Question 1

The nurse who is a member of a Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) has the remains of several victims of a disaster to be identified and collected. Which group should the nurse contact for this service?

Accepted Answer

DMORTs, or Disaster Mortuary Operations Response Teams, are specifically trained and ready to provide mortuary assistance to jurisdictions in need. They have the expertise to help identify and collect remains in the aftermath of a disaster. The other groups may have different roles in responding to a disaster but are not specifically trained for the task of collecting and identifying remains.

Question 2

A patient tells the nurse that he thought that he would feel better because it has been a few days since his radiation exposure, but he still feels weak and tired. What is the nurse's best response to this patient?

Accepted Answer

It is common for patients to experience fatigue after radiation therapy, and this fatigue can persist for weeks to months after treatment. It is important for the nurse to acknowledge the patient's experience and reassure them that their symptoms are not uncommon. Encouraging rest and relaxation may be more helpful than pushing the patient to increase their activity levels. Option A is not recommended as increasing activity may exacerbate the patient's symptoms, and option B is irrelevant and may cause unnecessary anxiety for the patient. Option C is not necessarily true and may not be helpful for the patient's symptoms.

Question 3

A patient is brought into the emergency department after an acute exposure to radiation from the local atomic power plant. The patient has skin burns on the face, arms, and neck. The nurse implements which priority intervention?

Accepted Answer

The priority intervention in this situation would be to determine the amount of radiologic exposure the patient received in order to assess the severity of the situation and determine the appropriate treatment. The other interventions may be necessary, but determining the amount of radiation exposure is the initial priority.

Question 4

The nurse is admitting the fourth patient in 2 days who is experiencing malaise, high fever, and headache. All patients attended a local air show the previous weekend. Which nursing action is necessary?

Accepted Answer

The similarity of symptoms in these patients who attended the same event indicates a potential outbreak of a communicable disease. Contacting public health authorities is necessary to investigate and prevent further spread of the disease. Placing these patients in the same room (B) increases the risk of transmission to other patients. Asking for permission to talk with family members about other symptoms (C) does not provide immediate action to prevent further spread of the disease. Assessing the patients for what foods they ate (D) is not relevant to the current situation and would not provide useful information in preventing the spread of a communicable disease.

Question 5

The nurse is assessing victims of a building collapse. Ambulances are nearby and there is a shelter set up with carts, chairs, tables, and refreshments for the victims. The nurse is most likely working within which decontamination zone?

Accepted Answer

The cold zone is where victims who have been decontaminated or were not contaminated gather for further care, support, and transportation. The presence of ambulances, shelters, and refreshments indicates that this is a safe area away from the immediate danger or contamination, characteristic of the cold zone.

Question 6

A group of workers arrives at the hospital after being exposed to chemicals during an industrial accident. The nurse would prepare to supervise decontamination in which zone?

Accepted Answer

The warm zone is where decontamination occurs, separating the contaminated area (hot zone) from the safe area (cold zone).

Question 7

The nurse is interested in learning how to become a disaster relief nurse. What should the nurse consider prior to joining the Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) program?

Accepted Answer

The nurse must provide and pay for his or her own personal gear, including a sleeping bag, when joining the DMAT program.

Question 8

A group of nurses are attending a meeting to discuss the outcomes and results of care provided to victims of a recent building collapse. The nurses are participating in which phase of the disaster planning process?

Accepted Answer

Recovery phase involves assessing outcomes and results of care provided after a disaster, including meetings to discuss and evaluate the effectiveness of the response and plan for future improvements.

Question 9

Facilitators of a critical incident stress debriefing are instructing the nurses on ways to cope with the stress created by providing disaster care. The nurses are participating in which phase of the debriefing session?

Accepted Answer

The facilitators are providing teaching on coping with stress, indicating that the nurses are in the teaching phase of the critical incident stress debriefing. The reaction phase focuses on allowing participants to discuss their emotional reactions to the incident, while the fact phase is focused on sharing information about what happened. The reentry phase is focused on helping participants integrate what they have learned into their daily lives.

