Nokea
The nurse is caring for a group of five clients at the hospital. To control infections when caring for the group of clients, what intervention can the nurse perform?
- A. Use standard precautions with all clients.
- B. Only use standard precautions with clients who have an infection.
- C. Wear a mask while taking care of all clients and changing the mask between clients.
- D. Place the clients on isolation precautions.
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: Nurses and other healthcare personnel must take precautions to control infections when caring for all clients, regardless of diagnosis or infection status. These precautions are called standard precautions, measures for reducing the risk of transmitting pathogens from both recognized and unrecognized sources of infections. It is unnecessary to use a mask when caring for clients who do not have a droplet or airborne infection. Clients should not be placed in isolation unless they have an infection that could be transmitted to others.
You may also like to solve these questions
The nurse is caring for a client with an abscess on the back. The nurse observes purulent drainage coming from the abscess. What type of specimen does the nurse anticipate the physician will order to determine the type of bacteria present in the exudate?
- A. A sensitivity test
- B. Test for ova and parasites
- C. White blood cell (WBC) count
- D. A culture
Correct Answer: D
Rationale: A culture identifies bacteria in a specimen taken from a person with symptoms of an infection. The source of the specimen may be body fluids or wastes, such as blood, sputum, urine, or feces, or the purulent exudate, collection of pus, from an open wound. A test for ova and parasites is a stool specimen that is examined for evidence of any forms in the infecting microorganism's life cycle. A WBC count may determine that infection is present in the body but does not isolate the bacteria. A sensitivity test is done to determine which antibiotic inhibits the growth of a nonviral microorganism and will be most effective in treating the infection.
A client with a Staphylococcus aureus infection present in a sacral pressure ulcer has received treatment with three courses of antibiotics without eliminating the infection. What does the nurse understand has occurred with the client?
- A. The client has a multidrug-resistant strain of bacteria.
- B. The client has been misdiagnosed and has another type of microorganism present.
- C. Staphylococcus aureus cannot be treated by antibiotics.
- D. Staphylococcus aureus is a fungus and must be treated with an antifungal agent, not an antibiotic.
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: Some bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Escherichia coli, are developing multidrug resistance, the ability to remain unaffected by antimicrobial drugs such as antibiotics. There are no facts to indicate the client has been misdiagnosed. Staphylococcus aureus is treated with antibiotics and is a bacterium, not a fungus.
The infection control nurse collects data that indicates an increase in the number of clients in the hospital with multidrug-resistant infections. What priority education should healthcare providers receive?
- A. Using contact precautions on all clients in the hospital
- B. Administering antibiotics to all clients prophylactically
- C. Performing hand hygiene
- D. Emptying trash cans immediately in client's rooms
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Infections with multidrug-resistant microorganisms are very difficult to destroy with current pharmacologic agents, increasing the need to be vigilant about performing hand hygiene measures. It is unnecessary to use contact precautions, administer antibiotics prophylactically, or empty trash cans immediately for the preventions of multidrug-resistant infections.
The nurse has admitted a new client to the unit. This client has an open draining sore on the leg. What diagnostic test would the nurse anticipate being ordered?
- A. Platelet count
- B. Culture and sensitivity
- C. Sputum culture
- D. Urinalysis
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: A culture identifies bacteria in a specimen taken from a person with symptoms of an infection. The source of the specimen may be body fluids or wastes, such as blood, sputum, urine, or feces, or the purulent exudate, collection of pus, from an open wound. A platelet count would not tell the nurse about the infection. A sputum culture would not be indicated for a leg wound, nor would a urinalysis.
The intensive care unit nurse is caring for a client with a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy. The nurse knows that this type of encephalopathy is caused by what type of infectious agent?
- A. Prion
- B. Protozoa
- C. Helminth
- D. Rickettsia
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: A prion is a protein that does not contain nucleic acid. Research suggests that normal prions present in brain cells protect against dementia. When a prion mutates, however, it is capable of becoming an infectious agent and altering other normal prion proteins into similar mutant copies. The mutant prions, which can be formed by genetic predisposition or acquired by transmission between the same or similar infected animal species, cause transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies are not caused by protozoa, helminths, or rickettsias.