UPUMS Nsg.Officer-2024
Mental Health Nursing
Easy

Severely intellectually disabled people have an IQ range of?

Appeared in: UPUMS Nsg.Officer-2024

Explanation

  • The IQ range of 20 to 35 is the standard classification for severe intellectual disability.
  • This group constitutes about 4% of all individuals with intellectual disabilities.
  • Individuals in this category typically have minimal communication skills, impaired motor development, and require extensive support and supervision in a structured living situation.
  • While they may learn basic self-care skills, they are unlikely to live independently.

Why Other Options Were Wrong

  • Option A: The IQ range of 40 to 54 falls within the classification for moderate intellectual disability (typically 35-50).
  • Option B: Although this range (25 to 39) overlaps with the severe category, it is not the standard defined range. The range of 20-35 is more precise and widely accepted.
  • Option C: The IQ range of 54 to 65 falls within the classification for mild intellectual disability (typically 50-70).

Related Visual

Visual explanation — Related Visual
Clinical Relevance
  • Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Classification of intellectual disability based on IQ scores as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
  • Understanding the levels of intellectual disability is crucial for nurses to create an effective and individualized care plan. This includes assessing the patient's ability to communicate, perform activities of daily living (ADLs), and understand health information.
  • For a patient with severe intellectual disability, nursing interventions would focus on ensuring safety, assisting with all ADLs, using simple and concrete communication, and providing a structured, predictable environment.
  • What if? If a patient's IQ was 45, they would be classified as having moderate intellectual disability. The nursing care plan would shift to focus on teaching and reinforcing self-care skills, promoting social interaction in a supported environment, and preparing them for semi-skilled work under supervision, which is a higher level of functioning than expected for severe ID.
How to Approach the Question
  • First, identify the key terms in the question: 'Severely intellectually disabled' and 'IQ range'.
  • This is a factual recall question. Access your knowledge of psychiatric nursing and the classification of intellectual disability.
  • Recall the four levels of severity: Mild, Moderate, Severe, and Profound.
  • Mentally arrange the levels from highest to lowest functioning: Mild (>50), Moderate (approx. 35-50), Severe (approx. 20-35), and Profound (<20).
  • Compare these recalled ranges with the given options.
  • Select the option that most closely matches the standard IQ range for 'Severe' intellectual disability.
Concept Tested & Keywords
  • Concept Tested: Classification of intellectual disability based on IQ scores.
  • Stem keywords: Severely intellectually disabled, IQ range
  • Lead-in keywords: is

Question ID

QNADKRVfAM3OasGkQ-Zg91

Reference Book

E6 Kaplan Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry-2022 (pp 1-3768 of 3768) p. 311-313

E6 Robert Boland, Marcia L. Verduin - Kaplan and Sadock's Comprehensive Text of Psychiatry-Wolters Kluwer Health (2024) (pp 1-16525 of 16525) p. 11763-11765

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