Question

a patients chart states that the patient was having delusions. which behavior/symptom seen by the nurse would support this conclusion?

• the patient feels like he is going crazy on the inside.
• the patient thinks that the fbi is going to have him killed.
• the patient hears a voice telling him he should kill himself.
• the patient thinks a tree outside his window is a man with a gun.

Explanation:

Define a delusion and evaluate the options

A delusion is a fixed, false belief that is not grounded in reality and cannot be corrected by logical reasoning.

• Option 1: "The patient feels like he is going crazy on the inside." This is a subjective feeling of distress or anxiety, not a fixed false belief.
• Option 2: "The patient thinks that the FBI is going to have him killed." This is a classic persecutory delusion (a fixed, false belief of being targeted or harmed).
• Option 3: "The patient hears a voice telling him he should kill himself." This is an auditory hallucination (a sensory perception without an external stimulus), not a delusion.
• Option 4: "The patient thinks a tree outside his window is a man with a gun." This is an illusion (a misinterpretation of a real external sensory stimulus), not a delusion.

Therefore, only the second option represents a delusion.

Answer:

• (A) The patient feels like he is going crazy on the inside.
• (B) The patient thinks that the FBI is going to have him killed. (Correct answer)
• (C) The patient hears a voice telling him he should kill himself.
• (D) The patient thinks a tree outside his window is a man with a gun.