CNA Medical-Surgical LPN (MSPNC(C)) study guide
CNA Medical-Surgical LPN (MSPNC(C)) · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The MSPNC(C) - Medical-Surgical Licensed Practical Nurse Certification - is a credential for licensed practical and vocational nurses who want formal recognition of their medical-surgical knowledge. It signals to employers, colleagues, and patients that a nurse can manage care for adults with complex, often unstable, medical and surgical conditions. The CNA Medical-Surgical LPN (MSPNC(C)) study guide has 8 sections and about 2,589 words.
01Coordinated Care: Assignments, Delegation, and the Care Plan
Coordinated care questions test whether you can organize care for a group of clients and work legally within the LPN scope. Know the five rights of delegation (right task, circumstance, person, direction/communication, supervision), the difference between delegation and assignment, and which tasks may go to unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP).
328 words, about 2 min02Safety and Infection Control: Precautions, Restraints, and Never Events
This domain rewards precise recall of transmission-based precautions. Standard precautions apply to all clients: hand hygiene, gloves for contact with blood or body fluids, and eye/mask protection when splash is likely.
324 words, about 2 min03Health Promotion and Maintenance: Screening, Teaching, and Development
Expect questions on age-specific screening schedules, immunization timing, developmental milestones, and client teaching. Know that colorectal cancer screening begins around age 45, mammography is generally discussed from age 40 to 50 depending on risk, cervical screening starts at 21, and bone density screening is recommended for women around age 65.
320 words, about 2 min04Psychosocial Integrity: Coping, Grief, and Therapeutic Communication
Psychosocial questions test therapeutic communication and recognition of coping styles. Know the difference between adaptive and maladaptive coping, the stages of grief (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance), and the signs of complicated grief.
310 words, about 2 min05Basic Care and Comfort: Mobility, Skin, Nutrition, and Elimination
This domain covers the hands-on fundamentals: positioning and alignment, pressure injury prevention, hygiene, nutrition and hydration, urinary and bowel elimination, sleep, and pain management. Know the Braden scale categories, staging of pressure injuries (stage 1 is nonblanchable erythema; stage 3 extends to subcutaneous tissue; stage 4 exposes muscle or bone; unstageable is obscured by slough or eschar), and the rule that you never massage a reddened area.
321 words, about 2 min06Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies: Rights, Calculations, and Monitoring
Know the rights of medication administration (right client, drug, dose, route, time, documentation, reason, and the client's right to refuse), the three checks, and the use of two identifiers. Know high-alert medications (insulin, heparin, opioids, potassium, chemotherapy), independent double checks, and look-alike/sound-alike names.
318 words, about 2 min07Reduction of Risk Potential: Recognizing Deterioration Early
This domain tests your ability to detect and respond to complications before they become emergencies. Know the early signs of hypovolemic shock (increasing heart rate, narrowing pulse pressure, decreasing urine output, restlessness, then hypotension), sepsis (fever or hypothermia, tachycardia, tachypnea, altered mental status, hypotension late), and respiratory failure (increasing respiratory rate, restlessness, falling oxygen saturation, use of accessory muscles).
345 words, about 2 min08Physiological Adaptation: Managing Acute and Chronic Conditions
This domain asks you to manage the pathophysiology of common medical-surgical conditions. Know fluid and electrolyte imbalances: hyperkalemia (peaked T waves, muscle weakness), hypokalemia (flat T waves, arrhythmias, ileus), hyponatremia (confusion, seizures), and hypernatremia (thirst, neurologic changes).
323 words, about 2 min