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Front Matter

WHAT'S NEW AND DIFFERENT IN THE 3RD EDITION

We are very pleased that you have selected our resource to help you on your path to success on NCLEX-RN®.

Our aim is to lead you all the way, to have PASSING NCLEX-RN® MADE EASY for you—the first-time test-taker, the international nurse, and the repeat test-taker.

With a conceptual framework based on body systems as well as on the components of the latest NCLEX-RN® Test Plan (four client needs and their six subcategories), this resource differs significantly from other nursing review books. It is the only nursing review resource that thoroughly covers the content in the current NCLEX-RN® Test Plan and has a test-taking tip for each of the more than 3500 questions!

Each chapter incorporates all the components of the NCLEX-RN® Test Plan. In addition, Chapter 3. Safe, Effective Care Environmentspecifically includes content that focuses on Safe, Effective Care Environment (with Management of Care and Safety and Infection Control). Chapter 4. Health Promotion and Maintenance and Chapter 5. Health Promotion and Maintenance emphasize Health Promotion and Maintenance (growth and development, prevention and early detection of disease). Chapter 6. Physiological Integrity, Chapter 7. Physiological Integrity, Chapter 8. Physiological Integrity, and Chapter 9. Physiological Integrity: Basic Care and Comfort—Nutritionemphasize Physiological Integrity (with Chapter 6. Physiological Integrity specifically addressing Basic Care and Comfort and Physiological Adaptation). Chapter 8. Physiological Integrityis devoted to Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies; Chapter 9. Physiological Integrity: Basic Care and Comfort—Nutrition is on Nutrition and Diet Therapy. Chapter 10. Psychosocial Integrityfocuses specifically on Psychosocial Integrity (coping and adaptation), and Chapter 11. Reduction of Risk Potentialspecifically emphasizes Reduction of Risk Potential.

In addition, Chapter 2. Guidelines and Tips for International Nurses and Repeat Test-Takersis a unique chapter that addresses the needs of international nurses and repeat test-takers; and Chapter 7. Physiological Integrityaddresses the special needs of the geriatric client.

PROVEN RESULTS

This is the only review resource for NCLEX-RN® that has evolved from and been tested with over 300,000 NCLEX-RN® candidates who have taken our national nursing exam review courses over the last 40 years and passed! The review course content, the framework, the sequence of topics, the test-taking guidelines, and the practice exam questions and answers have been published in this resource. This gives the resource an authenticity and relevance that is difficult to attain any other way.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

The conceptual framework of this resource concentrates on body systems, as well as on nursing concerns for client needs and the essential requirements for safe, effective, competent nursing care. The text emphasizes practical application of clinically relevant data. Separate chapters emphasize the content areas of nutrition; pharmacology; common diagnostic procedures, treatments, and nursing care; and management of care, including ethical and legal aspects in nursing. A separate chapter features the geriatric client.

SPECIAL FEATURES

There are many special features in this abundantly illustrated resource (over 205 charts, tables, and illustrations) that make it stand out from all other nursing review books. The unique features that help you prepare for exams are: test-taking tips for each of the questions, lists of common abbreviations and clinical signs (Appendices C and D), and a comprehensive index to guide you to where in the resource you will find the theory (topics) that specifically relate to the official NCLEX-RN® Test Plan. These features provide quick, easy, and interesting ways to review. In the Introduction to NCLEX-RN® section of Chapter 1. Orientation and Pre-Tests, you'll also find 60 study tips, anxiety-reducing techniques, and memorizing ideas.

OTHER FEATURES

This review resource has been updated and revised to incorporate the latest knowledge and current trends in nursing practice and to parallel the latest NCLEX-RN® Test Plan.All content has been submitted to outstanding educators and nursing practitioners for their review and critique. We would like to express our appreciation to this editorial review panel for their contributions, which make this resource the best to use for complete nursing review.

The resource's content includes special topics not commonly covered:

Chapter 2. Guidelines and Tips for International Nurses and Repeat Test-Takers, Guidelines and Tips for International Nurses and Repeat Test-Takers, is unique. No other book addresses the special concerns of candidates who have taken the test more than once or who are graduates of nursing programs outside the United States. Chapter 2. Guidelines and Tips for International Nurses and Repeat Test-Takers covers:

Chapter 3. Safe, Effective Care Environmenthas been reorganized, with special focus on Safe and Effective Care Environment: Management of Care, Cultural Diversity, Ethical and Legal Aspects of Nursing, Nursing Trends, and Safety and Infection Control.Content includes: safe use of equipment, delegation, establishing priorities, emergency response plan, HIPAA law, cultural diversity, religious and spiritual influences on health, advance directives, advocacy, organ donation, bioethics and client rights, supervision, disaster planning, and client restraints. Infection control content includes isolation precautions, with tables covering Types of Precautions and Illnesses Requiring the Precautions, and Infection Control Conditions that Need Additional Precautions.

