Kozier & Erb’s Fundamentals of Nursing, 10/E
Chapter 43
Question 1
Type: MCSA
During a home visit, an older male client tells the nurse that his wife died 3 years ago. What did the nurse observe
as an indication that this client is experiencing complicated grief?
1. The client has an album of photographs of his wife open on the living room table.
2. He tells the nurse that his wife was an awful cook and that he has eaten better meals since she died.
3. He indicates that he sends his laundry out to be done because he had never figured out how the washer works.
4. He shows the nurse his wife’s craft room that remains just as she left it before she died.
Question 2
Type: MCSA
The nurse is caring for the family of a terminally ill client. The family members have been tearful and sad since
the diagnosis was given. What is the best nursing diagnosis problem statement for this family?
1. Anticipatory Grieving
2. Dysfunctional Grieving
3. Hopelessness
4. Caregiver Role Strain
Question 3
Type: MCSA
The nurse is counseling a family in which a member is terminally ill. The family has children of varying ages.
What should the nurse teach the family about the reactions of children to death?
1. Toddlers perceive death as irreversible and unnatural.
2. Preschool children view death as a spiritual release.
3. At about age 9, children begin to understand that death is inevitable.
4. Adolescents tend to have better outcomes than adults after a loss.
Question 4
Type: MCSA
The nurse is assigning support personnel to assist the families of clients who have died in dealing with the stress
related to the loss of their family members. Which family would the nurse screen as at highest risk for
complicated grief? The family of a client who
1. died after a long battle against cancer.
2. died after developing diabetes-induced renal failure.
3. was killed in the robbery of a bank.
4. died from chronic heart disease.
Question 5
Type: MCSA
The nurse critically evaluates various models of grief used for terminally ill clients and their families. What
should the nurse recognize when applying these models to individual cases?
1. The Kübler-Ross model is primarily used to describe anticipatory grief.
2. No clear timetables exist, nor are there clear-cut stages of grief.
3. The models serve as clear and definitive predictors of grief behaviors.
4. There is strong research proving that these models are not useful for many dying clients.
Question 6
Type: MCMA
A client hospitalized for injuries from a motor vehicle crash is diagnosed with higher brain death. What findings
support this client’s diagnosis?
Standard Text: Select all that apply.
1. Episodic coughing
2. No cephalic reflexes
3. Not breathing spontaneously
4. Inconsistent cardiac function on the heart monitor
5. Electroencephalogram showed no activity for 30 minutes
Question 7
Type: MCSA
A client is diagnosed with a terminal illness and is demonstrating anxiety. What intervention can the nurse use to
help the client at this time?
1. Explore the client’s history with other stressful life events and how successful coping was at that time.
2. Teach the family that while talking with the client about death and dying is permissible, they should not allow
the client to dwell on death.
3. Supply information about the client’s disease process and the expected trajectory of death only on a need-to–
know basis.
4. Encourage early pharmaceutical intervention with antianxiety and sedative medications.
Question 8
Type: MCSA
A client who has AIDS tells the nurse, “I don’t know why I should even keep trying. This disease is so horrible
and so many people die from it. It will get me, too.” The nurse recognizes this statement as being
1. an indication of hopelessness that should be further evaluated for treatment.
2. a simple statement of the facts regarding AIDS.
3. common and expected in those facing the end of life.
4. proof that the client is accepting the facts of the illness and impending death.
Question 9
Type: MCSA
The client tells the nurse that she has been having problems sleeping since her boss died unexpectedly 3 weeks
ago. She confides that she and the boss had been having a secret extramarital affair for years. The nurse
recognizes that the sleeping difficulty is most likely a result of which type of grief?
1. Abbreviated
2. Chronic
3. Disenfranchised
4. External
Question 10
Type: MCMA
The nurse is working with a father and his three children, ages 10, 14, and 17. The mother recently died after a
long illness. The children are doing poorly in school, and the father is having a difficult time keeping up with
household chores. He has recently taken on a second job to help pay his late wife’s hospital bills. Which nursing
diagnoses should the nurse consider in planning care for this family?
Standard Text: Select all that apply.
1. Anticipatory Grieving
2. Impaired Family Processes
3. Impaired Adjustment
4. Caregiver Role Strain
5. Hopelessness
Question 11
Type: MCSA
During the bath, the client suddenly says, “I am not going to get well. I think I am going to die.” What response
given by the nurse is most appropriate?
1. “Let’s think of something more cheerful.”
2. “You are doing so well; don’t talk like that.”
3. “What makes you think you are dying?”
4. “Whatever is meant to be will happen.”
Question 12
Type: MCSA
The client has a documented advance health care directive that indicates that no resuscitative measures should be
employed in the event of a respiratory or cardiac arrest. The client begins to exhibit severe dyspnea and air hunger
and says, “Please do something, I can’t breathe.” What action should be taken by the nurse?
1. Offer the client comfort measures until death occurs.
2. Call the client’s physician for direction.
3. Initiate resuscitative measures.
4. Check the medical record to ascertain the terms of the directive.
Question 13
Type: MCMA
A client with end-stage renal disease knows that he is dying but refuses to talk about it with his spouse. At times
the spouse talks with the nursing staff about the client’s condition but adamantly refuses to discuss death with the
client. What will be the outcomes of this situation?
Standard Text: Select all that apply.
1. Client has dignity
2. Client has privacy
3. Client can finalize affairs
4. Client can plan own funeral
5. Client burdened with no one to confide in
Question 14
Type: MCSA
The family of a young adult client who has recently been diagnosed with a rapidly progressing terminal illness
tells the nurse, “This cannot be happening. There must be some mistake in the testing.” What should be the nurse’s
first step in assisting this family?
1. Provide structure and continuity to promote feelings of security.
2. Examine the nurse’s own feelings to ensure denial is not shared.
3. Offer spiritual support.
4. Allow the family to express sadness.
Question 15
Type: MCSA
A client who has just been diagnosed with a slowly progressive terminal illness asks the nurse about the
availability of hospice services. What information should the nurse share with this client?
1. When clients are designated as terminally ill, they are automatically assigned to hospice care.
2. Hospice services are generally reserved for those who have a life expectancy of 6 months or less.
3. Only those clients with private insurance can receive hospice benefits.
4. Provision of hospice services is reserved only for those who refuse other palliative treatments.
Question 16
Type: MCSA
The nurse is caring for a child who is dying. What is the most important communication strategy for the nurse to
use at this time?
1. Talk to the child at the appropriate level of understanding.
2. Be totally open and honest with the child.
3. Avoid discussing death with the child.
4. Encourage the family to talk with the child about the impending death.
Question 17
Type: MCSA
The nurse is caring for a client whose family does not want to tell him that he is dying. What is the nurse’s best
action according to these wishes?
1. Arrange an encounter with the client and tell him the truth.
2. Change the subject when the client asks about his impending death.
3. Tell the family that the patient has the right to know that he is dying.
4. Talk to the family about the situation and their concerns.
Question 18
Type: MCSA
The nurse who is providing postmortem care for a client sees that the client is wearing a ring. What is the most
important action regarding this observation?
1. Remove the ring and give it to the family.