I just had my first exam yesterday and I had a few problems but not many. This particular question I had a lot of trouble with and wanted someone’s opinion about what they thought the right answer would be.
A 63 year old man is in a nursing home for dementia and is often confused. The patient’s family inquires about the restraints being used on this patient. Which would be your response regarding the type of restraint that were being used on this patient.
A. Thumbless mitt restraints will be used keep patient from pulling out catheter
B, Full mummy restraint
C. Vest restraints to keep patient from falling out of bed
D. Restraints are the only way to keep a patient safe from injury.
I felt like this question didn’t provide enough information. It didn’t even state what the client was doing to need restraints. I agree that thumbless mitt restraints would keep the patient from pulling out a catheter however the question didn’t say he had a catheter. I didn’t think a full mummy restraint would be acceptable. I didn’t read much about the vest restraints, in lab we just practiced using them for a client in a wheelchair. And I didn’t pick the last answer because our book basically states that restraints are the last resort and that alternatives should be tried first.
Could someone help me out with what they think the answer to this question is.
Is it normal for questions on a nursing exam to be so ambiguous?
Yeah, pretty much. Your goal is to find the "most correct" answer. Usually there is one right answer, one that's close, one that's plausible, and one you can immediately rule out.
My immediate answer was A because of the least restrictive thing, although you guys are right -- I don't know if the catheter part is just a distractor. I crossed out B and D immediately because B is too restrictive and D uses the word "only".
Im dying to know the answer to this one. Im about to take my first test on Monday myself. this is great practice for what the test questions will be like. My instructor just went over this on Thrus. in lab. I remeber her telling us that they are used for the safety of the patient but can only use if a Dr. orders it. I would pick D as the question is asking how you would answer to the family.
Also let us know if alot of people in your class got the right answer. My friends that are a semester ahead of me tells me that if a big % of the class misses a question it gets tossed out.
C.-Who says that because he has dementia that he will "fall" out of bed? He might wander, but why fall? If that were the case, there would be a lot of restrained folks in long term care.
D.-If this were the answer, I would get my resources together and fight the question/answer!
I pick A because he MAY have a catheter. It is a reason to have that type of restraint and it give the family a sound/concrete/legal reason for it.
I would go with the Mitt restraints. When I worked in LTC, none of those alternatives were acceptable. On the other hand, Mitt restraints are not very effective but the patient would be working so hard to get the Mitts off, maybe he wouldn't think about his catheter?? :lol2:
you are right! that is a totally sucky question, and I would be mad if that showed up on a test of mine.:angryfirewe talked about restraints in my first fundamentals class Sat. none of those ansswers seem right, since there is no info about any of them in the question! let us know what the answer was.
I'll get back to you guys when I get my test back and find out what the answer was. Someone asked if that was the exact wording. Yes it was because I read that question so many times that I have it memorized. Thanks to all who added their input. I'm having some trouble adjusting to critical thinking and was afraid the answer was obvious and I just wasn't getting it. I'll get back to you guys.
Sara
Really tough question! I'd pick D, even though I very much dislike the use of "only" in that answer, but aren't all NS test questions tricky?? Anyway, I just took my first exam yesterday, and I found the Fundamentals Success book by Nugent & Vitale very helpful. It's broken down into different sections that you'd go over your first semester of nursing school, and there are questions in each section. You can answer all the questions, and in the back of each section are the answers with rationales. The communication part was really helpful for this exam, too. It's set up just like the tests and the NCLEX. Please post as soon as you get the answer! I'm interested!
Oh goodness, what a tough question. I would go with C because of the saftey issue of "falling out of bed". I wouldn't place the possibilty of the catheter being pulled off on the top of my list, though it is serious. Hope you got the question right!
Specializes in MCH,NICU,NNsy,Educ,Village Nursing.
Not that this will help, but, according to JCAHO, if I remember correctly, restraints are the absolute last resort to be used. This is a bad question I think--there isn't anything that says there's a catheter or that he wanders, requiring a vest restraint. Maybe the instructor will do an item analysis & chunk this one! Good luck!
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:lol2:
Megsd, BSN, RN
723 Posts
Yeah, pretty much. Your goal is to find the "most correct" answer. Usually there is one right answer, one that's close, one that's plausible, and one you can immediately rule out.
My immediate answer was A because of the least restrictive thing, although you guys are right -- I don't know if the catheter part is just a distractor. I crossed out B and D immediately because B is too restrictive and D uses the word "only".