CPCT/A Patient Care Technician practice questions with answers

Answer: B) On the right side, within easy reach of the stronger arm

For a patient with one-sided weakness, place the call light and personal items on the unaffected (stronger) side so the patient can reach them safely and on their own.

• AIncorrect. Therapy may work on the affected arm, but the patient may not be able to reach or grasp items on the weak side. Placing the call light there could leave the patient unable to call for help.
• BCorrect. After a stroke, muscles on one side may be weak or may not move at all. Placing needed items on the unaffected (right) side lets the patient reach them safely and on their own.
• CIncorrect. Items at the foot of the bed are out of reach. The patient may stretch or try to get up to reach them, which raises the risk of a fall.
• DIncorrect. A closed drawer is hard to open with one-sided weakness, and items stored there are not readily available. Needed items, especially the call light, should be within easy reach.

Answer: A) Possessions: call light, phone, water, and glasses within reach

The 4 Ps of hourly rounding are pain, potty, position and possessions. Placing the call light and personal items within reach is a key fall-prevention step.

• ACorrect. The 4 Ps are pain, potty, position and possessions. Keeping the call light and personal items within reach stops patients from reaching or getting up alone, which helps prevent falls. Some facilities add a fifth P (for example, personal needs) or use a different one, but possessions is the standard fourth P.
• BIncorrect. The technician takes vital signs on the schedule ordered or set by policy. Pulse is not one of the 4 Ps of hourly rounding.
• CIncorrect. Blood pressure is a vital sign measured as ordered, not a standard rounding P. The 4 Ps focus on comfort and safety needs that lead patients to get up without help.
• DIncorrect. Privacy matters during care, but it is not one of the 4 Ps. Closing the door can actually make it harder for staff to see a high-fall-risk patient.

Answer: C) The amount of drainage plus its color, odor, and consistency, recorded as output

NG suction drainage counts as output. Record its amount and describe its color, odor, and consistency, usually every shift.

• AIncorrect. The suction setting is checked, but the canister output must also be measured and described. It cannot be discarded without measuring it.
• BIncorrect. NG drainage is a fluid output. Its volume is recorded on the intake and output record, not just urine.
• CCorrect. Canister output is measured and described by color, odor, consistency, and amount, then recorded as output.
• DIncorrect. Suction drainage is monitored and documented at least every shift. Waiting 24 hours could miss changes in amount or appearance.

Answer: B) Leaking liquid stool and abdominal discomfort

• AIncorrect. That's normal.
• BCorrect. Report these signs to the nurse.
• CIncorrect. That isn't a sign.
• DIncorrect. That isn't related.

Answer: C) Protect the head, move objects away and call the nurse

• AIncorrect. Don't restrain.
• BIncorrect. That can cause injury.
• CCorrect. Time the seizure.
• DIncorrect. Call for help and stay.

Answer: A) Alert the nurse right away and activate the rapid response team according to facility policy

Rapid response teams are called at the first signs of deterioration, such as new confusion, fast breathing or falling oxygen saturation, while the patient still has a pulse and is breathing. A code blue is for arrest.

• ACorrect. Rapid response teams are meant to be called when a patient first shows signs of getting worse, such as new confusion, low oxygen or abnormal vital signs. Early treatment aims to prevent cardiac or respiratory arrest.
• BIncorrect. A code blue is for a patient who has stopped breathing or has no pulse. This patient is breathing and has a pulse but is getting worse, which calls for a rapid response.
• CIncorrect. Waiting hours lets the patient keep getting worse. Failing to recognize and respond to deterioration quickly is what rapid response systems are designed to prevent.
• DIncorrect. Documenting is needed, but acute changes must be reported and acted on right away, not held for the handoff report.

Answer: B) The perineal area

A partial bath cleans the areas that cause odor or discomfort if left unwashed: the face, hands, axillae and perineal area. The perineum is washed front to back.

