1. What is true regarding surgical asepsis?

A. It inhibits growth of pathogenic organisms.

B. It is known as a cleaning technique
C. It includes hand hygiene.
D. It is known as a sterile technique.
2.What action exemplifies a nurse practicing medical asepsis in performing daily care?
A. Lifting a sterile swab from a sterile field
B. Using disposable sterile gowns
C. Washing hands for 5 minutes between patients
D. Keeping bed linens off the floor
3. What bacteria can lie dormant when conditions for growth are not favorable?
A. Residue
B. Capsules
C. Spores
D. Flagella
4. A patient with a respiratory infection report that he is not yet on an antibiotic. The nurse
explains that the physician is waiting on the results of the culture and sensitivity. What does this
test determine?
A. What media the bacteria requires to grow
B. How fast the bacteria grow
C. Which antibiotics stop bacterial growth
D. When the bacteria colonize
5. What bacterium is responsible for more diseases than any other organism?
A. Staphylococcus
B. Pseudomonas aeruginosa
C. Haemophilus influenzae
D. Streptococcus
6. What additional complication does a disease caused by a virus have compared to a disease
caused by bacteria?
A. Multiplies rapidly
B. Returns frequently
C. Is not killed by antibiotics
D. Is unable to be cultured
7. A patient with ringworm asks the nurse if she has worms. What does the nurse inform the
patient about the cause of ringworm?
A. Bacteria
B. Protozoa
C. Virus
D. Fungi
8. What should the nurse be diligent in to provide a safe environment for the patient?
A. Keeping a light on at night to prevent falls
B. Hand hygiene between patient contacts
C. Regulating the temperature to avoid drafts
D. Changing the bed linen to diminish microorganisms
9. What does the nurse describe when giving an example of a fomite vehicle?
A. Rabid dog
B. Person with AIDS
C. Contaminated stethoscope
D. Infected wound
10. The nurse observes a patient demonstrating wound cleaning. What action indicates the need
for further instruction?
A. Using sterile gloves to perform the cleaning
B. Applying an antiseptic to the area
C. Cleaning the area from the outside in
D. Washing hands with soap
11. The nurse is concerned when a patient admitted with a diagnosis of pneumonia suddenly
develops a urinary tract infection (UTI). What type of infection is this UTI considered?
A. Viral infection
B. Bacterial infection
C. Health care–associated infection
D. Spore infection
12. The nurse prioritizes the care of four patients. Which patient has a systemic infection?
A. 14-year-old with acute appendicitis
B. 80-year-old with a urinary tract infection
C. 40-year-old with AIDS
D. 50-year-old with arthritis
13. What assessment does the nurse recognize as an inflammatory response in a surgical wound
on the leg of a patient?
A. A foul drainage is coming from the wound
B. The affected leg is cooler than the other leg
C. There are raised, red, pruritic welts on the leg
D. Rubor and edema appear around the wound
14. The infection control practitioner plans an in-service on control of health care-associated
infections. What should be the focus of this program?
A. Observing nurses caring for patients
B. Screening patients who are admitted to the hospital
C. Educating hospital personnel about aseptic practices
D. Discharging infectious patients from the hospital
15. A health care worker is stuck by a needle left on the patient’s bedside table. The staff
member appropriately reports the needlestick. What will the indicated treatment be combatting?
A. Hepatitis
B. Streptococcal infections
C. Staphylococcal infections
D. Influenza
16. What technique should the nurse use when disposing of linens contaminated with feces?
A. Don gown, gloves, and mask
B. Wash hands for 5 minutes after disposal
C. Don gloves only
D. Double-bag the sheets
17. The nurse is instructing a patient about the most important preventive technique for breaking
the chain of infection. What technique is the patient learning about?
A. Sterilization
B. Standard Precautions
C. Hand hygiene
D. Medical asepsis
18. How long should the nurse perform hand hygiene before beginning care of a patient?
A. 5 minutes
B. 2 minutes
C. 1 minute
D. 30 seconds
19. A nurse is observing isolation precautions by wearing a mask while performing complex
patient care. How often should the nurse change masks?
A. 5-10 minutes
B. 10-20 minutes
C. 20-30 minutes
D. 30-40 minutes
20. A major threat to health care workers is blood-contaminated sharps. What should the nurse
use to discard the used syringe?
A. Wastebasket
B. Sink
C. Puncture-proof container
D. Disinfecting soap
21. The nurse is transporting a patient in respiratory isolation to the radiology department. What
intervention should the nurse implement?
