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WGU D345 NURS 6438 Psychopharmacology Comprehensive Final OA ACTUAL EXAM 2026

HEAL100 Health Care — exam and revision material · Other

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Health Care exam material, 9 pages. Originally published on StudyMerit.

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9
Academic year
2025/2026
Language
English

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WGU D345 Psychopharmacology Section 1 Assess Mental Health Status Students also studied Save WGU D345 Psychopharmacology S ... Teacher 131 terms quizlette69275701 Preview WGU D449-Mental Health Intervent ... Teacher 76 terms quizlette77172078 Preview D224 Shadow health Community As ... 7 terms itswhitneyv Preview WGU D Teacher quiz When a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner participates in research and quality assurance measures, the effectiveness of nursing practice can be evaluated and documented. What is the goal of the research and quality assurance measure? Establishing evidence-based practices and cost-containment practices. By initiating research and quality assurance measures, the effectiveness of nursing practice can be evaluated and documented, and evidence-based and cost- containment practices can be established. What distinguishes the professional role of the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner from other healthcare providers? Training in the combined use of pharmaceuticals and psychotherapy. The PMHNP is uniquely qualified to provide both treatment modalities using pharmaceuticals and psychotherapy. Referring to the Chelsea Sutton video, how might you describe the age range of patients of a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) and the maximum duration of interaction PMHNPs might have with patients over the patients' lifetime? PMHNPs may work with children and adults, unlike other providers who may have a specialized age range. In addition, PMHNPs may conceivably work with patients throughout their lifetime to restore or enhance mental health and overall functioning. What was Hildegard Peplau known for in the field of mental health? Hildegard Peplau, considered the founder of advanced practice psychiatric nursing, collaborated with Harry Stack Sullivan, MD. Peplau developed and implemented a role requiring master's-level preparation for all nurses who provide direct care to psychiatric (mental health) patients. Building on Peplau's work, what was Sara Robinson's greatest contribution to the field of PMHNPs? Sara Robinson's greatest contribution is that she paved the way for nurses to provide mental healthcare to patients. Synapses are said to be asymmetric because communication is structurally designed to be in one direction. True

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In the reading, you learned about chemical neurotransmission. The authors described how some neurotransmitters are similar to drugs. Describe why this is important when considering a particular drug therapy for a psychiatric patient. When selecting drugs for a patient, it is important to consider the patient's background regarding drugs (e.g., allergic reactions, effectiveness, side effects) and possible interaction with other prescribed drugs. However, psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners (PMHNPs) should also consider the impact of the patient's neurotransmitters, particularly those that are similar to drugs, as they may affect the efficacy of any drug therapy. What are the four categories of neurotransmitters? 1. Amino acids, monoamines, acetylcholine, nitric oxide Research supporting the utilization of psychotherapy in major depressive disorder (MDD) does not have a benefit. False. The results of the systematic review and meta-analysis by Guidi and Fava (2021) indicate that the sequential integration of psychotherapy following response to acute-phase pharmacotherapy, alone or combined with antidepressant medication, was associated with reduced risk of relapse and recurrence in MDD. What are the cells of chemical neurotransmission called in the brain? 1. Neurons. Neurons are the cells of chemical communication in the brain. Human brains are composed of tens of billions of neurons, and each is linked to thousands of other neurons. What is the study of the magnitude and variation of a drug response called? Pharmacodynamics. The study of the magnitude and variation of drug response is the definition of pharmacodynamics. Psychodynamics is the study of what the body does to a drug and helps explain the relationship between the dose and response. A psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) is working with an eight-year-old patient. The PMHNP is considering prescribing a specific drug to the patient, but the drug label does not include any information regarding recommendations for pediatric patients. What should determine whether the PMHNP should prescribe the drug to this patient? The need for the drug and the common, acceptable use of this drug (standard of care). When evidence-based practice guidelines are not available, PMHNPs should utilize the current standard of care in mental health practice. A psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) is treating an 85-year-old healthy male patient. What would affect the prescribed dose of a particular oral drug? Age-related hepatic changes. Pharmacokinetics age-related hepatic changes will affect the half-life of some drugs, especially those that require both metabolism and excretion, which may be remarkably long in older people. A signal transduction cascade passes its message from an extracellular first messenger to an intracellular second messenger. In the case of the G-protein-linked systems, what is the second messenger? Chemical. The second messenger is a chemical in the case of G-protein-linked systems in the brain.

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A patient comes in for their follow-up after 30 days on Effexor Extended Release (XR) 150 mg by mouth every morning for major depressive disorder. The patient tells their psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) that they feel great and have accomplished so many things in the past week that they feel like they can do anything now. The patient shows the PMHNP a plan they have made to start their own business. The patient has been staying up late writing down their ideas for their business plan, and they show you a very disorganized list of seemingly unrelated items. The PMHNP tries to ask the patient questions, but the patient is talking so fast that the PMHNP can hardly say anything. What is the next step for the PMHNP during this medication management appointment? 1. Assess the patient for a diagnosis of bipolar. It is appropriate at any stage of treating the patient to consider alternative diagnoses if a different set of symptoms is presented. True or FalseA psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) is prescribing Lexapro to a patient for the treatment of major depressive disorder. Alternatively, the PMHNP suggests Wellbutrin or Celexa. The potential side effects and black box warnings for each drug are explained to the patient. The patient has been given enough information to make a decision with informed consent. True. The patient has been provided with the risks and benefits of the medication as well as alternative medication choices. The patient can choose what option best meets their needs and priorities, thus involving the patient in the process of selection. True or False A 19 -year-old college student was recently diagnosed with bipolar disorder following a series of impulsive decisions, including unprotected sex with multiple partners. The PMHNP prescribed birth control pills and put the patient on Trileptal for mood stabilization. The Trileptal was chosen over other mood stabilizers and antipsychotics because the patient is obese and does not want to gain additional weight. The patient agreed that birth control was a good idea because she wanted to finish college and get married before having a family. The PMHNP considered all of the important factors in selecting a medication. False. Examining drug interactions should have led the PMHNP to realize the patient could accidentally get pregnant on this medication combination. the PMHNP would need to educate the patient on the need for a backup method of birth control because the Trileptal could reduce the effectiveness of the birth control, and BCPs do not protect against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). True or False A 16-year-old female patient presents with complaints of feeling depressed for nearly a month. She self-rates her depression as severe. She has had suicidal thoughts on occasion but says she would never act on them. She has been tired and unmotivated and cannot get up in the morning to attend school. She is not sleeping well and is tired of her parents complaining about her low grades. She has missed many school days and thinks everyone will be looking at her and talking about her if she returns to school. The patient feels overwhelmed but is not motivated to make any changes to her situation. The patient's psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) has diagnosed the patient with major depressive disorder. It would be appropriate to begin medication. True. The patient has been at least moderately depressed for more than two weeks, and it has caused a significant deterioration of functioning.

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