Introduction to Health and Human Services (D390)

Correct Answer:

D. Collaboration

Explanation:

Collaboration in the patient- and family-centered engagement model highlights the active partnership between clients, their families, and health professionals. It ensures that all parties work together in planning, delivering, and evaluating care. This element goes beyond communication to true teamwork, where the patient and family are valued as essential members of the care team.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. Information sharing

This element emphasizes the open exchange of accurate and timely information but does not fully capture the idea of partnership.

B. Respect and dignity

This element focuses on honoring patient values, beliefs, and cultural backgrounds. While important, it does not directly establish the cooperative partnership described.

C. Participation

This element emphasizes the involvement of patients and families in decision-making but is more about inclusion rather than the mutual partnership emphasized by collaboration.

Correct Answer:

B. In a state with Medicaid expansion, services are much more generous.

Explanation:

Under the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid expansion allows states to broaden eligibility so that more low-income individuals, including mothers, children, the elderly, and people with disabilities, can access health services. In expansion states, services are more generous because eligibility thresholds are higher, coverage includes more preventive and treatment services, and fewer people fall through gaps in care. This leads to improved access and reduced out-of-pocket costs for vulnerable populations.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. In a state with Medicaid expansion, the federal government takes over healthcare management completely.

This is incorrect because Medicaid remains a federal–state partnership. States still manage their own Medicaid programs, even with expansion.

C. In a state with Medicaid expansion, the costs for healthcare increase significantly for such individuals.

Expansion lowers, not raises, healthcare costs for low-income individuals by reducing premiums, co-pays, and out-of-pocket expenses.

D. In a state with Medicaid expansion, services are much less generous.

This is the opposite of reality. Expansion states offer more inclusive services, not fewer.

Correct Answer:

C. Because it helps to provide a better service to patients and clients

Explanation:

Teamwork is essential in health and human services because it allows professionals from different disciplines to collaborate, share expertise, and coordinate care. Working together ensures that patients and clients receive comprehensive, holistic support that addresses medical, social, and emotional needs. This collaboration improves outcomes, reduces errors, and ensures continuity of care. The primary purpose is not financial or competitive but to provide the highest quality service to patients and clients.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. Because it brings more financial gains for the health and human service professionals

The goal of teamwork is patient-centered care, not financial benefit. While efficient teamwork may reduce costs for the system, it does not primarily increase individual professionals’ financial gains.

B. Because it leads to longer services required by a patient

The goal of teamwork is to improve efficiency and quality, not to extend services unnecessarily. Prolonging services without need would be unethical and counterproductive.

D. Because it creates competition

Competition is not the aim of healthcare teamwork. Instead, collaboration and cooperation are emphasized to ensure the best outcomes for patients and clients.

Correct Answer:

B. The treatment is based on logic and scientific evidence.

Explanation:

Evidence-based practice (EBP) strengthens client-professional trust because care decisions are grounded in logic, research, and scientific evidence, not personal opinions or guesswork. When clients see that treatments are supported by proven outcomes, they feel more confident in the quality and safety of their care. This transparency and reliance on evidence make clients more likely to trust professionals and adhere to recommended plans.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. The client does not understand what the professional says.

If a client doesn’t understand, trust decreases—not increases. Clear communication is essential to trust, but misunderstanding erodes it.

C. It shows how smart the professional is.

Trust is not built on perceived intelligence alone but on reliability, safety, and proven care methods. EBP is not about showing off knowledge but applying evidence to improve outcomes.

D. The professional is very likable and makes treatments sound nice.

While likability helps rapport, it is not a substitute for trust. Clients trust when treatments are effective and evidence-based, not just when they are presented in a friendly manner.

Correct Answer:

C. Do you have difficulty dressing or bathing?

Explanation:

A self-care disability refers to difficulty performing basic activities of daily living such as dressing, bathing, or feeding oneself. The BRFSS identifies self-care disability with the question about dressing or bathing, since these tasks reflect essential personal care skills.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. Do you have serious difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions?

This question identifies a cognitive disability, not self-care.

B. Do you have serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs?

This question relates to mobility disability, not self-care.

