Adult-Gerontology CNS Test Palliative Care & End-of-Life 3

Question 1

Which statement best distinguishes palliative care from hospice care?

Accepted Answer

Palliative care can be provided at any stage alongside curative treatment; hospice requires forgoing curative treatment

Answer

Palliative care can begin at diagnosis and be provided concurrently with curative treatment, whereas hospice care is a specific type of palliative care for patients who forgo curative treatment with a prognosis of 6 months or less.

Question 2

A patient with terminal illness completes a living will. What does this document specify?

Accepted Answer

The patient's specific wishes regarding medical treatments if they cannot speak for themselves

Answer

A living will is an advance directive that documents the patient's specific wishes about medical treatments (e.g., mechanical ventilation, artificial nutrition) to be followed if they lose decision-making capacity.

Question 3

From an ethical standpoint, which of the following is true regarding withholding versus withdrawing life-sustaining treatment?

Accepted Answer

Both are ethically equivalent when the patient or surrogate consents

Answer

Major bioethics frameworks and legal precedent in the U.S. hold that withholding and withdrawing life-sustaining treatment are morally and legally equivalent when patient/surrogate consent is obtained.

Question 4

A family insists that 'everything be done' for their dying father, conflicting with his previously stated wishes to avoid aggressive interventions. The CNS's best initial response is to:

Accepted Answer

Facilitate a family meeting to explore their concerns, clarify goals of care, and discuss the patient's documented wishes

Answer

A family goals-of-care meeting to explore concerns, provide information, and align the plan with the patient's documented values and wishes is the appropriate first step before escalating to ethics consultation.

Question 5

Which of the following best describes anticipatory grief in the context of end-of-life care?

Accepted Answer

Grief experienced before an expected loss, during the illness

Answer

Anticipatory grief refers to mourning that occurs before an expected loss, experienced by both patients and families as they confront the impending death during the illness trajectory.

Adult-Gerontology CNS Test Practice Test

Adult-Gerontology CNS Test Practice Test

Adult-Gerontology CNS Test Palliative Care & End-of-Life 3