HAC Mental Health Awareness & Support 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A client with depression refuses to get out of bed for three consecutive days. What is the healthcare aide's priority action?
- Force the client to get up for their health
- Report the change in behavior to the supervising nurse (Correct answer)
- Leave the client alone until they feel ready
- Offer rewards to motivate the client
Correct answer: Report the change in behavior to the supervising nurse
A significant change in behavior such as refusing to get out of bed for multiple days must be reported to the supervising nurse for clinical assessment.
Question 2: Which of the following is a positive symptom of schizophrenia?
- Social withdrawal
- Flat affect
- Auditory hallucinations (Correct answer)
- Loss of motivation
Correct answer: Auditory hallucinations
Positive symptoms of schizophrenia are additions to normal behavior, including hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized speech.
Question 3: When a client experiencing anxiety asks the healthcare aide to 'just tell me everything will be fine,' the best response is to:
- Promise them everything will be fine to reduce anxiety
- Acknowledge their feelings and offer calm, reassuring presence (Correct answer)
- Change the subject to distract them
- Tell them they are overreacting
Correct answer: Acknowledge their feelings and offer calm, reassuring presence
Acknowledging the client's feelings and providing a calm presence validates their experience without making false promises.
Question 4: A client on antidepressants tells the aide they stopped taking their medication because they 'feel better now.' The aide should:
- Support the client's decision as they know their body best
- Immediately tell the client to restart the medication
- Report this to the supervising nurse and document it (Correct answer)
- Advise the client that stopping is fine if they feel well
Correct answer: Report this to the supervising nurse and document it
Abrupt discontinuation of antidepressants can cause relapse or discontinuation syndrome and must be reported to the supervising nurse.
Question 5: Which behavior best demonstrates the healthcare aide maintaining appropriate boundaries with a mentally ill client?
- Sharing personal phone number in case the client needs support
- Spending extra unpaid time with the client who seems lonely
- Providing consistent, compassionate care within assigned duties (Correct answer)
- Becoming close friends to build trust
Correct answer: Providing consistent, compassionate care within assigned duties
Maintaining professional boundaries means providing compassionate, consistent care within the defined scope of the aide's role.
Question 6: What does the term 'psychosis' refer to?
- A persistent low mood lasting more than two weeks
- A loss of contact with reality, including hallucinations or delusions (Correct answer)
- Excessive worry about multiple life areas
- Extreme mood swings between mania and depression
Correct answer: A loss of contact with reality, including hallucinations or delusions
Psychosis is a mental state in which a person loses touch with reality, often experiencing hallucinations or delusions.
Question 7: A client with bipolar disorder is in a manic phase and wants to give away all their belongings. The aide should:
- Help facilitate the giving since it makes the client happy
- Inform the supervising nurse of the client's impulsive behavior (Correct answer)
- Ignore it as it is the client's choice
- Call the client's family without informing the supervisor first
Correct answer: Inform the supervising nurse of the client's impulsive behavior
Impulsive behavior during a manic episode can lead to harm and must be reported to the supervising nurse for appropriate intervention.
HAC Mental Health Awareness & Support 2
A client with depression refuses to get out of bed for three consecutive days.
What is the healthcare aide's priority action?