Chapter 32
"Using an oral electronic thermometer, the nurse checks the early morning temperature of a client. The client's temperature is 36.1° C (97° F). The client's remaining vital signs are in the normally acceptable range. What should the nurse do next? A) Check the client's temperature history. B) Document the results; temperature is normal. C) Recheck the temperature every 15 minutes until it is normal. D) Get another thermometer; the temperature is obviously an error."
A - Although early morning temperatures are routinely low, the best practice is for the nurse to check the client's previous temperatures. Clients may routinely have a low temperature. Depending on the client's temperature history, the nurse may retake the temperature with another thermometer to check for a malfunction. If everything seems satisfactory, the nurse should chart the temperature and check the client for signs of hypothermia.
"Besides high blood pressure values, what other signs and symptoms may the nurse observe if hypertension is present? A) Unexplained pain and hyperactivity B) Headache, flushing of the face, and nosebleed C) Dizziness, mental confusion, and mottled extremities D) Restlessness and dusky or cyanotic skin that is cool to the touch"
B - Hypertension is often asymptomatic until pressure is very high. Headache (usually occipital), facial flushing, nosebleed, and fatigue are common symptoms of hypertension. Restlessness and dusky or cyanotic skin that is cool to the touch, dizziness, mental confusion, and mottled extremities are all signs and symptoms of hypotension. Unexplained pain and hyperactivity are very vague complaints.
"The nurse decides to take an apical pulse instead of a radial pulse. Which of the following client conditions influenced the nurse's decision? A) The client is in shock. B) The client has an arrhythmia. C) The client underwent surgery 18 hours earlier. D) The client showed a response to orthostatic changes."
B - The apical pulse gives the nurse the most information and accuracy when assessing irregular cardiac rhythm. The carotid or femoral pulses are usually used to assess a client in shock. The radial pulse is adequate for determining routine postoperative vital signs and for checking changes in orthostatic heart rate.
"The client, who has been on bed rest for 2 days, asks to get out of bed to go to the bathroom. He has new orders for ""up ad lib."" What action should the nurse take? A) Give him some slippers and tell him where the bathroom is located. B) Ask the nursing assistant to assist him to the bathroom. C) Obtain orthostatic blood pressure measurements. D) Tell him it is not a good idea and provide a urinal."
C - Since the "up ad lib" orders are new and the client has been on bed rest, checking orthostatic blood pressure before allowing the client to ambulate is the correct answer. If no sign of orthostatic hypotension is present, then a nursing assistant could assist him to the bathroom. Giving the client a urinal is not a good choice if the client is asymptomatic when orthostatic blood pressure is checked.
"The nurse's documentation indicates that a client has a pulse deficit of 14 beats. The pulse deficit is measured by: A) Subtracting 60 (bradycardia) from the client's pulse rate and reporting the difference B) Subtracting the client's pulse rate from 100 (tachycardia) and reporting the difference C) Assessing the apical pulse and the radial pulse for the same minute and subtracting the difference D) Assessing the apical pulse and 30 minutes later assessing the carotid pulse and subtracting the difference"
C - To measure pulse deficit the nurse and a colleague assess the radial and apical pulse rates simultaneously and subtract the radial from the apical pulse rate. The result is the pulse deficit. Tachycardia and bradycardia are assessed by measuring the pulse rate for 1 minute. A rate of more than 100 beats per minute is categorized as tachycardia, whereas a rate of less than 60 beats per minute constitutes bradycardia.
"The nurse finds that the systolic blood pressure of an adult client is 88 mm Hg. What are the appropriate nursing interventions? A) Check other vital signs. B) Recheck the blood pressure and give the client orange juice. C) Recheck the blood pressure after ambulating the client safely. D) Recheck the blood pressure, make sure the client is safe, and report the findings."
D - All questionable blood pressure readings should be rechecked. Ensuring the client's safety is a necessary safeguard, because low blood pressure is generally accompanied by weakness. For the majority of people, low blood pressure (systolic pressure of 90 mm Hg or below) is an abnormal finding and should be reported. Giving a client orange juice may raise blood glucose level but is not recommended to elevate blood pressure. Ambulating a client with hypotension would not be following safety precautions.
"Which of the following values for vital signs would the nurse address first? A) Heart rate = 72 beats per minute B) Respiration rate = 28 breaths per minute C) Blood pressure = 160/86 D) Oxygen saturation by pulse oximetry = 89% E) Temperature = 37.2° C (99° F), tympanic"
D - An oxygen saturation of 89% should be addressed first, because this indicates that a client needs oxygen. The high respiratory rate may be a result of hypoxemia and may decrease as the oxygen saturation climbs. The blood pressure is high, but this might be attributed to hypoxemia or anxiety. The heart rate and temperature are within normal limits.