D. Do you have difficulty doing errands alone, like shopping or visiting a doctor?

This question identifies independent living disability, not self-care.

Correct Answer:

C. Encourage goals to change lifestyle and eating habits.

Explanation:

Motivational interviewing is a client-centered approach that empowers patients to explore their own motivations for change and set realistic, self-directed goals. In this case, the adolescent should be encouraged to create lifestyle and eating habit goals that they feel ready and willing to pursue. By supporting autonomy and guiding self-reflection, the healthcare coordinator helps the adolescent take ownership of their health changes, which makes long-term success more likely.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. Establish goals on nutrition for the patient.

Setting goals for the patient is directive and not consistent with motivational interviewing, which emphasizes the patient’s autonomy in choosing their own goals.

B. Implement a physical fitness regimen for the patient.

Creating and enforcing a regimen is prescriptive and removes the adolescent’s role in decision-making. Motivational interviewing is about facilitating—not imposing—change.

D. Motivate the patient’s parents to participate in setting goals.

While family support can help, motivational interviewing focuses on the individual’s own motivations and readiness for change, not on others setting goals for them.

Correct Answer:

D. Contact an interpretation service for assistance

Explanation:

The most appropriate and ethical option is to contact a qualified interpretation service. Professional medical interpreters ensure that critical health information is communicated accurately, maintain confidentiality, and reduce the risk of misunderstandings. Family members may misinterpret instructions due to limited medical knowledge or language skills, potentially putting the patient at risk. Using professional interpreters aligns with patient-centered care, health literacy, and safety standards.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. Require teach-back

Teach-back is an effective method for confirming understanding, but it cannot be used if the patient does not understand the language in which the instructions are given. Without an interpreter, teach-back alone is ineffective.

B. Have the family present interpret the information

Relying on family members for interpretation risks miscommunication, breaches confidentiality, and may cause errors in conveying medical information. This is not considered best practice in healthcare.

C. Have pictures of wound care to bring home

While pictures can support instructions, they cannot replace direct verbal communication, especially when detailed wound care explanations are necessary. This option should be supplemental, not primary.

Correct Answer:

C. Encourage family to visit the patient during treatment.

Explanation:

A patient-centered approach recognizes the patient’s values, support systems, and personal circumstances. Encouraging family visits during treatment helps strengthen support networks, improves emotional well-being, and fosters accountability, which can directly reduce barriers to follow-through. Substance-abuse recovery is more successful when patients feel supported, not isolated, making family involvement an effective patient-centered strategy.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. Discuss the care plan with the patient only after treatment has resulted in improvements.

This excludes the patient from early decision-making and ignores autonomy. Patient-centered care requires involving the patient from the beginning, not waiting until after progress.

B. Request the patient to put aside personal preferences and follow preset course of action.

This reflects provider-driven care, not patient-centered care. Ignoring patient preferences can reduce engagement and increase resistance to treatment.

D. Limit collaboration with other healthcare providers until treatment is completed.

This approach isolates care providers instead of using an interdisciplinary team approach. Collaboration among providers is essential in substance-abuse treatment for holistic, effective care.

Correct Answer:

C. Autonomy

Explanation:

Autonomy is the ethical principle that recognizes a patient’s right to make their own healthcare decisions if they are competent. It emphasizes respect for the patient’s values, preferences, and independence, even if the decision involves discontinuing treatment. In this scenario, supporting the patient’s decision reflects respect for autonomy, as the healthcare provider acknowledges the individual’s control over their own body and medical choices.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. Justice

Justice involves fairness in healthcare, such as equal access to resources and treating patients without discrimination. While important, it does not apply directly to respecting an individual’s choice about their own treatment.

B. Non-maleficence

Non-maleficence means “do no harm.” Although discontinuing treatment may lead to harm, the principle guiding support for the patient’s decision is not about avoiding harm but about respecting their right to choose.

D. Beneficence

Beneficence involves doing good for the patient and acting in their best interest. While beneficence may motivate providers to continue treatment, the scenario emphasizes respecting the patient’s decision, which is autonomy, not beneficence.