A nurse is developing a plan of care for a school-age child whose family is homeless. Which of the following findings should the nurse identify as the priority?

The correct answer is C.

Choice A: Take extra wheelchairs to the emergency department While having extra wheelchairs available can be helpful in a disaster situation, it is not the primary responsibility of the PACU charge nurse. The logistics of equipment distribution would typically be managed by a different team or department.

Choice B: Send PACU assistive personnel to assist with triage Triage is a critical part of disaster response, but it is typically performed by trained emergency department personnel or those with specific training in disaster triage. PACU personnel should focus on their area of expertise, which is post-anesthesia care.

Choice C: Identify stable clients for transfer to a surgical unit This is the correct action. By identifying stable clients for transfer, the PACU charge nurse can free up space for incoming patients who may require immediate post-operative care. This action helps to ensure that the PACU is ready to receive patients who are likely to come from the emergency department after immediate lifesaving interventions.

Choice D: Report to the command center for further instructions While communication with the command center is important in a disaster situation, the PACU charge nurse’s primary responsibility is to manage the care environment and patient flow within their specific unit. Other teams or personnel would likely handle tasks like reporting to the command center.

Choice A rationale:

Reminding the staff members that viewing the electronic medical record of a celebrity client without proper authorization is a breach of confidentiality is the immediate action required in this situation. It addresses the ethical and legal concerns related to patient privacy and ensures that the staff members are reminded of their professional responsibilities.

Choice B rationale:

Discussing the issue with the nurse manager is a step that can be taken after addressing the immediate breach of confidentiality. While involving the manager is important for handling the situation more comprehensively, the first priority is to stop the unauthorized access.

Choice C rationale:

Requesting an administrative restriction on the client's record access is an option that can be considered, but it may not be the first step to take. Before implementing such a restriction, the breach of confidentiality should be addressed directly with the staff members involved.

Choice D rationale:

Preparing a memo for the facility ethics committee is not the initial action to take in response to the breach of confidentiality. This step might be appropriate for addressing systemic issues or policy changes related to confidentiality breaches, but it doesn't directly address the immediate situation at hand.