"The nurse observes that a client's breathing pattern represents Cheyne-Stokes respiration. Which statement best describes the Cheyne-Stokes pattern? A) Respirations cease for several seconds. B) Respirations are abnormally shallow for two to three breaths followed by irregular periods of apnea. C) Respirations are labored, with an increase in depth and rate (more than 20 breaths per minute); the condition occurs normally during exercise. D) Respiration rate and depth are irregular, with alternating periods of apnea and hyperventilation; the cycle begins with slow breaths and climaxes in apnea."
D - Cheyne-Stokes respiration is an irregular respiratory rate and depth with alternating periods of apnea and hyperventilation; it begins with slow breaths and climaxes in apnea before respiration resumes.
"The nurse is to measure vital signs as part of the preparation for a test. The client is talking with a visiting pastor. How should the nurse handle measuring the rate of respiration? A) Count respirations during the time the client is not talking to the visitor. B) Wait at the client's bedside until the visit is over and then count respirations. C) Tell the client it is very important to end the conversation so the nurse can count respirations. D) Document the respiration rate as ""deferred"" and measure the rate later, since the talking client is obviously not in respiratory distress."
D - Postponing this assessment is definitely a judgment call by the nurse. Postponing is appropriate unless the assessment of respiration is a critical aspect of the test and the client is leaving for the test immediately. Otherwise, it is probably not necessary to invade the client's privacy and disrupt the visitation. Agency policy will dictate whether the respiration rate should be documented as "deferred" or whether documentation can wait until the rate is obtained. Respirations should be counted when the client is "at rest"; therefore, counting respirations during the visitation would not be appropriate. Waiting at the bedside until the visitor leaves is an invasion of privacy for the client and a waste of the nurse's time.
"The hypothalamus controls body temperature. The anterior hypothalamus controls heat loss, and the posterior hypothalamus controls heat production. What heat conservation mechanisms will the posterior hypothalamus initiate when it senses that the client's body temperature is lower than comfortable? A) Vasodilation and redistribution of blood to surface vessels B) Sweating, vasodilation, and redistribution of blood to surface vessels C) Vasoconstriction, sweating, and reduction of blood flow to extremities D) Vasoconstriction, reduction of blood flow to extremities, and shivering"
D - The anterior hypothalamus controls heat loss by initiating the mechanisms of sweating and vasodilation of blood vessels. Blood is redistributed to surface vessels (flushing of the skin) to promote heat loss, not heat retention. The posterior hypothalamus controls heat production by initiating the mechanisms of shivering, vasoconstriction of blood vessels, and reduction of blood flow to the skin and extremities.
"Delegation of some tasks may become one of the decisions the nurse will make while on duty. For which of the following clients would it be most appropriate for unlicensed assistive personnel to measure the client's vital signs? A) A client who recently started taking an antiarrhythmic medication B) A client with a history of transfusion reactions who is receiving a blood transfusion C) A client who has frequently been admitted to the unit with asthma attacks D) A client who is being admitted for elective surgery who has a history of stable hypertension"
D - The nurse may delegate vital signs measurement to unlicensed assistive personnel when the client is in stable condition, the results are predictable, and the technique is standard. The preoperative client is the only client listed who meets these guidelines.
"The client has an oral temperature of 39.2° C (102.6° F). What are the most appropriate nursing interventions? A) Provide an alcohol sponge bath and monitor laboratory results. B) Remove excess clothing, provide a tepid sponge bath, and administer an analgesic. C) Provide fluids and nutrition, keep the client's room warm, and administer an analgesic. D) Reduce external coverings and keep clothing and bed linens dry; administer antipyretics as ordered."
D - Therapies such as tepid water or alcohol sponge baths should be avoided because they lead to shivering, which stimulates body heat. Antipyretics, not analgesics, are the medications that lower body temperature.
"An 82-year-old widower brought via ambulance is admitted to the emergency department with complaints of shortness of breath, anorexia, and malaise. He recently visited his health care provider and was put on an antibiotic for pneumonia. The client indicates that he also takes a diuretic and a beta blocker, which helps his ""high blood."" Which vital sign value would take priority in initiating care? A) Respiration rate = 20 breaths per minute B) Oxygen saturation by pulse oximetry = 92% C) Blood pressure = 138/84 D) Temperature = 39° C (102° F), tympanic"
D - This client has a fever, potentially secondary to the pneumonia previously diagnosed. His blood pressure is within normal limits. His oxygen saturation is at 92%, so this will need to be addressed second. His respiratory rate is high, which can be a result of the fever.
