Deck 56: Mental Health Function, Assessment, and Therapeutic Measures

Question 1

A patient diagnosed with a mental illness is being considered for psychotherapy. Which goals does the nurse realize for this treatment? (Select all that apply.)

A)Relaxing the body
B)Improving social interactions
C)Clarifying the meaning of events
D)Reducing emotional discomfort
E)Enhancing performance in situations

Answer 1

Improving social interactions
Reducing emotional discomfort
Enhancing performance in situations

Question 2

The nurse is recently transferred to a mental health unit and asks the registered nurse (RN) about how health care providers (HCPs) decide about what diagnosis to give patients. Which information from the RN is correct?

A)Most patients are able to identify their own problems.
B)Family members are presented with and select a diagnosis.
C)The HCP uses a professional manual after identifying symptoms.
D)Treatment is generalized and not specific to any one diagnosis.

Answer 2

The HCP uses a professional manual after identifying symptoms.

Question 3

The nurse works in a long-term facility where the residents are primarily children, adolescents, and adults with low levels of cognitive functioning. Behavior modification is the treatment used in the facility. Which action does the nurse recognize as an example of negative reinforcement?

A)A resident is given extra TV time when no swearing is noted for the day.
B)A resident who straightens up their room is given extra time outdoors.
C)A resident who throws food needs to eat the next meal in his room.
D)A resident seeking a task is assigned to help fold clean linens.

Answer 3

A resident who throws food needs to eat the next meal in his room.

Question 4

A student feels anxious about being unprepared for an upcoming test. Which action is a positive response to this anxiety?

A)Canceling nonessential activities for 3 days to study
B)Staying up all night the night before the test to study
C)Borrowing notes from another student who had the class in the past
D)Choosing not to worry about studying because of good grades so far

Question 5

A patient recovering from electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for severe depression is confused and wants to know what has been done. Which action by the nurse is best?

A)Administer a sedative to help calm the patient.
B)Call the physician and report the patient's response.
C)Explain that the patient is in the hospital and has just had ECT.
D)Encourage the patient to sleep until the preprocedure medication is worn off.

Question 6

Staff on a mental health unit routinely use positive and negative reinforcement when caring for patients with mental health disorders. Which action needs to occur before the staff can implement these approaches?

A)Have an HCP order to use the approaches.
B)Ensure all patients have medication orders for sedatives.
C)Place a set of four-point restraints within each patient's room.
D)Have the patient sign a consent form agreeing to this approach.

Question 7

The nurse is assisting with the care of a patient following ECT for depression resistant to pharmacological interventions. Which behavior by the patient will cause the nurse to report to the RN or HCP?

A)The patient is disoriented about person, place, and time.
B)The patient reports the presence of random muscle pain.
C)The patient expresses nausea and the need to vomit.
D)The patient asks questions about what happened.

Question 8

The nurse is participating in group therapy. The participants are asked to give their individual definitions of mental health. Which participant's definition is correct?

A)Having the ability to solve problems
B)Being able to mask personal feelings
C)Sticking to one's ideas and beliefs
D)Relying on the judgments of others

Question 9

The nurse in a mental health facility understands the importance of a therapeutic milieu environment. The nurse is aware of which activity supporting the goal of resocialization?

A)Patients helping with small jobs on the unit
B)Patients helping to govern how the unit is run
C)Patients learning coping and social skills
D)Patients seeing role modeling and positive reinforcement

Question 10

A young parent is angry with the mess a child created in the child's room. The parent isolates the child in the room until the mess is cleaned up. About 20 minutes later, the parent enters the room and offers milk and cookies. Which ego defense mechanism is the parent using?

A)Restitution
B)Regression
C)Reaction formation
D)Conversion reaction

Question 11

The nurse works in a mental health clinic where a variety of therapies are provided. Which patient does the nurse recognize as being suited for cognitive behavioral therapy?

A)An adolescent who exhibits hostility toward authority
B)An adult who is depressed over a family death a year ago
C)A patient who is attempting to overcome the effects of abuse
D)A patient who is seeking support for quitting a drug abuse habit

Question 12

A patient is attending counseling to learn how to manage verbal abuse from a spouse. Which type of mental exercise does the nurse identify as most helpful for this patient?

A)Guided imagery
B)Relaxation therapy
C)Anger management
D)Survival techniques

Question 13

The nurse is helping a patient identify coping mechanisms. What general definition of coping is the nurse most likely using with this patient?

A)The way one adapts to a stressor
B)The adaptation to mental health problems
C)The use of specific mechanisms to reduce anxiety
D)The development of unconscious behaviors to reduce psychological distress

Question 14

The nurse is providing care for a patient experiencing anxiety. Which techniques does the nurse use exclusively when instructing the patient about progressive muscle relaxation therapy? (Select all that apply.)

A)Start at the head and neck.
B)End with the lower extremities.
C)Play soft music to aid with relaxation.
D)Systematically tense and relax muscle groups.
E)Imaging a pleasurable experience from the past.

Question 15

The nurse is providing care for a patient admitted to a mental health facility for observation and treatment. The patient states, "God put me here and God will get me out." Which reply by the nurse lacks sensitivity to the patient?

A)"Your faith will support you to recovery."
B)"I will be happy to call your spiritual leader."
C)"Sometimes we need to rely on our higher power."
D)"The doctors and medications will play a key role."