Write a short scenario (story) about a nurse that illustrates one of the reasons why nurses need to be critical thinkers.

Imagine that you have been in an automobile accident. You have internal injuries and broken bones and will be hospitalized for at least 2 weeks, right before your final exams.

Chapter 2

What factors or persons influenced your decision to be a nurse? Have others asked you why you chose to become a nurse? How have the reactions you received before colored your explanation of your career choice? What makes this situation similar to or different from your prior experiences? What’s important in this situation? Of the possible answers you are considering, which answer best reflects your true feelings about your career choice? Why are the other answers not appropriate? What beliefs and assumptions are coloring your response?

What is your image of nursing? List at least five attributes a nurse should have, and at least five responsibilities that you consider to be a part of nursing.

Write a short scenario (story) about a nurse that illustrates one of the reasons why nurses need to be critical thinkers.

Chapter 3

Give examples of each type of assessment (initial, ongoing, comprehensive, focused) using patients you have observed or cared for or your own personal experiences as a patient. How might age and developmental stage make a difference in your assessment of a patient? Suppose you are the triage nurse at the community clinic in the Meet Your Patient scenario. What kind of assessment do you perform at Sami’s first visit (initial, ongoing, comprehensive, focused)? What type will the care provider at the women’s clinic perform?

The Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) competency definitions identify assessment as a necessary skill for competency in patient-centered care: Elicit patient values, preferences, and expressed needs as part of a clinical interview (Cronenwett, Sherwood, Barnsteiner, et al., 2007). Where do you think this type of patient information fits into the preceding components of a nursing health history? Why?

Chapter 4

Imagine that you have been in an automobile accident. You have internal injuries and broken bones and will be hospitalized for at least 2 weeks, right before your final exams. What human responses (physical, emotional, interpersonal, social, spiritual) would you have

For each of the following cue clusters, decide whether the cues represent a pattern; that is, are all the cues related in some way? If so, explain how they are related. If not, state which cue does not fit. If you do not have enough theoretical knowledge to know for sure, draw on your past experiences and discuss the clusters with other students.

a. Dry skin, abnormal skin turgor (more than 4 seconds), thirst, and scanty, dark yellow urine

b. Pain and limited range of motion in knees, uses walker, medical diagnosis of osteoarthritis

c. Hard, painful bowel movement about every 3 days; does not exercise regularly; eats very little dietary fiber; skin is dry.