PCU PCU Infection Control & Safety 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A PCU patient who is a fall risk attempts to get out of bed without assistance. Which intervention is most appropriate as a first response?
- Apply physical restraints immediately
- Redirect the patient verbally and reassess fall-prevention measures (Correct answer)
- Document the event and continue monitoring
- Increase sedation to prevent future attempts
Correct answer: Redirect the patient verbally and reassess fall-prevention measures
Verbal redirection and reassessment of fall-prevention interventions (bed alarm, room arrangement, scheduled rounding) are the first appropriate response before considering restraints.
Question 2: Which patient is at HIGHEST risk for a hospital-acquired pressure injury in the PCU?
- A 35-year-old ambulatory patient with mild anemia
- A 72-year-old patient on vasopressors, incontinent, and immobile (Correct answer)
- A 50-year-old patient who repositions independently every 2 hours
- A 60-year-old patient with a BMI of 27 and normal perfusion
Correct answer: A 72-year-old patient on vasopressors, incontinent, and immobile
Advanced age, vasopressor use (reducing perfusion), incontinence (skin maceration), and immobility all combine to place this patient at the highest risk for pressure injury.
Question 3: A PCU patient has an indwelling urinary catheter. Which nursing action best prevents catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI)?
- Irrigate the catheter with normal saline daily
- Perform daily assessment of continued catheter necessity (Correct answer)
- Keep the drainage bag above bladder level
- Routinely change the catheter every 3 days
Correct answer: Perform daily assessment of continued catheter necessity
Daily review and prompt removal of unnecessary urinary catheters is the single most effective intervention for CAUTI prevention.
Question 4: Which disinfection level is required for PCU equipment that contacts only intact skin (e.g., blood pressure cuffs, stethoscopes)?
- Sterilization
- High-level disinfection
- Low-level disinfection (Correct answer)
- No disinfection needed between patients
Correct answer: Low-level disinfection
Non-critical items that contact only intact skin require low-level disinfection between patients using an EPA-registered hospital disinfectant.
Question 5: A PCU nurse notices a colleague not performing hand hygiene before entering a patient room. What is the most appropriate action?
- Report the colleague to the charge nurse without speaking to them first
- Remind the colleague about hand hygiene in a respectful, professional manner (Correct answer)
- Ignore the behavior to avoid conflict
- Document the event in the patient's medical record
Correct answer: Remind the colleague about hand hygiene in a respectful, professional manner
A respectful peer-to-peer reminder is the most appropriate, immediate, and effective first intervention for hand hygiene non-compliance.
Question 6: A PCU patient on broad-spectrum antibiotics for 7 days develops watery diarrhea with abdominal cramping. Which organism is most likely responsible?
- Escherichia coli O157:H7
- Clostridioides difficile (Correct answer)
- Salmonella typhimurium
- Campylobacter jejuni
Correct answer: Clostridioides difficile
Antibiotic-associated diarrhea after prolonged broad-spectrum antibiotic use is most commonly caused by C. difficile overgrowth following disruption of normal gut flora.
PCU PCU Infection Control & Safety 2
A PCU patient who is a fall risk attempts to get out of bed without assistance.
Which intervention is most appropriate as a first response?