Safety & Infection Control Questions
What It Tests
Safety and Infection Control is 10 to 16 percent of the exam. NCSBN puts in it standard and transmission-based precautions, restraints and safety devices, accident and injury prevention, the emergency response plan, hazardous materials, safe equipment, and the reporting of incidents. On screen the stem hides one hazard in a scene, a diagnosis, a confused client, smoke, an error already made, and every option is a true safety action somewhere.
Rule 1
Match the precaution to the route; never add a stronger one to be safe. The diagnosis names the route, airborne, droplet, contact, or standard, and the exam scores the match, not the caution. Worked: "A client with influenza is admitted. Which precautions does the nurse initiate?" → droplet; airborne in a negative-pressure room is scored wrong, not careful.
Rule 2
Least restrictive first; a restraint is the last resort and needs an order. The stem is really asking what you tried before the restraint, and the answer is the alternative that removes the risk. Worked: "A confused client keeps pulling at the IV line. Which action does the nurse take first?" → cover the site with a sleeve; the wrist restraint and the order for one wait until every alternative fails.
Rule 3
People out of danger before anything else; after an error, care for the client, then file the report, never in the chart. A fire runs rescue, alarm, contain, extinguish, a disaster saves the most people, and an error is client, then report, then facts. Worked: "The nurse realizes she gave a client another client's medication." → assess the client; the incident report comes next, and the chart holds the facts only.
What to Review
Clinical Pearl
Match the route, restrain last, people out of danger first, and the report never goes in the chart.