Deck 2: Health Disparities and Culturally Competent Care

Question 1

An older Asian American patient tells the nurse that she has lived in the United States for 50 years.The patient speaks English and lives in a predominantly Asian neighborhood.Which action by the nurse is most appropriate?

A) Include a shaman when planning the patient's care.
B) Avoid direct eye contact with the patient during care.
C) Ask the patient about any special cultural beliefs or practices.
D) Involve the patient's oldest son to assist with health care decisions.

Answer 1

Ask the patient about any special cultural beliefs or practices.

Question 2

The nurse plans care for a hospitalized patient who uses culturally based treatments.Which action by the nurse is best?

A) Encourage the use of diagnostic procedures.
B) Coordinate the use of folk treatments with ordered medical therapies.
C) Ask the patient to discontinue the cultural treatments during hospitalization.
D) Teach the patient that folk remedies will interfere with orders by the health care provider.

Answer 2

Coordinate the use of folk treatments with ordered medical therapies.

Question 3

The nurse working in a clinic in a primarily African American community notes a higher incidence of uncontrolled hypertension in the patients.To correct this health disparity,which action should the nurse take first?

A) Initiate a regular home-visit program by nurses working at the clinic.
B) Schedule teaching sessions about low-salt diets at community events.
C) Assess the perceptions of community members about the care at the clinic.
D) Obtain low-cost antihypertensive drugs using funding from government grants.

Answer 3

Assess the perceptions of community members about the care at the clinic.

Question 4

The nurse cares for a patient who speaks a different language.If an interpreter is not available,which action by the nurse is most appropriate?

A) Talk slowly so that each word is clearly heard.
B) Speak loudly in close proximity to the patient's ears.
C) Repeat important words so that the patient recognizes their significance.
D) Use simple gestures to demonstrate meaning while talking to the patient.

Question 5

The nurse is caring for a newly admitted patient.Which intervention is the best example of a culturally appropriate nursing intervention?

A) Insist family members provide most of the patient's personal care.
B) Maintain a personal space of at least 2 feet when assessing the patient.
C) Ask permission before touching a patient during the physical assessment.
D) Consider the patient's ethnicity as the most important factor in planning care.

Question 6

The nurse performs a cultural assessment with a patient from a different culture.Which action by the nurse should be taken first?

A) Request an interpreter before interviewing the patient.
B) Wait until a family member is available to help with the assessment.
C) Ask the patient about any affiliation with a particular cultural group.
D) Tell the patient what the nurse already knows about the patient's culture.

Question 7

When doing an admission assessment for a patient,the nurse notices that the patient pauses before answering questions about the health history.Which action by the nurse is most appropriate?

A) Interview a family member instead.
B) Wait for the patient to answer the questions.
C) Remind the patient that you have other patients who need care.
D) Give the patient an assessment form listing the questions and a pen.

Question 8

A Hispanic patient complains of abdominal cramping caused by empacho.Which action should the nurse take first?

A) Ask the patient what treatments are likely to help.
B) Massage the patient's abdomen until the pain is gone.
C) Administer prescribed medications to decrease the cramping.
D) Offer to contact a curandero(a) to make a visit to the patient.

Question 9

The nurse is performing an admission assessment for a non-English speaking patient who is from China.Which actions could the nurse take to enhance communication ?

A) Use an electronic translation application.
B) Use a telephone-based medical interpreter.
C) Wait until an agency interpreter is available.
D) Ask the patient's teenage daughter to interpret.
E) Use exaggerated gestures to convey information.

Question 10

The nurse plans health care for a community with a large number of recent immigrants from Vietnam.Which intervention is the most important for the nurse to implement?

A) Hepatitis testing
B) Tuberculosis screening
C) Contraceptive teaching
D) Colonoscopy information

Question 11

A female staff nurse is assessing a male patient of Arab descent who is admitted with complaints of severe headaches.It is most important for the charge nurse to intervene if the nurse takes which action?

A) The nurse explains the 0 to 10 intensity pain scale.
B) The nurse asks the patient when the headaches started.
C) The nurse sits down at the bedside and closes the privacy curtain.
D) The nurse calls for a male nurse to bring a hospital gown to the room.

Question 12

Which strategy should be a priority when the nurse is planning care for a diabetic patient who is uninsured?

A) Obtain less expensive medications.
B) Follow evidence-based practice guidelines.
C) Assist with dietary changes as the first action.
D) Teach about the impact of exercise on diabetes.

Question 13

What information should the nurse collect when assessing the health status of a community?

A) Air pollution levels
B) Number of health food stores
C) Most common causes of death
D) Education level of the individuals

Question 14

The nurse is caring for an Asian patient who is being admitted to the hospital.Which action would be most appropriate for the nurse to take when interviewing this patient?

A) Avoid eye contact with the patient.
B) Observe the patient's use of eye contact.
C) Look directly at the patient when interacting.
D) Ask a family member about the patient's cultural beliefs.

Question 15

A staff nurse expresses frustration that a Native American patient always has several family members at the bedside.Which action by the charge nurse is most appropriate?

A) Remind the nurse that family support is important to this family and patient.
B) Have the nurse explain to the family that too many visitors will tire the patient.
C) Suggest that the nurse ask family members to leave the room during patient care.
D) Ask about the nurse's personal beliefs about family support during hospitalization.

Question 16

The nurse is obtaining a health history from a new patient.Which data will be the focus of patient teaching?

A) Age and gender
B) Saturated fat intake
C) Hispanic/Latino ethnicity
D) Family history of diabetes

Question 17

The nurse is caring for a Native American patient who has traditional beliefs about health and illness.Which action by nurse is most appropriate?

A) Avoid asking questions unless the patient initiates the conversation.
B) Ask the patient whether it is important that cultural healers are contacted.
C) Explain the usual hospital routines for meal times, care, and family visits.
D) Obtain further information about the patient's cultural beliefs from a family member.

Question 18

The nurse works in a clinic located in a community with many Hispanics.Which strategy,if implemented by the nurse,would decrease health care disparities for the Hispanic patients?

A) Improve public transportation to the clinic.
B) Update equipment and supplies at the clinic.
C) Obtain low-cost medications for clinic patients.
D) Teach clinic staff about Hispanic health beliefs.