All Free Mental Health Nursing MCQs with Answers

Every Mental Health Nursing question in the bank, across all chapters, each with the correct answer and a written explanation. Free and unlimited, with no account needed.

320 questions · page 14 of 16

Hard
  • A. Start it while feeling fully comfortable
  • B. Start it when moderate withdrawal begins
  • C. Start it immediately after the last opioid
  • D. Start it only after withdrawal has ended

Explanation: Buprenorphine is usually started when moderate opioid withdrawal is present.

Correct answer: Start it when moderate withdrawal begins
Easy
  • A. Place the patient in a side-lying position
  • B. Insert a padded oral airway immediately
  • C. Restrain the patient's arms and legs
  • D. Offer water after the seizure begins

Explanation: Side-lying positioning helps maintain the airway and reduces aspiration risk during a seizure.

Correct answer: Place the patient in a side-lying position
  • A. I can drink alcohol after missing one dose
  • B. I must avoid alcohol in drinks and medicines
  • C. I should take extra tablets after drinking alcohol
  • D. I can safely use alcohol-based mouthwash daily

Explanation: Disulfiram can cause an unpleasant and potentially severe reaction when alcohol is consumed.

Correct answer: I must avoid alcohol in drinks and medicines
Fairly easy
  • A. Give naloxone and wait several hours at home
  • B. Give naloxone, call emergency services, and monitor breathing
  • C. Give a sedative if the person becomes restless
  • D. Place the person alone in a sitting position

Explanation: Naloxone can temporarily reverse opioid respiratory depression, but its effect may wear off before the opioid does.

Correct answer: Give naloxone, call emergency services, and monitor breathing
Moderate
  • A. The patient reports mild constipation
  • B. The patient has used heroin earlier today
  • C. The patient has occasional difficulty sleeping
  • D. The patient reports a remote ankle injury

Explanation: Naltrexone can precipitate severe withdrawal if opioids are still present in the body, and it will block the effects of opioid analgesics.

Correct answer: The patient has used heroin earlier today
  • A. Increased appetite and excessive sleep
  • B. Irritability, insomnia, and reduced appetite
  • C. Pinpoint pupils and slow respirations
  • D. Severe hypertension with chest pain

Explanation: Cannabis withdrawal commonly includes irritability, anxiety, sleep disturbance, decreased appetite, and restlessness.

Correct answer: Irritability, insomnia, and reduced appetite
  • A. Do you drink only with close friends?
  • B. How often have you had six or more drinks on one occasion?
  • C. Do you prefer beer instead of spirits?
  • D. Have you ever disliked the taste of alcohol?

Explanation: Asking about episodes of heavy drinking helps identify hazardous alcohol use and is part of validated screening approaches.

Correct answer: How often have you had six or more drinks on one occasion?
Moderate
  • A. Cardiac dysrhythmia from toxic exposure
  • B. Severe hypoglycaemia from insulin release
  • C. Respiratory infection from tobacco smoke
  • D. Kidney stones from excess calcium intake

Explanation: Inhalants can cause sudden cardiac dysrhythmias and death through toxic effects on the myocardium.

Correct answer: Cardiac dysrhythmia from toxic exposure
Moderate
  • A. Abrupt stopping is always safest in pregnancy
  • B. Medication treatment with close prenatal care is recommended
  • C. Treatment should wait until after delivery
  • D. Only psychological counselling is used during pregnancy

Explanation: Opioid use disorder during pregnancy is treated with medication such as methadone or buprenorphine together with prenatal and addiction…

Correct answer: Medication treatment with close prenatal care is recommended
  • A. Detoxification alone usually prevents future relapse
  • B. Ongoing treatment is needed after withdrawal management
  • C. Relapse prevention is unnecessary after supervised detoxification
  • D. Family support should replace all professional treatment

Explanation: Detoxification manages acute intoxication or withdrawal but does not by itself treat the causes of substance use disorder.

Correct answer: Ongoing treatment is needed after withdrawal management
  • A. A clinically significant, reversible syndrome after recent substance use
  • B. A persistent need for higher doses to produce the same effect
  • C. A physical state that occurs only after stopping a substance
  • D. A pattern of use that always includes physical withdrawal

Explanation: Intoxication is a temporary, substance-specific syndrome that develops during or soon after use and affects mental or physical…

Correct answer: A clinically significant, reversible syndrome after recent substance use
Moderate
  • A. Clonidine
  • B. Flumazenil
  • C. Disulfiram
  • D. Acamprosate

Explanation: Clonidine, an alpha-2 adrenergic agonist, can reduce sweating, restlessness, tachycardia, and other autonomic symptoms of opioid…

Correct answer: Clonidine
Fairly easy
  • A. Continue observing respiratory status
  • B. Offer a large meal immediately
  • C. Administer a sedative for restlessness
  • D. Allow the patient to leave without reassessment

Explanation: Naloxone may wear off before the opioid, so respiratory depression can return after the initial response.

Correct answer: Continue observing respiratory status
  • A. Alcoholic hallucinosis
  • B. Delirium tremens
  • C. Alcohol intoxication
  • D. Opioid withdrawal

Explanation: Alcoholic hallucinosis may cause visual or auditory hallucinations while consciousness and orientation remain relatively clear.

Correct answer: Alcoholic hallucinosis
  • A. Provide a calm, low-stimulation environment
  • B. Argue firmly that the fears are unrealistic
  • C. Leave the patient alone in an unlocked room
  • D. Encourage strenuous exercise to remove the drug

Explanation: A quiet environment, reassurance, and observation reduce anxiety and stimulation during cannabis intoxication.

Correct answer: Provide a calm, low-stimulation environment
Moderate
  • A. The result proves current impairment
  • B. The result confirms cannabis exposure but not current impairment
  • C. The result proves the patient used cannabis in the hospital
  • D. The result confirms a cannabis overdose

Explanation: Cannabis metabolites can remain detectable after the impairing effects have ended, especially with repeated use.

Correct answer: The result confirms cannabis exposure but not current impairment
Moderate
  • A. A single lapse means treatment can no longer help
  • B. The lapse is information to review and a chance to resume the plan
  • C. You should stop discussing the problem until you feel stronger
  • D. You must avoid all treatment until the next assessment

Explanation: A lapse should prompt a nonjudgmental review of triggers, coping skills, and safety, followed by rapid return to the recovery plan.

Correct answer: The lapse is information to review and a chance to resume the plan
  • A. Acamprosate
  • B. Naloxone
  • C. Flumazenil
  • D. Clonidine

Explanation: Acamprosate helps maintain abstinence by reducing some protracted withdrawal symptoms and craving after alcohol withdrawal has been…

Correct answer: Acamprosate
Moderate
  • A. It is a partial opioid agonist with a ceiling effect on respiratory depression
  • B. It is a pure opioid antagonist that immediately prevents withdrawal
  • C. It is a sedative that treats alcohol withdrawal seizures
  • D. It is a stimulant that increases dopamine release in the brain

Explanation: Buprenorphine is a partial mu-opioid receptor agonist used in opioid use disorder treatment, with less respiratory depression than full…

Correct answer: It is a partial opioid agonist with a ceiling effect on respiratory depression
  • A. A previous withdrawal seizure
  • B. Occasional morning fatigue
  • C. A preference for sweet foods
  • D. A history of mild alcohol flushing

Explanation: A previous alcohol withdrawal seizure indicates increased risk of recurrent seizures and severe withdrawal during a later episode.

Correct answer: A previous withdrawal seizure