Chapter 4. Health Promotion and Maintenance, Health Promotion and Maintenance: Nursing Care of the Childbearing Family, is streamlined, visually enhanced, and up-to-date; it contains the most exam-relevant content for both pregnancy and care of the neonate. This chapter includes detailed information regarding many important diagnostic tests, such as chorionic villi sampling and biophysical profile testing, to identify the woman and fetus at risk. Numerous illustrations are included (e.g., amniocentesis, fetal circulation, and ectopic pregnancy). We include the latest information on emergency care in labor and birth, perinatal acquired immune deficiency syndrome, sexually transmitted infections, and preterm labor. We have updated pharmacological information regarding new drug therapies during the perinatal period recommended for the at-risk infant, as well as trends and modes for delivery of contraceptives and birth control education. Updated information is included on intrapartum complications and risk factors, with content on hepatitis and TB in pregnancy. Client teaching and nursing interventions are delineated for each of these areas of practice.

Chapter 5. Health Promotion and Maintenance, Health Promotion and Maintenance: Nursing Care of the Pediatric Client, has a new table with updated immunization information, a pediatric safety and injury prevention chart, coverage of pediatric emergencies (revised tables for CPR and foreign body airway obstructive management—previously called Heimlich maneuver), and updated information (nursing care, medications, tests, etc.) concerning all major physical systems of the body.Much of this information has been synthesized into table format for easier reading, recall, and application to client care. Diagrams show genetic transmission of sickle cell anemia and hemophilia. Illustrations depict five cardiac defects, airway, CPR, TEF and esophageal atresia, developmental dysplasia of the hip, and scoliosis. Coverage is provided for Reye syndrome, Kawasaki disease, and salicylate, acetaminophen, and lead poisoning, as well as appreciation of cultural diversity in assessment and nursing interventions.

Chapter 6. Physiological Integrity, Physiological Integrity: Nursing Care of the Adult Client, has been arranged by head-to-toe body systems, making it easier to remember important assessment information and to prioritize the plan of care. Risk factors have been identified for all conditions, goals of nursing are clearly stated, and a brief description of pathophysiology is incorporated with each condition. Nursing interventions are grouped according to the goal of care and identify appropriate treatments and drug therapies. Handy tables include: Factors Affecting Vital Signs, SIADH Versus Diabetes Insipidus, Bioterrorism, Infectious Diseases (including animal-borne), fluid and electrolyte imbalances, acid-base disorders, assessment differences with valvular defects, hazards of immobility, complications of diabetes, and malignant disorders. The condensed and consolidated content is supplemented by many other tables, charts, and diagrams, such as: cardiac dysrhythmias (new content on atrial flutter), comparison of causes of chest pain, burn care, the Glasgow Coma Scale, chest drainage, comparison of hepatitis types, postoperative complications, enteric and standard precautions, respiratory isolation, care of the adult client with medical and surgical emergencies, preventing TPN complications, and TPN dressing changes. Illustrations show 12 types of fractures, 8 skin and skeletal tractions, and breast and testicular self-exam. Special content covers management of PICC lines, use of metered-dose inhalers, pneumonia severity, pheochromocytoma, Raynaud's disease, SARS, and Guillain-Barré syndrome. The up-to-date content also includes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, GERD, latex allergies, JCAHO Requirements for Pain Assessment, Lyme disease, compartment syndrome, Crohn's disease, ulcers, external fixation devices for fractures, and lithotripsy.

Chapter 7. Physiological Integrity, Physiological Integrity: Nursing Care of the Geriatric Client, is a concise and highly readable chapter synthesizing 12 key problems associated with care of the older adult. There is a section on assessment of the older adult that includes material on normal changes of aging, including a table summarizing common concerns in the older adult. Five functional rating scales and a functional screening exam are included to make management of care easier:

Chapter 8. Physiological Integrity, Physiological Integrity: Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies, contains drug classifications and drug treatments with emphasis on nursing implications. Content covers drug conversions and calculations, pediatric medication administration, fluid and electrolyte therapy, commonly used IV fluids, and obstetric analgesia. Psychotropic and mind-altering substances are included, as well as tables on herbal therapies (with potential dangers). New drugs have been added for this edition.

