Community and Public Health Nursing Flashcards

Which level of prevention includes screening programs for early disease detection?

Answer: Secondary prevention

Secondary prevention aims to detect disease in its early, asymptomatic stage through screening (mammograms, blood pressure checks, Pap smears) to enable early treatment and limit disease progression. Primary prevention prevents disease onset; tertiary minimizes complications.

The community health nurse is investigating a cluster of gastrointestinal illness after a community dinner. This investigation process is called:

Answer: Epidemiological outbreak investigation

Outbreak investigation is an epidemiological process that identifies the source of a disease cluster through case definition, case finding, descriptive epidemiology, hypothesis generation, and control measures. It is a core function of public health nursing.

A public health nurse calculates an incidence rate. What does the incidence rate measure?

Answer: New cases of disease occurring in a population during a specific time period

Incidence rate measures new cases in a defined population over a specific time period, reflecting the risk of developing the disease. Prevalence measures existing cases (both new and old) at a point in time. Incidence is better for studying causation.

The nurse is conducting a home visit to a patient with tuberculosis who is non-adherent with medications. The most appropriate intervention is:

Answer: Directly observed therapy (DOT)

Directly Observed Therapy (DOT) is the standard of care for TB when non-adherence is a concern. A healthcare worker directly watches the patient take each dose. DOT has significantly reduced TB treatment failure and drug resistance.

Which epidemiological measure would a public health nurse use to compare the risk of disease in an exposed group versus an unexposed group?

Answer: Relative risk (risk ratio)

Relative risk (RR) is the ratio of disease incidence in the exposed group to incidence in the unexposed group. RR >1 indicates increased risk with exposure. It is used in cohort studies to measure the strength of association between exposure and disease.

A community health nurse is working with a low-income population with high rates of hypertension. According to the social determinants of health framework, which intervention addresses upstream factors?

Answer: Advocating for affordable healthy food access and safe exercise spaces

Social determinants of health (SDH) are upstream factors — the conditions in which people live, work, and play. Addressing structural barriers (food insecurity, built environment, poverty) through advocacy is more impactful at the population level than individual-level education.