Speaking of exam questions...

[catlvr]

Our school does not use validated test questions; they make up their own. One teacher really likes situational questions, and I almost always get them wrong. Two recent examples:

The patient has just been been tested for cancer, and says to the nurse, "I am going to die. Who is going to take care of my children?". The nurse should say to the client:

1. What makes you think that you are going to die?

2. You sound upset.

(There were two throw away answers.) I chose #1, since I think that if a pt expressed the feeling that they were going to die, I would want to specifically discuss that, and that to say "you sound upset" is a real slap - the pt would feel that I didn't hear their specific concern. Got it wrong!

The patient is going for a cervical biopsy. What is the nursing dx?

1. Anxiety related to procedure and outcome.

2. Anxiety related to outcome.

(Again, two throw away answers.)

I chose #1, since a cervical biopsy can be painful, and most women will have some anxiety when someone is "digging down there". Wrong again! It was just anxiety r/t outcome.

What do you think? I can't seem to get my head around the answers that she wants, and feel that it is almost impossible to chose the best answer, other than to consider exactly what this particular instructor wants to hear (and that is NOT going to help me with NCLEX!). I get a little frustrated because I am the only person in the class who asks for clarification (foolish me), but once I raise my hand, other people chime in. I really like this instructor; her lectures are entertaining, and I like the challenge of critically thinking, but I am not sure that this is it. Seems more like trying to divine the instructor's opinion.

I would let it go, but I'm on the cusp again between an A and a B. And while I've been told by one of our instructors not to try to get an A, because nobody gets them, but...I am still trying.

Nursing school. Please tell me that it is nothing like "real life".

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[justme1972]

And while I've been told by one of our instructors not to try to get an A, because nobody gets them, but...I am still trying.

I think this is the problem with the program...instructors that think their students are destined to be less than A students, probably teach with the attitude that they will not get A's.

How sad.