A. Cover the patient with a sheet
B. Take the patient down the service elevator
C. Apply a mask to the patient
D. Call x-ray to come and get the patient

22. The patient in isolation may experience psychological or emotional deprivation. What
should the nurse do to help minimize these feelings?
A. Be cheerful
B. Spend extra time with the patient
C. Protect the patient from additional infection
D. Answer the call light quickly
23. The infection control officer is observing hospital staff for appropriate use of aseptic
technique. What observation demonstrates the need for more instruction on surgical asepsis?
A. Facing the sterile field
B. Placing a sterile dressing on a sterile field
C. Touching the edges of the sterile field with sterile gloves
D. Keeping gloved hands above the waist
24. The nurse is pouring a sterile solution from a bottle. What direction should the label on the
bottle be in for appropriate technique?
A. Facing outward
B. Covered
C. Facing downward
D. In the palm of the hand
25. What is a method used to kill all microorganisms, including spores?
A. Disinfecting
B. Using an antiseptic
C. Using chlorine bleach
D. Sterilizing
26. The nurse accidently spills blood from a specimen container. The first action the nurse takes
is to don gloves. What should the nurse then spray the fluid with?
A. Liquid detergent
B. 20% bleach solution
C. 10% bleach solution
D. Warm soapy water
27. When assessing a patient for signs of an infection, the nurse recognizes which laboratory
result as indicative of an infection?
A. Lowered red blood cell count
B. Increased white blood cell count
C. Lowered white blood cell count
D. Increased red blood cell count
28. What can result from the nurse consistently performing hand hygiene and using sterile
supplies when caring for patients in the hospital setting?
A. Hospital stay is shortened
B. Sense of self-worth is improved
C. Risk of infection is reduced
D. Nursing care needed is reduced
29. Recognizing the stages of an infection assists the nurse in identifying the progression of an
infection. What is the nonspecific to specific symptom stage of an infection?
A. Convalescent
B. Illness
C. Prodromal
D. Incubation
30. What is the most dependable and practical method to use when sterilizing instruments for the
operating room?
A. Chemical solution
B. Boiling water
C. Steam under pressure
D. Dry heat
31. What contribution did Joseph Lister introduce to medical practice?
A. Isolation of infected patients
B. Iodine and alcohol use as disinfectants
C. The autoclave
D. Aseptic technique
32. The nurse is providing instruction to an anxious mother of a child with Rocky Mountain
spotted fever. When discussing this diagnosis what information will the nurse relay about this
disease?
A. It is extremely contagious among humans.
B. It is contracted from handling unvaccinated animals.
C. It is a hemolytic B Streptococcus infection spread by droplet transmission.
D. It is a serious disease contracted from the bite of a tick
33. The emergency department nurse is assessing a puncture wound of the foot. What is the
most likely type of infection in this wound?
A. Aerobic bacterial infection
B. Anaerobic bacterial infection
C. Viral infection
D. Fungal infection
34. The nurse is instructing a bioterrorism class regarding anthrax. How can anthrax be
transmitted?
A. From person to person
B. Through microscopic skin punctures
C. Through inhalation of the spores
D. By exposure to animals that have anthrax
35. The nurse is providing teaching to elementary students regarding vectors. What example will
the nurse provide as an example of a vector?
A. Child with measles giving it to his sister
B. Tick whose bite causes Lyme disease
C. Woman with syphilis infecting her partner
D. Dog whose bite causes rabies
36. What type of organism causes malaria?
A. Bacterium
B. Virus
C. Protozoan
D. Fungus
37. A nurse is performing an admission assessment on a patient with suspected tuberculosis.
What assessment findings by the nurse are consistent with tuberculosis?
A. Hemoptysis
B. Weight gain
C. Night terrors
D. Hypothermia
38. A nurse is performing an admission assessment on a patient with suspected tuberculosis.
What is the greatest risk of exposure to tuberculosis?
A. After a diagnosis is made
B. Before a diagnosis is made
C. After the patient has begun medication therapy
D. After implementation of isolation precautions

39.Which numbered portion of the illustration below depicts the bacterial class bacilli?

A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
E. 5
40. A person can spread a bacterial infection by which actions? (Select all that apply.)
A. Kissing others
B. Sneezing at work
C. Donating blood
D. Coming in contact with blood products
E. Leaving used tissue on the lavatory
41. What are some characteristics of microorganisms? (Select all that apply.)
A. Involved in a life process of their own
B. Pathogens that cause disease
C. Nonpathologic organisms that cause disease
D. May be infectious
E. Can enter the body via skin, air, or blood
42. A patient is distressed that an antibiotic has not been effective for the control of the infection.
The nurse explains that some bacteria are capable of defending against antibiotics by the
formation of a _______.
