Skip to ContentGo to accessibility page
Maternal Newborn Nursing

Critical-Thinking Questions about Case Studies

Maternal Newborn NursingCritical-Thinking Questions about Case Studies

Critical-Thinking Questions about Case Studies

1 .
.
When assessing Marcus, a heart rate of 145 is noted on auscultation. What is the priority action by the nurse?
  1. Chart the heart rate as a part of their assessment.
  2. Call and inform the provider.
  3. Assess the heart rate a second time by listening for a full minute with the stethoscope.
  4. Provide stimulation to the newborn and reassess in 3 to 5 minutes.
2 .
.
When describing Marcus’s breathing pattern, what would be the most accurate description?
  1. A newborn requires oxygen after birth until they are at least 24 hours old.
  2. A newborn has periods of true apnea, greater than 20 seconds, until they are a month old.
  3. A newborn uses accessory muscles regularly during breathing, with retractions at the subcostal and supracostal areas.
  4. A newborn has periodic breathing with short pauses and periods in which they breathe faster.
3 .
.
When assessing Marcus, what is the nurse’s priority?
  1. Complete the most invasive items first.
  2. Complete the least invasive items first.
  3. Complete a head-to-toe exam in the order of top to bottom.
  4. Complete the assessment of the newborn’s skin followed by the reflexes.
Citation/Attribution
Reuse and redistribution of this content in digital or print format:
  • This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's prior written permission.
  • This book uses the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License, which means that you can reuse and modify the material only for noncommercial purposes, must attribute OpenStax, and must distribute any derivative works under the same license.
  • Any commercial printing of this textbook, including using a local or custom printer, must be approved by OpenStax, and proper citation provided.
  • OpenStax-copyrighted images, activities, assessments, and similar components of this book are subject to the same licensing – CC-BY-NC-SA. They can be used for noncommercial purposes with attribution. Commercial use requires permission.
  • Permission requests: Anyone who intends to incorporate this content (including text, images, and other components) into large language models, use it in AI offerings, use it commercially (including in print), and/or has questions about another use case is welcome to complete our reuse request form.
Attribution information
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a noncommercial print format, then you must include on every physical page the following attribution:

    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/maternal-newborn-nursing/pages/1-introduction

  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a noncommercial digital format, then for every page that includes OpenStax content, you must license the derivative work under the same CC-BY-NC-SA license as the original, and include on every digital page view the following attribution:

    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/maternal-newborn-nursing/pages/1-introduction

Citation information

The information below includes the information needed to generate citations in most major styles (APA, MLA, etc.); you must reformat and organize the information as needed to fit the requirements of the style. Use the information below to generate a citation. We recommend using a citation tool such as this one.

© Jul 23, 2026 OpenStax. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. The OpenStax name, OpenStax logo, OpenStax book covers, OpenStax CNX name, and OpenStax CNX logo, and Rice University name, and Rice University logo trademarks, or wordmarks are not subject to the Creative Commons license and may not be reproduced without the prior and express written consent of Rice University.