Brunner & Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing 14e (Hinkle 2017) - Health Care Delivery and Evidence-Based Nursing Practice Related

Review Brunner & Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing 14e (Hinkle 2017) - Health Care Delivery and Evidence-Based Nursing Practice related questions and content

The view that health and illness are not static states but that they exist on a continuum is central to professional health care systems. When planning care, this view aids the nurse in appreciating which of the following?

  • A. Care should focus primarily on the treatment of disease.
  • B. A persons state of health is ever-changing.
  • C. A person can transition from health to illness rapidly.
  • D. Care should focus on the patients compliance with interventions.
Correct Answer: B

Rationale: By viewing health and illness on a continuum, it is possible to consider a person as being neither completely healthy nor completely ill. Instead, a persons state of health is ever-changing and has the potential to range from high-level wellness to extremely poor health and imminent death. The other answers are incorrect because patient care should not focus just on the treatment of disease. Rapid declines in health and compliance with treatment are not key to this view of health.