South Carolina Long Term Health Care Administrator Practice Test

If a newly employed staff member had a documented negative TST, how many TSTs can serve as the baseline?

1. One

2. Two

3. Three

4. Four

The correct answer is: One

A newly employed staff member with a documented negative Tuberculin Skin Test (TST) can use that single test result as the baseline. The reason this is the case is that a single negative TST is usually deemed sufficient to assess an individual’s current risk for tuberculosis (TB) exposure and infection, especially in a healthcare setting where staff may come into contact with individuals who are at a higher risk of TB. In the context of healthcare and long-term care facilities, following guidelines for TB screening is essential to ensure the safety of both the staff and the residents. A documented negative result indicates that the individual does not have an active TB infection at the time of testing. Therefore, it is appropriate and sufficient to consider that one negative TST as the baseline for ongoing health assessments and future testing, tracking the individual’s exposure and risk over time. The other choices, while they might suggest an approach to ongoing testing, are unnecessary because a single negative TST adequately establishes an individual’s baseline status regarding tuberculosis without the need for multiple tests. Multiple tests would not typically change the baseline established by a single negative result.