• AIncorrect. The legs and feet are washed during a complete bed bath. They are not among the areas cleaned in a partial bath.
• BCorrect. A partial bath cleans the areas most likely to cause odor, discomfort or infection: the face, hands, axillae and perineal area. The perineum is washed front to back to prevent infection.
• CIncorrect. The chest and abdomen are washed during a complete bath. They are not a standard part of a partial bath.
• DIncorrect. Shampooing is a separate grooming task and is not part of a partial bath.

Answer: A) The patient from unsafe care, and the PCT and nurse from legal liability

Working within scope of practice keeps patients from receiving care the worker is not trained or authorized to give. It also protects the PCT and the delegating nurse from the legal consequences of improper delegation.

• ACorrect. Tasks outside a worker's scope and training put patients at risk. Improper delegation can harm patient care and expose staff to legal action, so staying within scope protects both patients and staff.
• BIncorrect. Scope of practice is a safety and legal limit on what a worker may do. It is not mainly a billing or reimbursement safeguard.
• CIncorrect. Workload is not a reason to decline a task. A PCT declines out-of-scope tasks because of patient safety and legal limits, not to avoid work.
• DIncorrect. The nurse stays accountable for delegation decisions either way. Declining an out-of-scope task is about safe, legal care, not about protecting the nurse's authority.

Answer: A) Using mechanical lift and transfer devices as part of a safe patient handling program

OSHA's safe patient handling guidance focuses on mechanical lift equipment within a full program. Body mechanics, back belts and team manual lifting are not effective protection on their own.

• ACorrect. OSHA says healthcare must rely on technology, meaning assistive devices plus a full safe patient handling program, to cut down on manual handling.
• BIncorrect. OSHA notes that body mechanics training alone does not effectively prevent patient-handling injuries.
• CIncorrect. OSHA lists back belts, like body mechanics, as not being an effective way to prevent injuries on their own.
• DIncorrect. Adding a second person to a manual lift still leaves staff exposed to overexertion. OSHA's guidance is to limit manual lifting by using equipment.

Answer: D) Date of birth

• AIncorrect. This isn't an identifier.
• BIncorrect. Rooms change.
• CIncorrect. This isn't an identifier.
• DCorrect. Name and date of birth are common identifiers.

Answer: A) Three-quarters full

• ACorrect. Overfilling risks needlesticks.
• BIncorrect. This is unsafe.
• CIncorrect. This wastes containers.
• DIncorrect. Replace at the fill line.

Answer: B) A procedure for evaluating the circumstances of exposure incidents

OSHA requires the written exposure control plan to include the exposure determination, the implementation schedule, and the procedure for evaluating exposure incidents. The plan must be reviewed at least once a year.

• AIncorrect. Safety data sheets belong to OSHA's Hazard Communication program for chemical hazards. They are not a required part of the bloodborne pathogens exposure control plan.
• BCorrect. OSHA 1910.1030(c)(1)(ii) requires the plan to include the exposure determination, the schedule and method for putting the standard into practice, and the procedure for evaluating the circumstances of exposure incidents.
• CIncorrect. The plan must be reviewed and updated at least once a year, and also whenever new or changed tasks affect occupational exposure.
• DIncorrect. Employee medical records are confidential and kept separately under the standard's recordkeeping rules. They are not part of the written plan.

Answer: D) Warmed if cold

• AIncorrect. Avoid bone.
• BIncorrect. Squeezing dilutes the sample.
• CIncorrect. Let alcohol dry.
• DCorrect. Warming increases blood flow.

Answer: D) Tiny red spots

• AIncorrect. That affects the sample.
• BIncorrect. Those are hematomas.
• CIncorrect. That is syncope.
• DCorrect. They may indicate a clotting issue; bleeding may be prolonged.

Answer: A) 70 bpm

• ACorrect. 7 × 10 = 70.
• BIncorrect. Multiply by 10.
• CIncorrect. Recheck the count.
• DIncorrect. Recheck the count.