NCLEX Prioritization and Delegation
Updated October 27, 2026
“Which client should the nurse see first?” and “Which task can the nurse delegate?” are some of the most common NCLEX questions, and they appear throughout the exam, not only in Management of Care. They’re less about memorizing facts than about using a few frameworks in the right order. Here they are, followed by free practice questions.
Prioritization frameworks
Use these in order when choosing which client or action comes first:
- Airway, Breathing, Circulation (ABCs). A threat to the airway beats a threat to breathing, which beats a threat to circulation.
- Maslow’s hierarchy. Physiological needs come before safety, which comes before love and belonging, esteem and self-actualization.
- Acute before chronic. A new or sudden change is more urgent than a long-standing condition.
- Unstable before stable. An unexpected finding is more urgent than an expected one.
- Actual before potential. A problem happening now comes before a risk.
Expected findings aren’t priorities. For example, some pain after surgery is expected; a sudden drop in blood pressure isn’t.
Delegation
Registered nurses delegate to licensed practical nurses (LPNs/LVNs) and assistive personnel (AP), but some tasks always stay with the RN.
The RN keeps: assessment, care planning, evaluation, initial teaching, and care of unstable clients.
AP can usually do: routine tasks with predictable outcomes for stable clients, such as vital signs, bathing, feeding, ambulation, positioning, and measuring intake and output.
The five rights of delegation: the right task, under the right circumstances, to the right person, with the right directions and communication, and with the right supervision and evaluation.
Scope of practice varies by state and employer, but the NCLEX tests these general principles.
Free prioritization and delegation practice questions
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Which client should the nurse see first?Answer: DNew stridor after an antibiotic suggests airway swelling from an allergic reaction, which threatens the airway. The others are stable or expected.
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Which task can the RN delegate to assistive personnel?Answer: AMeasuring intake and output for a stable client is a routine task with a predictable outcome. Assessment, initial teaching and evaluation stay with the RN.
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Using Maslow's hierarchy, which need should the nurse address first?Answer: BBreathing is a physiological need, the base of Maslow's hierarchy, so it comes before safety, belonging and esteem needs.
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Which finding is most urgent?Answer: CA sudden drop in blood pressure with a rising heart rate suggests shock or bleeding, an unstable and acute problem affecting circulation.
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Which assignment is most appropriate for an LPN?Answer: DA stable client needing a routine procedure fits LPN scope. New admissions, initial teaching and possible transfusion reactions need the RN.
Pass the NCLEX-RN with confidence
- All 178 questions across the eight Client Needs categories of the 2026 NCLEX-RN test plan
- An explanation for every answer, with the guideline, drug label or priority rule behind it
- Unlimited full 85-question practice exams, with each area in its test plan share