airway, breathing, circulation, neurologic status
🩺NCLEX-RN STUDY GUIDE
NCLEX-RN Practice Test Questions
Practice prioritization, safety, delegation, pharmacology, and clinical judgment in an exam-style format.
8 key ideas8 flashcards5 practice questions
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For exam preparation only. Follow current clinical orders, facility policy, and local scope rules in practice.
Start with danger, instability, and delay risk.
new decline before a stable finding
prevent harm from delay
Key ideas to know
Start with the relationships between ideas. Then close the notes and explain each one from memory.
- 01
Airway, breathing, and circulation guide urgent prioritization.
- 02
Acute and unexpected findings usually take priority over chronic stable findings.
- 03
Delegation depends on task predictability, patient stability, and staff scope.
- 04
Medication questions require checking indication, major risks, and monitoring.
- 05
Safety and infection-control principles apply across every client need category.
- 06
Clinical judgment begins by recognizing cues and distinguishing expected findings from urgent departures.
- 07
A registered nurse retains accountability for assessment, teaching, evaluation, and unstable clients.
- 08
Reassessment determines whether an intervention produced the expected response.
PART OF THE NCLEX-RN GUIDE
See every set in this course and follow a focused review order.
Open the full NCLEX-RN guide →Two ideas worth correcting now
NOT QUITE
→Assessment always comes before action
USE THIS INSTEAD
When an immediate danger is already known, action and help may come first.
NOT QUITE
→Delegation transfers nursing accountability
USE THIS INSTEAD
The nurse remains accountable for delegation decisions and follow-up.
Flashcards
Answer before opening each card. The effort to retrieve is part of the learning.
1Which client is usually seen first?Show answer ＋
The client with the most immediate threat to airway, breathing, circulation, or neurologic status.
2Can assessment be delegated to unlicensed assistive personnel?Show answer ＋
No. Initial and ongoing nursing assessment requires a licensed nurse.
3What is the purpose of medication reconciliation?Show answer ＋
To identify and prevent omissions, duplications, interactions, and dosing errors.
4What does standard precautions assume?Show answer ＋
Blood, body fluids, nonintact skin, and mucous membranes may carry infection.
5What is the first step after noticing a sudden client change?Show answer ＋
Rapidly assess the client and address immediate safety threats.
6What tasks remain with the registered nurse?Show answer ＋
Assessment, nursing judgment, teaching, evaluation, and care of unstable clients.
7What follows an intervention?Show answer ＋
Reassessment of the client's response.
8What makes a cue urgent?Show answer ＋
It signals immediate danger, instability, or harm from delay.
Explain it in your own words
Use the answer as a check after you have written or spoken your response.
01A postoperative client suddenly becomes short of breath. What is the priority?
Assess airway and breathing immediately, call for help, and apply emergency interventions according to findings and protocol.
02Which task is suitable for trained assistive personnel with a stable client?
A routine task such as obtaining vital signs, while the nurse retains assessment and interpretation.
03Why should an answer that says 'assess first' not be selected automatically?
If an immediate life-threatening problem is already clear, the nurse may need to intervene while calling for help rather than delay care.
04Why is a new neurologic deficit often prioritized over chronic pain?
The neurologic finding may indicate time-sensitive instability with greater harm from delay.
05What should the nurse do after delegating a routine task?
Provide clear instructions, remain available, review the result, and act on abnormal findings.
Related study materials
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