A nurse is assisting with the admission of a client to an acute mental health unit following a suicide attempt. The client has a history of depression, substance abuse, and anorexia nervosa. Which of the following actions should the nurse take first?
Initiate one-to-one nursing observation.
Make a contract with the client for weight gain.
Administer the Hamilton depression scale.
Review the client's toxicology laboratory report.
The Correct Answer is A
initiate one-to-one nursing observation, as this is the most urgent intervention to ensure the safety of the client. The client has a history of depression, substance abuse, anorexia nervosa, and attempted suicide, which indicates that they are at high risk for harm to themselves. One-to-one observation involves an assigned staff member who will be with the client at all times, ensuring their safety and preventing any further self-harm attempts.
Choice B, making a contract with the client for weight gain, is not an appropriate first action as it does not address the client's immediate safety concerns.
Choice C, administering the Hamilton depression scale, may be important to assess the client's depressive symptoms but is not the most urgent priority.
Choice D, reviewing the client's toxicology laboratory report, may be necessary for the overall assessment of the client, but safety comes first.
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Correct Answer is D
Explanation
The client is easily startled by loud voices. Clients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may exhibit hyperarousal symptoms, including exaggerated startle responses and hypervigilance. The client talking constantly about the traumatic experience is a possible finding in PTSD but not specific. The client is constantly drowsy and sleeping 11-12 hours daily is more associated with depression than PTSD. While the client may have satisfying personal relationships, it does not address the question of what finding to expect with PTSD, making choice C incorrect.
Reasons why the other choices are not answers:
Choice A, the client talking constantly about the traumatic experience, is a possible symptom of PTSD, but it is not specific to the disorder and may also indicate other disorders.
Choice B, the client being constantly drowsy and sleeping 11-12 hours daily, is more indicative of depression than PTSD and also does not address the question of finding expected with PTSD.
Choice C, the client reports satisfying personal relationships with family and close friends, does not address what finding is expected with PTSD, making it an incorrect answer.
Correct Answer is D
Explanation
If suspicion of abuse exists then reporting is mandatory.
Choice A is incorrect because civil liability does not depend on whether the abuse can be proven or not, but on whether the report was made in good faith or not.
Choice B is incorrect because evidence of abuse does not need to be collected prior to reporting, but only reasonable suspicion of abuse.
Choice C is incorrect because reporting is not voluntary for healthcare workers, but mandatory by law.
Choice D is correct because if suspicion of abuse exists then reporting is mandatory for any person, agency, organization, or entity with direct knowledge of child abuse or neglect.
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