Dictionary

NCLEX words

The exam's own working vocabulary: assess, reinforce, prioritize, UAP and the rest.

take actionThe fifth step of the NCSBN Clinical Judgment Measurement Model: carrying out the nursing actions chosen for the client.

tall man letteringWriting parts of look-alike drug names in capital letters so the difference between them stands out.

teach-backA way to check understanding by asking the client to explain, in their own words, what they have just been taught.

telephone orderA treatment or medication order a provider gives to a nurse by phone instead of entering it in writing.

terminologyThe special words and terms used in a particular field, such as medicine or nursing.

tertiary preventionThe level of prevention that limits harm and disability from a disease a person already has.

therapeutic communicationPurposeful, client-centered communication that helps a client express feelings and work toward health.

therapeutic effectThe helpful effect a drug or treatment is given to produce.

therapeutic milieuA treatment setting, such as a mental health unit, arranged so that the place, the routine and the people in it help clients recover.

therapeutic relationshipA professional relationship between a nurse and a client that is focused on the client's needs and goals.

time-outA pause just before a procedure when the whole team confirms the right client, procedure and site; also, a short break to calm a child.

titrateTo adjust the dose or rate of a drug step by step until the wanted effect is reached.

toleranceA reduced response to a drug after repeated use, so a higher dose is needed for the same effect; also the ability to endure something.

tortA wrong act, or a failure to act, that harms another person and for which a court can make the wrongdoer pay.

transientLasting only a short time and then going away.

trendThe direction a set of findings moves over time, such as a value that keeps rising or falling.

triageSorting clients by how urgently they need care, to decide who is seen first.

two client identifiersTwo pieces of information unique to a client, such as full name and date of birth, used to confirm who they are before care.