CNA Basic Nursing Skills 15 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A patient in a long-term care facility refuses to take their prescribed medication. The CNA should:
- Crush the medication and hide it in food
- Document the refusal and notify the nurse (Correct answer)
- Insist the patient take the medication
- Discard the medication without reporting
Correct answer: Document the refusal and notify the nurse
Patients have the right to refuse treatment; the CNA must document the refusal and report it to the nurse so the care team can respond appropriately.
Question 2: Which finding in a patient's stool should be reported to the nurse immediately?
- Brown-colored stool
- Soft-formed stool
- Tarry black or bright red stool (Correct answer)
- Stool with slightly strong odor
Correct answer: Tarry black or bright red stool
Tarry black (melena) or bright red blood in stool indicates gastrointestinal bleeding and must be reported immediately.
Question 3: When performing passive range-of-motion (ROM) exercises, the CNA should:
- Move joints as far as possible regardless of resistance
- Support the joint above and below while moving through the pain-free range (Correct answer)
- Ask the patient to do all the movement independently
- Perform ROM only on the affected limbs
Correct answer: Support the joint above and below while moving through the pain-free range
Supporting the joint above and below prevents injury while moving through the comfortable range of motion for the patient.
Question 4: A patient suddenly becomes confused and reports feeling dizzy while the CNA is walking them in the hallway. The CNA should:
- Continue walking to the destination quickly
- Ease the patient to the floor or a nearby chair using a safe technique (Correct answer)
- Leave the patient and call for help
- Ask the patient to sit down on the floor independently
Correct answer: Ease the patient to the floor or a nearby chair using a safe technique
If a patient is at risk of falling, the CNA should safely lower them to the floor or support them into a chair to prevent injury.
Question 5: A patient who has been on bed rest develops redness over their sacrum that does not blanch when pressed. This finding indicates:
- Stage I pressure injury (Correct answer)
- Stage II pressure injury
- Deep tissue injury
- Skin tear
Correct answer: Stage I pressure injury
Non-blanchable redness over a bony prominence in intact skin is the hallmark of a Stage I pressure injury.
Question 6: The purpose of placing a patient in the Sims' (left lateral) position is to:
- Facilitate breathing in patients with respiratory distress
- Administer an enema or rectal examination (Correct answer)
- Prevent aspiration during feeding
- Reduce pressure on the coccyx
Correct answer: Administer an enema or rectal examination
The Sims' position (semiprone, left side) provides access to the rectal area and is commonly used for enemas and rectal procedures.
Question 7: A patient's family member asks the CNA to share information about the patient's diagnosis. The CNA should:
- Share the information if the family member seems concerned
- Explain that all medical information must come from the nurse or physician (Correct answer)
- Refer the family to the patient's medical chart
- Share only general, non-specific information
Correct answer: Explain that all medical information must come from the nurse or physician
CNAs are not authorized to disclose medical diagnoses or detailed health information; this responsibility belongs to licensed nurses and physicians.
CNA Basic Nursing Skills 15 5
A patient in a long-term care facility refuses to take their prescribed medication.
The CNA should: