A nurse prepares to assess the emotional state of a client with end-stage pancreatic cancer. Which action should the nurse take first?
a. Bring the client to a quiet room for privacy.
b. Pull up a chair and sit next to the client's bed.
c. Determine whether the client feels like talking about his or her feelings.
d. Review the health care provider's notes about the prognosis for the client.
ANS: C
Before conducting an assessment about the client's feelings, the nurse should determine whether he or she is willing and able to talk about them. If the client is open to the conversation and his or her room is not appropriate, an alternative meeting space may be located. The nurse should be present for the client during this time, and pulling up a chair and sitting with the client indicates that presence. Because the nurse is assessing the client's response to a terminal diagnosis, it is not necessary to have detailed information about the projected prognosis; the nurse knows that the client is facing an end-of-life illness.
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