The patient states, "I don't want to take this new medication. I looked it up on the Internet and there are so many side effects." How can the nurse best assist this patient?
1. Advise the patient not to read about medications on the Internet because the information is too complex to understand without help.
2. Access the site and help the patient understand the information presented about the medication.
3. Give the patient a copy of the information about the medication provided in a nursing handbook of medications.
4. Empower the patient to talk with the physician about the decision.
2
Explanation: 1. This strategy demeans the patient and the patient's attempts at self-care.
2. This patient has taken the initiative to read about the medication, but may not understand the information or the implications of the information. The nurse should take this as an opportunity to educate the patient about the medication and about the way medications are written about in the literature. Accessing the site would also allow the nurse to determine if the site was reputable and, if not, help the patient to find reputable sites.
3. This would be appropriate if no Internet access was available, but it would be best to view the information that the patient has daily access to and is using.
4. The nurse can help the patient with this decision and can educate the patient in this scenario.
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