Chapter 9. Physiological Integrity: Basic Care and Comfort—Nutrition, Physiological Integrity: Basic Care and Comfort—Nutrition, contains unique information regarding ethnic food patterns, eating problems, nutritional needs of the elderly, religious and ethnic food preferences, and cultural disease treatments involving food. Special and therapeutic diets are featured, with coverage of medical conditions with dietary management, high-phosphorus and lactose-free diets, and anticancer nutrients.

Chapter 10. Psychosocial Integrity, Psychosocial Integrity: Behavioral/Mental Health Care Throughout the Life Span, presents psychiatric disorders that have been organized under DSM-IV-TR guidelines. We have included thorough coverage of suicide precautions, midlife crises, mental health of the elderly, substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder, amnestic disorders, personality disorders, sleep and eating disturbances, and affective disorders. Content includes a detailed section on psychiatric emergencies and therapeutic communication techniques. Also, three developmental sections are included: a table on development of body image (includes disturbances and four phases of crises), human sexuality throughout the life cycle (with causes of dysfunction and sexual health counseling), and a table on emotional disturbances in children, with sections on autistic spectrum disorder, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, and child abuse. Nine important sections are: domestic violence (abused woman and child; elder abuse/neglect), diagnostic tests (for dementia/cognitive disorders and alcohol abuse); mental status assessment (individual, cultural); interviewing; general principles of health teaching; self-concept; coping mechanisms; and treatment modes, with a section on complementary and alternative methods.There is also an extensive glossary.

Chapter 11. Reduction of Risk Potential, Reduction of Risk Potential: Common Procedures: Diagnostic Tests, Oxygen Therapy, and Hands-on Nursing Care, includes content on commonly used tubes, oxygen delivery equipment, and colostomy care, as well as many diagnostic procedures commonly tested on NCLEX-RN®. Also included are diagnostic tests to evaluate fetal well-being, newborn screening procedures (with content on Tay-Sachs screening), and bladder and bowel training. Common client positions and intubation and ventilation are illustrated.

FIVE UNIQUE SELF-EVALUATION TOOLS—OVER 3500 TEST QUESTIONS AND TEST-TAKING-TIPS

This resource contains four special, integrated tests to help you assess your knowledge before taking the NCLEX-RN®. The special two new 75-item Pre-Tests at the end of

Chapter 1. Orientation and Pre-Testsare intended for students to take after reading the Introduction to NCLEX-RN® section but before reading the rest of this resource. It is a pre-assessment tool to let you find your areas of strength and weakness based on the 10 client needs/subneeds of the NCLEX-RN® Test Plan before beginning focused study. The two integrated Final Tests in Chapter 12. Final Tests 1 and 2 are intended to be taken after reviewing each chapter in this resource to evaluate your progress. These two new 75-item Final Tests, the third and fourth integrated exam tools, will assess your readiness to take NCLEX-RN® and identify any last-minute knowledge gaps.

Use the fifth self-evaluation exam tool as a practice Computer Test on the CD-ROM anytime in your preparation when you need extra practice or when you want to become familiar with the NCLEX-RN® testing format.

All questions at the end of chapters and in the integrated tests have been field-tested for several years with students—a diverse group of candidates who have successfully passed the exam—from all over the United States. These questions have also been reviewed by an editorial panel for appropriateness. The Answers/Rationales/Tips sections in each chapter contain detailed explanations about why a particular answer is best and why the other options are incorrect, with a test-taking tip for each question.We expect that these special integrated tests, end-of-chapter review questions, and corresponding answer sections will prove to be invaluable review tools for each and every student.

In the answers for each of the end-of-chapter review question sections, as well as for the Pre-Tests, Final Tests, and Computer Test, you will find a four-part code to help you understand exactly what is being tested by each question. The code refers to Integrated Process (e.g., the step of the nursing process), the cognitive level (level of difficulty of the item), the clinical/subject area, and the client need and the subcategory of client need that applies to that question. The Computer Test will track these codes for you to identify your problem areas. Use these codes as a guide for review when you find you did not select the best answer. The TEST-TAKING-TIPs and codes are unique to this resource; they are an added study tool to help you assess your strengths and pinpoint problem areas as you prepare for the NCLEX-RN®.