Question 10

After an anthrax exposure, the health care provider orders doxycycline 100 mg PO. The label on the bottle of doxycycline oral powder states to reconstitute with sterile water to prepare a concentration of
0.025 g/5 mL. The nurse should prepare to administer ______ mL to the patient.

Accepted Answer

The answer of After an anthrax exposure, the health care...

Question 11

Law enforcement authorities have notified the emergency department that several people who have been exposed to nerve gas will be arriving. The nurse manager alerts the department nursing staff to expect patients with which assessment findings?. Select all that apply.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Law enforcement authorities have notified the emergency...

Question 12

The hospital has activated its incident command system (HICS) and is currently triaging patients and determining the extent of injuries and casualties. The nurse would refer calls from the media to which person?

Accepted Answer

The public information officer is responsible for communicating with the media and disseminating information about the incident to the public. This person is trained to handle media inquiries and share accurate information while protecting patient privacy.

Question 13

During a natural disaster, the Strategic National Stockpile was deployed and supplies were used to treat patients. Now that the initial medical and nursing response is over, who is responsible for retrieving the remnants of the 12-hour push packs?

Accepted Answer

The Technical Advisory Response Unit (TARU) is responsible for retrieving the remnants of the 12-hour push packs after the initial medical and nursing response is over.

Question 14

The emergency department has been notified of a possible Category A biologic exposure in a rural community. When preparing staff for these patients, the nurse manager explains care for victims of which agents?. Select all that apply.

Accepted Answer

All of the listed agents (botulism, anthrax, plague, and tularemia) are considered Category A biologic exposures by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). These agents have the potential for widespread illness or death, and healthcare providers must be prepared to recognize and care for patients exposed to them. Salmonella, while a serious foodborne illness, is not considered a Category A biologic exposure.

Question 15

The nurse is planning to attend a program to learn how to respond to mass casualty incidents. The nurse anticipates this program will address which core competencies of emergency and disaster preparedness for nurses?. Select all that apply.

Accepted Answer

The program to learn how to respond to mass casualty incidents is likely to address several core competencies of emergency and disaster preparedness for nurses. These may include creative problem-solving skills, emergency communication skills, understanding of personal limitations, and identification of emergency situations. Adherence to standard protocols and policies may also be important, but it is not specifically mentioned in the question stem. Therefore, the best answer is A, C, D, E.

Question 16

A patient is brought into the emergency department after being exposed to over 1,000 rads of radiation. Which intervention will take priority in the care of this patient?

Accepted Answer

The answer of A patient is brought into the emergency...

Question 17

The hospital incident command system (HICS) has been activated following a multivehicle accident. Nurses are moving ambulatory patients to one section of the emergency department. These patients will be assigned which START triage category?

Accepted Answer

Patients who are ambulatory and do not require immediate medical attention are assigned the green category in the Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment (START) triage system.

Question 18

Because of high demand during a disaster, the pharmacy has run out of normal saline intravenous solutions and the blood bank is down to 10 units of type O+ blood. The directors of these services would contact which section of the hospital incident command system (HICS) to obtain these supplies?

Accepted Answer

The Logistics section of the Hospital Incident Command System (HICS) is responsible for providing services and support to meet the operational needs, including obtaining and distributing supplies such as medications and blood units during a disaster.

Question 19

A patient has been prescribed 400 mg ciprofloxacin IV for anthrax prophylaxis. The pharmacy has sent a 1 gram vial of ciprofloxacin to the nursing unit to be diluted with 10 mL of sodium chloride. The nurse should administer ____ mL.

Accepted Answer

The answer of A patient has been prescribed 400 mg...

Question 20

A mass casualty accident has occurred. The first patient the nurse receives has a color code of red. What is the nurse's disposition of this patient?

Accepted Answer

A color code of red indicates that the patient has life-threatening injuries that require immediate intervention. The nurse should prioritize this patient's care and assess and treat their injuries as soon as possible. Sending the patient home, planning to evaluate them later, or allowing them to die are not appropriate actions for a patient with a red color code.

Quiz 65: Disaster Nursing