You are part of the health care team at an oncology center. Your patient has been diagnosed with leukemia and the prognosis is poor. The patient is unaware of the prognosis. How can the bad news best be conveyed to the patient?
A) Family should be given the prognosis first.
B) The prognosis should be delivered with the patient at eye level.
C) The physician should deliver the news to the patient alone.
D) The appointment should be scheduled at the end of the day.
Ans: B
Feedback: Communicating about a life-threatening diagnosis should be done in a team setting at eye level with the patient. The family cannot be notified first because that would breech patient confidentiality. The family may be present at the patient's request. Option D is incorrect; the appointment should be scheduled when principles can all be in attendance and unrushed.
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A Navajo client who is 36 weeks pregnant meets with the tribe's medicine man as well as her physician. The nurse understands this to mean that the client:
1. Is seeking spiritual direction. 2. Does not trust her physician. 3. Will not adapt to mothering well. 4. Is experiencing complications of pregnancy.
A client's venipuncture device needs to be temporarily capped. How will a nurse ensure that the vein remains patent?
A) Flush the lock with potassium chloride. B) Flush the lock with saline or heparinized saline. C) Flush the lock with cyclical total parenteral nutrition (TPN). D) Flush the lock with colloid solutions.
The nurse observes a patient's respirations during sleep and notes the absence of respirations for periods lasting from 15 to 45 seconds. This finding is consistent with which condition?
1. Laryngeal spasm 2. Sleep apnea 3. Respiratory acidosis 4. Renal failure
How often should an IO site be reassessed?
A) Every 10 to 15 minutes B) Every 15 to 20 minutes C) Every 5 to 10 minutes D) Every 2 to 5 minutes