A nurse is caring for a client who has cancer. The client and her partner are asking the nurse about hospice care. Which of the following statements by the nurse is appropriate?

Choice A reason: Beneficence is the ethical principle of doing good or acting in the best interest of others. While this is an important principle for nurses to follow, it does not directly apply to the situation of reporting the truth about the incident.

Choice B reason: Nonmaleficence is the ethical principle of avoiding harm or minimizing the risk of harm to others. This principle is relevant to the prevention of falls and the use of gait belts, but it does not address the issue of honesty in documentation.

Choice C reason: Fidelity is the ethical principle of being faithful or loyal to one's commitments and responsibilities. This principle relates to the nurse's duty to provide safe and competent care to the client, but it does not specify the obligation to report the facts accurately.

Choice D reason: Veracity is the ethical principle of telling the truth or being truthful. This principle is the most appropriate for the charge nurse to follow in this case, as it requires the nurse to report the incident honestly and completely, including the omission of the gait belt. This is essential for quality improvement, legal protection, and ethical accountability.

Choice A reason: Accompanying a client who just had a wound debridement to physical therapy is not a task that the nurse should assign to the LPN, as it requires the nurse to monitor the client's vital signs, wound status, and pain level. The nurse should accompany the client and delegate other tasks to the LPN or the assistive personnel.

Choice B reason: Providing postmortem care for a client who has just died is not a task that the nurse should assign to the LPN, as it requires the nurse to verify the death, notify the provider and the family, and document the care. The nurse should provide postmortem care and delegate other tasks to the LPN or the assistive personnel.

Choice C reason: Obtaining a urine specimen from an older adult client is not a task that the nurse should assign to the LPN, as it is a basic skill that the assistive personnel can perform. The nurse should assign this task to the assistive personnel and supervise their work.

Choice D reason: Reinforcing dietary teaching with a client who has heart disease is a task that the nurse should assign to the LPN, as it is within the LPN's scope of practice to reinforce the teaching that the nurse has initiated. The nurse should provide the initial teaching and evaluate the client's learning.