Deck 3: Environmental Health Influences on Disease and Injury

Question 1

The public health nurse is assessing the social environment of a community. Which of the following would be included in this assessment?

A) Convenience of public transportation
B) Availability of health education
C) Presence of sidewalks
D) Accessibility to parks

Answer 1

Availability of health education

Question 2

The public health nurse is planning health programs using the Healthy People 2020 objectives. Which objective would be included to address the objective of reducing toxic substances and hazardous wastes?

A) Encouraging use of mass transit
B) Reducing lead blood levels in children
C) Increasing the number of days when beaches are open and safe
D) Reducing indoor mouse and cockroach allergens

Answer 2

Reducing lead blood levels in children

Question 3

The occupational health nurse is assessing environmental hazards in a manufacturing facility that produces loud noises. This is considered which type of environmental hazard?

A) Biological
B) Chemical
C) Physical
D) Psychosocial

Answer 3

Physical

Question 4

The nurse is teaching a prenatal class to prospective parents. Which route of exposure does the nurse teach is involved in the development of fetal alcohol syndrome?

A) Inhalation
B) Ingestion
C) Dermal absorption
D) Transplacental

Question 5

When teaching a patient about risk factors for heart disease, the nurse should explain that:

A) the presence of a risk factor increases the chance of developing heart disease.
B) the presence of a risk factor lowers the risk of developing heart disease.
C) the presence of a risk factor determines that heart disease will develop.
D) the absence of a risk factor excludes the possibility that heart disease will develop.

Question 6

Which of the following is not the role of the epidemiology nurse?

A) Caring for individual patients in need of health care
B) Studying the distribution of disease in a population
C) Controlling disease outbreaks
D) Analyzing health data

Question 7

What activities are performed by the public health nurse engaged in the process surveillance?

A) Providing direct care to patients in a clinic
B) Administering vaccinations in an elementary school
C) Collecting data from occupational health records
D) Providing community education on dangers of lead poisoning in children

Question 8

Which of the following would be considered a sentinel health event by the public health nurse?

A) Several nonsmokers in a community who develop lung cancer
B) An individual nonsmoker who develops cancer
C) Genetically related nonsmoking family members who develop lung cancer
D) A cluster of smokers in a community who develop lung cancer

Question 9

In planning care for the elderly population, the nurse should be aware that this population is susceptible to environmental hazards due to:

A) increased metabolic rate.
B) increased surface-to-body mass ratio.
C) increased blood flow.
D) reduced cell-mediated immunity.

Question 10

The nurse is teaching a community program on ways to reduce mercury in the diet. Which of the following should the nurse include in the teaching sessions?

A) Smaller fish have less mercury.
B) Larger fish have less mercury.
C) Cooking fish destroys mercury.
D) Removing skin reduces the amount of mercury.

Question 11

When the occupational health nurse reviews a manufacturing plant's policies regarding airborne health hazards in the workplace, which principle of industrial hygiene is most important?

A) Mandating the use of a personal mask or respirator
B) Reducing the quantities of particles released in the air
C) Conducting training sessions on improving air quality
D) Developing polices regarding reduction exposure to airborne particles

Question 12

When planning for a community education program on injury prevention, what statistic should the nurse keep in mind?

A) Homicide is the leading cause of death for people ages 15 to 34 years
B) Suicide is the leading cause of death for people ages 10 to 35 years
C) Motor vehicle accidents are the fourth-leading cause of death for people in all age groups
D) Unintentional injuries is the leading cause of death for people ages 1 to 44 years

Question 13

The occupational health nurse is teaching industrial plant employees about the routes of exposure for chemicals used in the plant. The nurse bases the program on the knowledge that the main route of occupational exposure is:

A) inhalation.
B) ingestion.
C) dermal absorption.
D) transplacentally.

Question 14

The school nurse is planning health prevention programs for the parents of elementary school-age children. The nurse should take into account that which condition is caused 100% by environmental exposure?

A) Lead poisoning
B) Asthma
C) Cancer
D) Behavioral disorders

Question 15

The nurse is explaining the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance due to diethylstilbestrol (DES) to a patient whose mother took DES while pregnant with her. What statement indicates that the patient understands the inheritance of epigenetic-induced changes?

A) "My children won't be affected because I didn't take DES."
B) "I can pass on these changes to my children."
C) "Changes cannot be passed on to my grandchildren."
D) "DES changes are not inherited."

Question 16

Which assessment data will give the nurse the best information to determine exposure to environmental hazards?

A) Physical examination
B) Laboratory tests
C) Health history
D) Nutritional history

Question 17

An occupational health nurse works in a chemical plant that follows the precautionary principle. Which of the following actions exemplifies this principle?

A) Taking preventative action even with uncertainty about the threat to health
B) Taking preventative action only when scientific evidence points to a threat to health
C) Taking action only when a cause-and-effect relationship has been proven
D) Taking action only when the risk is unacceptable

Question 18

When assessing physiological responses to psychosocial hazards, which assessment data indicates that a patient is showing physiological effects of these hazards?

A) Constipation
B) Hypotension
C) Bradycardia
D) Hypoglycemia

Question 19

According to the Evans and Stoddart ecological model, which of the following is part of the social environment at the individual level?

A) Respect for the rights of others
B) Availability of sufficient food
C) Access to health education
D) Employment status

Question 20

The occupational health nurse is biomonitoring workers for exposure to chemicals in the workplace. When should the nurse obtain blood and urine samples?

A) At the beginning of the work shift
B) In the middle of the work shift
C) At the end of the work shift
D) During the pre-employment physical