MENTAL HESI EXAM QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Practice exam
1. A 30-year-old sales manager tells the nurse, "I am thinking about a job change. I don't
feel like
... [Show More] I am living up to my potential." Which of Maslow's developmental stages is the
sales manager attempting to achieve?
A. Self-Actualization. Correct
B. Loving and Belonging.
C. Basic Needs.
D. Safety and Security.
Self-actualization is the highest level of Maslow's development stages, which is an attempt
to fulfill one's full potential (C). (B) is identifying support systems. (C) is the first level of
Maslow's developmental stages and is the foundation upon which higher needs rest.
Individuals who feel safe and secure (D) in their environment perceive themselves as having
physical safety and lack fear of harm.
2. The nurse observes a client who is admitted to the mental health unit and identifies
that the client is talking continuously, using words that rhyme but that have no context or
relationship with one topic to the next in the conversation. This client's behavior and
thought processes are consistent with which syndrome?
A. Dementia.
B. Depression.
C. Schizophrenia. Correct
D. Chronic brain syndrome.
The client is demonstrating symptoms of schizophrenia (C), such as disorganized speech that
may include word salad (communication that includes both real and imaginary words in no
logical order), incoherent speech, and clanging (rhyming). Dementia (A) is a global
impairment of intellectual (cognitive) functions that may be progressive, such as Alzheimer's
or organic brain syndrome (D). Depression (C) is typified by psychomotor retardation, and
the client appears to be slowed down in movement, in speech, and would appear listless
and disheveled.
3. A homeless person who is in the manic phase of bipolar disorder is admitted to the
mental health unit. Which laboratory finding obtained on admission is most important for
the nurse to report to the healthcare provider?
A. Decreased thyroid stimulating hormone level. Correct
B. Elevated liver function profile.
C. Increased white blood cell count.
D. Decreased hematocrit and hemoglobin levels.
Hyperthyroidism causes an increased level of serum thyroid hormones (T3 and T4), which
inhibit the release of TSH (A), so the client's manic behavior may be related to an endocrine
disorder. (B, C, and D) are abnormal findings that are commonly found in the homeless [Show Less]