A patient calls the clinic to talk to the nurse. The patient states that he or she saw the physician "last week" and was prescribed penicillin for a strep throat
The patient goes on to say that they feel so much better they stopped taking the drug "today," even though there are "a few pills left." What is the nurse's best response? A) "Okay, thank you for letting me know. I will document in your medical record that the treatment was effective."
B) "It is important that you take all the medication so all the germs are killed. Otherwise they could come right back and be even stronger."
C) "What you have described is the halo effect of the drug, making you feel better when you are still infected. You'll feel sick again when the drug is out of your system."
D) "You will need to come to the clinic and be evaluated by your physician to make sure the infection is really gone."
B
Feedback:
The duration of drug use is critical to ensure that the microbes are completely, not partially, eliminated and are not given the chance to grow and develop resistant strains. The nurse must explain the importance of taking all of the prescribed medication and should not agree with the patient. This is not related to a halo effect and the patient may feel well until drug levels decrease rather than being completely eliminated from the body. The patient does not need to be seen if the infection is responding to treatment, but they must take the rest of the antibiotic.
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