Physician Assistant Academic Ability 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A pie chart shows that 25% of clinic visits are for hypertension, 40% for diabetes, and 35% for other conditions. If there were 200 total visits, how many were for diabetes?
- 70
- 80 (Correct answer)
- 85
- 90
Correct answer: 80
40% of 200 = 0.40 × 200 = 80 visits.
Question 2: Which sentence uses the word 'affect' correctly?
- The new medication had a positive affect on blood pressure.
- Stress can affect cardiovascular health significantly. (Correct answer)
- The affect of the drug was well documented.
- We studied the affect of exercise on mood.
Correct answer: Stress can affect cardiovascular health significantly.
'Affect' is a verb meaning to influence; 'effect' is the noun referring to the result.
Question 3: A PA is reviewing a study with a p-value of 0.03. At a significance level of 0.05, the correct conclusion is:
- The null hypothesis is accepted because p < 0.05
- The result is not statistically significant
- The null hypothesis is rejected because p < 0.05 (Correct answer)
- No conclusion can be drawn from the data
Correct answer: The null hypothesis is rejected because p < 0.05
When the p-value is less than the significance level (0.03 < 0.05), the null hypothesis is rejected.
Question 4: Which of the following BEST describes the purpose of an abstract in a research article?
- To provide detailed methods and raw data
- To offer a brief summary of the study's purpose, methods, results, and conclusions (Correct answer)
- To list all references used in the study
- To describe the researchers' qualifications
Correct answer: To offer a brief summary of the study's purpose, methods, results, and conclusions
An abstract concisely summarizes all major sections of the research article to help readers quickly assess relevance.
Question 5: If x² = 49, which of the following gives ALL possible values of x?
- x = 7
- x = −7
- x = 7 or x = −7 (Correct answer)
- x = 0
Correct answer: x = 7 or x = −7
A square root has both positive and negative solutions: x = ±7.
Question 6: The word 'refractory' in a clinical context most nearly means:
- Responsive to treatment
- Resistant to treatment (Correct answer)
- Rapidly progressing
- Easily reversible
Correct answer: Resistant to treatment
Refractory describes a condition or patient that does not respond to standard treatment.
Question 7: A student underlines the main argument in each paragraph of a research article before writing a summary. This strategy BEST demonstrates:
- Skimming for general content
- Active reading for comprehension (Correct answer)
- Passive reading habits
- Speed-reading technique
Correct answer: Active reading for comprehension
Identifying and annotating core arguments in each paragraph is a classic active reading strategy that deepens comprehension.
Physician Assistant Academic Ability 4
A pie chart shows that 25% of clinic visits are for hypertension, 40% for diabetes, and 35% for other conditions.
If there were 200 total visits, how many were for diabetes?