body position

HESI A2
Vocabulary and General Knowledge
Multiple choice
Difficulty 2 of 5

Question

A client’s repositioning record says the client is in a lateral position. What does lateral mean in this sentence?

Lying on the back✗ Incorrect

This describes a different position or direction than lateral position.
Lying on a side✓ Correct

This matches the meaning of lateral position in the note.
Lying on the abdomen✗ Incorrect

This describes a different position or direction than lateral position.
Standing with arms raised✗ Incorrect

This describes a different position or direction than lateral position.

Answer

B. Lying on a side

Rationale

Here lateral refers to a side-lying posture. The word describes the client’s position, rather than a direction between landmarks.

RememberA lateral position places the person on a side.

Sources

Sources marked “Adapted from” are licensed under CC BY 4.0. We changed the material: its facts are rewritten into an original question, answer options and rationale. The original authors and publishers do not endorse SwipeExam.

Adapted from Open RN Medical Terminology, 2nd edition: Chapter 2 Medical Language Related to the Whole Body Open RN (Chippewa Valley Technical College) · License: CC BY 4.0 · Retrieved November 2, 2026 · Anatomical View of the Body, Positions, Locations, and Directional Terms › Anatomical Positions and Locations · 2nd edition, 2024

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