Answer: Capsule
43. The nurse reminds a group of nursing students that the type of asepsis that destroys all
microorganisms and their spores is _____ asepsis.
Answer: Surgical
44. There are many methods of transmission of infection. Which is the best example of a vehicle
of transmission?
A. A health care worker’s hands, hospital equipment, or instruments Correct
B. A patient’s nose, mouth, hair, eyes
C. Humans and animals
D. Any break in the skin of a health care worker or a patient
45. Health care providers today need to be aware that health care–associated infections are a
serious problem. What is the most effective way to prevent health care–associated infections?
A. Clean all equipment using sterile technique after use on a patient.
B. Perform proper hand hygiene before and after caring for a patient. Correct
C. Place all infectious patients in isolation.
D. Cover the mouth and nose with hands when coughing.
46. Your patient was admitted to the hospital 4 days ago with cardiac problems and now has
bacterial pneumonia. This is an example of what type of infection?
A. Local
B. Secondary
C. Health care–associated Correct
D. Endogenous
47. Today the nurse is assigned to care for a patient who has tuberculosis. What equipment
should the nurse routinely use when caring for this patient?
A. Regular mask and eyewear
B. Regular mask and gown
C. Gloves following proper hand washing
D. N-95 respirator
48. A circulating nurse opens sterile packages while in the operating room. What is the most
appropriate way to create a sterile field when opening the sterile package’s top triangle?
A. To the left of the nurse
B. Away from the nurse Correct
C. To the right of the nurse
D. Toward the nurse
49. During surgery, the health care provider requests more sterile water. What action must the
nurse perform before pouring the solution into the sterile container?
A. Wipe off the rim of the bottle to make sure it is clean. Incorrect
B. Nothing, just pour the water into the container.
C. “Lipping” of the bottle with its solution. Correct
D. Hand the bottle to the sterile nurse to pour.
50. The nurse suspects that a patient has an infection. What lab value would the nurse assess to
help confirm the suspicion?
A. WBC Correct
B. RBC Incorrect
C. Hgb
D. Hct
51. A patient in contact isolation has a minimal amount of visitors, and the health care staff enters
only when patient care is being performed. Based on this information, which patient problem is
most appropriate for this patient?
A. Risk for infection Incorrect
B. Risk for immobility
C. Risk for social isolation Correct
D. Risk for impaired skin integrity
52. The nurse is caring for a patient with a wound infection of the lower extremity. Which types
of precaution would the nurse use when taking care of this patient?
A. Standard Precautions only
B. Standard and Airborne Precautions
C. Standard and Droplet Precautions
D. Standard and Contact Precautions
53. When entering a client's room to change a surgical dressing, a nurse notes that the client is
coughing and sneezing. Which id the following actions should the nurse take when preparing the
sterile field?
A. Keep the sterile field at least 6 feet away from client's bedside.
B. Instruct the client to refrain from coughing and sneezing during the dressing change.
C. Place a mask on the client to limit the spread of micro-organism into the surgical wound.
D. Keep a box of facial tissues nearby for the client to use during the dressing change.
54. A nurse has removed a sterile pack form its outside cover and placed it on a clean work
surface in preparation for an invasive procedure. Which of the following flaps should the nurse
unfold first?
A. The flap closet to the body
B. The right side flap
C. The left side flap
D. The flap farthest from the body
55. A nurse is wearing sterile gloves in preparation for performing a sterile procedure. Which of
the following objects can the nurse touch without breaching sterile technique. (Select all that
apply.)
A. A bottle containing a sterile solution
B. The edge of the sterile drape at the base of the field
C. The inner wrapping of an item on the sterile field
D. An irrigation syringe on the sterile field
E. One gloved hand with the other gloved hand
56. A nurse is reviewing hand hygiene technique with a group of assistive personnel (AP). Which
of the following instructions should the nurse include when discussing hand washing? (Select all
that apply.)
A. Apply 3 to 5 mL of liquid soap to dry hands
B. Wash the hands with soap and water for at least 15 seconds.
C. Rinse the hands with hot water.
D. Use a clean paper towel to turn off hand faucets.
E. Allow the hands to air dry after washing.
57. A nurse has prepared a sterile field for assisting a provider with a chest tube injection. Which
of the following events should the nurse recognize as contaminating the sterile field. (Select all
that apply.)
A. The provider drops a sterile instrument onto the near side of the sterile field.
B. The nurse moistens a cotton ball with sterile normal saline and places it on the sterile
field.
