treat patients in any state.
D) Bill for services under their own provider number.
E) Admit patients to a hospital.
Correct Answer: B) To prescribe controlled substances in accordance with state and federal
law.
Rationale: A DEA registration number is specifically for the purpose of prescribing
medications listed on the Controlled Substances Act schedules. While the DEA grants this
federal registration, the extent and specific limitations of the NP's prescriptive authority
are still dictated by their individual state's Nurse Practice Act.
Question 4
What is the difference between licensure and certification for a nurse practitioner?
A) Licensure is granted by a governmental body (State Board of Nursing), while certification is
granted by a nongovernmental agency (like ANCC).
B) Certification is required to practice, while licensure is optional.
C) Licensure signifies mastery of a specialty, while certification establishes a minimal level of
competence.
D) Licensure is a federal process, while certification is a state process.
E) There is no significant difference; the terms are interchangeable.
Correct Answer: A) Licensure is granted by a governmental body (State Board of Nursing),
while certification is granted by a nongovernmental agency (like ANCC).
Rationale: Licensure is the legal right to practice, granted by a state government entity.
Certification is a process by which a non-governmental professional organization attests
that an individual has met certain predetermined standards of knowledge and skill in a
specialty. Most states require national certification as a prerequisite for licensure as an NP.
Question 5
The process by which a hospital's credentialing committee grants a nurse practitioner permission
,[Type here]
to provide specific services and care to patients within that institution is known as:
A) Licensure
B) Certification
C) Accreditation
D) Privileging
E) Registration
Correct Answer: D) Privileging
Rationale: Credentialing is the process of verifying an NP's education, licensure, and
certification. Privileging is the subsequent process where the hospital's medical staff
committee reviews the NP's qualifications and grants them specific "privileges," which is a
list of the specific procedures and scope of practice they are permitted to perform within
that hospital.
Question 6
An AGACNP is caring for a critically ill patient in the ICU. The NP's shift ends, and the
oncoming NP has not yet arrived. The current NP leaves the hospital. This action could be
considered:
A) A reportable sentinel event.
B) A violation of HIPAA.
C) Patient medical abandonment.
D) An acceptable sign-out procedure.
E) A fulfillment of the NP's duty.
Correct Answer: C) Patient medical abandonment.
Rationale: Patient abandonment occurs when a provider terminates the provider-patient
relationship without making reasonable arrangements for the continuation of care. Leaving
a critically ill patient without a formal, safe handoff to another qualified provider
constitutes abandonment.
Question 7
A systematic effort to reduce risk within a healthcare organization, often involving the use of
incident reports, satisfaction surveys, and complaint tracking, is known as:
A) Quality Assurance
, [Type here]
B) Root Cause Analysis
C) Risk Management
D) Credentialing
E) Utilization Review
Correct Answer: C) Risk Management
Rationale: Risk management is a proactive, organization-wide program designed to
identify potential risks to patients, staff, and the institution; to prevent incidents and
injuries; and to minimize financial losses from claims and lawsuits.
Question 8
An intervention that is unlikely to produce any significant benefit for a patient is best described
as:
A) Palliative care
B) A sentinel event
C) A standard of care
D) Medical futility
E) An adverse event
Correct Answer: D) Medical futility
Rationale: Medical futility refers to interventions that are highly unlikely to achieve their
intended therapeutic goal or produce a benefit for the patient that outweighs the burdens of
the treatment. It can be quantitative (low likelihood of success) or qualitative (poor quality
of life even if successful).
Question 9
For a patient to provide valid informed consent, they must have decisional capability. This
implies that the patient can:
A) Agree with everything the provider recommends.
B) Understand, reason, differentiate good and bad, and communicate a choice.
C) Read and write at an eighth-grade level.
D) Have a family member present to co-sign the consent form.
E) Recite the risks of the procedure from memory.
