The wife of a patient you are caring for asks to speak with you. She tells you that she is concerned because her husband is requiring increasingly high doses of analgesia
She states, "He was in pain long before he got cancer because he broke his back about 20 years ago. For that problem, though, his pain medicine wasn't just raised and raised." What would be the nurses' best response?
A) "I didn't know that. I will speak to the doctor about your husband's pain control."
B) "Much cancer pain is caused by tumor involvement and needs to be treated in a way that brings the patient relief."
C) "Cancer is a chronic kind of pain so the more it hurts the patient, the more medicine we give the patient until it no longer hurts."
D) "Does the increasing medication dosage concern you?"
Ans: B
Feedback:
Much pain associated with cancer is a direct result of tumor involvement. Conveying patient/family concerns to the physician is something a nurse does, but is not the best response by the nurse. Cancer pain can be either acute or chronic, and you do not tell a family member that you are going to keep increasing the dosage of the medication until "it doesn't hurt anymore." The family member is obviously concerned.
You might also like to view...
Utilizing Urie Bronfenbrenner's ecologic theory of development, the nurse caring for a child would discuss the parents' work environment as part of an assessment of that child's:
1. Macrosystem. 2. Exosystem. 3. Mesosystem. 4. Chronosystem.
The nurse is conducting an interview with an adult female patient. Which questions should the nurse ask that focus on genetic factors that influence the endocrine system?
Select all that apply. 1. Did you have any difficulties with your pregnancies? 2. What was the pattern and characteristics of your menstrual cycle? 3. Did you have any problems related to menopause? 4. Have you noticed any changes in your breasts? 5. Have you noticed any changes in the color of your urine or feces?
The prescriber's order reads, "Lortab 7.5 mg q4h prn incisional pain." The nurse will correctly give the pain medication
1. Every 6 hours, unless the patient asks for it sooner. 2. Anytime the patient states he or she is in pain. 3. Only if the patient specifically requests a Lortab. 4. No sooner than 4 hours after the last dose, if the patient is experiencing pain
Round medications to the ________ place.
Fill in the blank(s) with the appropriate word(s).