C. The procedure is delayed 1 hour because the provider receives an emergency call.
D. The nurse turns to speak to someone who enters through the door behind the nurse.
E. The client's hand brushes against the outer edge of the sterile field.
58. A nurse is caring for a client who has severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). The nurse
knows that health care professionals are required to report communicable and infectious
diseases. Which of the following illustrate the rationale for reporting? (Select all that apply.)
A. Planning and evaluating control and prevention strategies
B. Determining public health priorities
C. Ensuring proper medical treatment
D. Identifying endemic disease
E. Monitoring for common-source outbreaks
59. A nurse is caring for a client who has had a cough for 3 weeks and is beginning to cough up
blood. The client has manifestations of which of the following conditions?
A. Allergic reaction
B. Ringworm
C. Systemic lupus erythematous
D. Tuberculosis
60. A nurse is caring for a client who reports a severe sore throat, pain when swallowing, and
swollen lymph nodes. The client is experiencing which of the following stages of infection?
A. Prodromal
B. Incubation
C. Convalescence
D. Illness
61. A nurse educator is reviewing with a newly hired nurse the difference in clinical
manifestations of a localized versus a systemic infection. The nurse indicates understanding
when she states that which of the following are clinical manifestations of a systemic infection?
(Select all that apply.)
A. Fever
B. Malaise
C. Edema
D. Pain or tenderness
E. Increase in pulse and respiratory rate
62. A nurse is contributing to the plan of care for a client who is being admitted to the facility
with a suspected diagnosis of pertussis. Which of the following interventions should the nurse
include? (Select all that apply)
A. Place a client in a room that has negative air pressure of at least six exchanges per hour.
B. Wear a mask when providing care within 3ft of the client.
C. Place a surgical mask on the client if transportation to another department is unavoidable.
D. Use sterile gloves when handling soiled linens.
E. Wear a gown when performing care that might result in contamination from secretions.
1. A young adult patient is admitted to a medical unit with the diagnosis of hepatitis A and placed
in contact precautions. What is the primary goal of this action?
A. To prevent transmission of infectious microorganisms
B. To control the environment of the patient during hospitalization
C. To protect the patient from infectious microorganisms
D. To protect only the family from the transmission of the disease
2. The nurse is working in a clinical medical area with a census of 15. Each patient has a
different illness. When planning care, the nurse recognizes which is the most important action to
provide protection to each patient from health care–associated infections?
A. Wearing a gown
B. Placing each patient in isolation
C. Hand hygiene
D. Wearing gloves
3. The nurse is caring for the patient in isolation and plans to wear latex gloves. Which is an
important consideration?
A. Assess the patient and the patient’s record for potential latex allergy.
B. Vinyl gloves provide higher barrier protection than latex.
C. The cost of latex gloves is significantly higher than that of synthetic gloves.
D. Latex gloves are so reliable as barriers that hand hygiene is not required.
4. The nurse is speaking with a patient about the need to prevent infection. The nurse recognizes
the patient understands proper hand hygiene when the patient makes what statement?
A. “The water I wash my hands with should be as hot as I can tolerate to kill all of the germs
on my skin.”
B. “If there isn’t time to completely wash my hands, it will be all right to rinse them quickly
in warm water.”
C. “After washing my hands with soap for at least 20 seconds, I will rinse them thoroughly
under running water.”
D. “I will put soap into a basin of warm water, lather my hands for 15 seconds, and then
rinse them in the basin.”
5. The nursing instructor is discussing the chain of infection with a group of student nurses. What
is the most important information about identifying the chain of infection for the health care
provider?
A. Understanding of the chain of infection allows for tests to be performed to assess
resistance to communicable diseases.
B. Recognition of the chain of infection provides information about which patients will most
benefit from isolation precautions.
C. The need for antibiotic therapy can be determined by assessing the chain of infection.
D. Points at which the infection can be stopped or prevented can be located by identifying
the chain of infection.
6. A patient in isolation is experiencing signs of social deprivation. Which intervention by the
nurse is appropriate?
A. Allow visitors to remove masks while in the patient’s room.
B. Leave the door of the negative-pressure room open slightly.
C. Remind the patient that the isolation is for his or her own benefit.
D. Set specific times when the nurse will return to the patient’s room.
7. A middle-aged client is admitted to the hospital with cellulitis of the right foot. Three days
later, the patient develops bacterial pneumonia. How would the patient’s bacterial pneumonia be
classified?
A. Acute primary
B. Health care–associated
C. Interstitial
D. Mycoplasmic
8. The student is reviewing the sterile technique. When using the technique, the student nurse
remembers to hold sterile objects in which location?
A. Close to shoulder level
B. Just below waist level
C. Over the patient’s bed
D. Above waist level
9. The nurse is planning care for several patients undergoing procedures. For which procedure
will the nurse gather supplies to implement surgical asepsis? (Select all that apply.)
A. Inserting an IV line
B. Performing perineal care
C. Performing oral care
D. Obtaining a sputum specimen
E. Inserting an indwelling catheter
10. The nurse is performing a surgical hand scrub. During a surgical hand scrub, how are the
hands to be held?
A. Above the elbows
B. With the fingers pointing downward
C. Whichever way is convenient
D. Just below the waist
11. To practice strict surgical asepsis, the nurse:
A. adheres to principles of sterile technique.
B. performs routine environmental cleaning.
C. disinfects surfaces that come into contact with body fluids.
D. maintains proper hand hygiene before and after patient care.
12. The student nurse is preparing to don sterile gloves. What action by the student indicates an
understanding of the needed procedure?
A. Touch only the inside surface of the first glove while pulling it onto the hand.
B. Place the fingers of the dominant hand into the outside cuff of the first glove.
C. Let the cuff of the glove roll up over the hand as it is being pulled onto the hand.
D. Begin the procedure by pulling the first glove upward and over the nondominant hand.
13. The nurse has completed a sterile procedure and is preparing to remove the soiled gloves.
Place the steps in the correct order:
A. Grasp the outer surface of the glove.
B. Place the glove in the hand that is still gloved.
C. Peel the second glove off, turn inside out, and discard.
D. Take fingers of bare hand and tuck inside remaining glove cuff.
14. To remove the gloves, what action is required of the nurse?
A. Pull each finger from each of the gloves first, then roll the glove back over the hand.
B. Remove the glove from the nondominant hand by reaching inside the glove and pulling it
off.
C. Remove one glove, then use the bare fingers to push the remaining glove off from inside
the cuff.
D. Hold both gloved hands under running water and roll the gloves down to keep
microorganisms contained.
15. Which is a principle of surgical asepsis?
A. Any sterilized item is considered unsterile once it is allowed to fall below knee height.
B. Sterile fields and sterilized items are no longer sterile if they contact a clean surface.
C. A person not wearing sterile garments can come no closer to a sterile field than 3 feet.
D. The front and back of a sterile gown being worn are considered sterile from shoulders to
knees.
16. A patient isolated for pulmonary tuberculosis is expressing anger at the nurse. What action by
the nurse is most appropriate? (Select all that apply.)
A. Provide a dark, quiet room to calm the patient.
B. Explain isolation procedures and provide meaningful stimulation.
C. Reduce the level of precautions to keep the patient from becoming angry.
D. Limit family and other caregiver visits to reduce the risk of spreading the infection.
E. Talk with the patient about how they are feeling.
17. The nurse is assisting the physician with irrigation of a draining abdominal wound by
preparing the sterile tray. To maintain sterility of the tray, which action by the nurse is correct?
A. Use sterile forceps while reaching across it to move the contents around.
B. Wear clean gloves to open and touch the contents of the tray.
C. Allow the open tray to stand unattended for 20 minutes, then cover it with a towel.
D. Put on sterile gloves before handling the contents of the tray.
18. The nurse is presenting an educational program on the CDC’s hand hygiene
recommendations for implementation in a hospital. Which statement by the nurse demonstrates
an understanding of the CDC’s recommendation? (Select all that apply.)
A. Health care providers will always wear gloves when providing patient care.
B. Disinfecting hands after glove removal is not necessary according to the guidelines.
C. Alcohol-based hand cleaner is effective on hands that are not visibly soiled with blood
and body fluids.
D. It is necessary to remove waterless alcohol-based hand cleaner with paper towels to
remove pathogens from hands.
E. The nurse should use water and soap to wash hands after caring for a patient diagnosed
with Clostridium difficile.
19. The nurse is preparing to open the outer sterile wrap of an indwelling catheter tray. Which
flap of the wrap (in which direction) should be opened first?
A. The flap that opens away from the nurse
B. The flap that opens to the left
C. The flap that opens to the right
D. The flap that opens toward the nurse
20. The patient asks the nurse how his skin will be sterilized before his surgery. What is the best
response by the nurse?
A. “We will use alcohol to sterilize your skin.”
B. “It is not possible to sterilize skin, but we will use an antimicrobial solution to eliminate
most microorganisms.”
C. “There are a series of steps used in sterilizing your skin to prevent you from getting an
infection.”
D. “We will use Betadine solution to sterilize your skin.”