A nurse is planning care for a client who is at 36 weeks of gestation and has preeclampsia with severe features. Which of the following actions should the nurse plan to implement?

Rationale:

A. Arrange for a meeting with the child's guardians tomorrow: Meeting with the guardians may be appropriate later, but initially, the nurse must follow mandatory reporting laws. Waiting to meet could delay protection for the child and place them at further risk.

B. Notify the president of the school board: Reporting to school administration does not replace legal obligations to report suspected child abuse. The school board president is not the appropriate authority for immediate child protection.

C. Ask the child's peers about the bruises: Questioning peers is inappropriate and could violate privacy or compromise the investigation. The nurse should not attempt to investigate the situation personally.

D. Report the findings to child protective services: As a mandated reporter, the nurse is legally required to report any suspected child abuse immediately to child protective services. This action ensures the child’s safety and initiates an official investigation.

Rationale:

A. Instruct the client to discard the medication in the toilet: Disposing of medication in the toilet is not a recommended first action, as it does not address the client’s question about safely taking a half dose. Safe disposal is only necessary for expired or unwanted medications.

B. Manually break the tablets in half: Manually breaking tablets without knowing if they are designed to be split can lead to inaccurate dosing and affect drug efficacy. Some medications are not safe to split due to extended-release properties or uneven distribution of active ingredients.

C. Determine if the tablets are scored: Scored tablets are specifically designed to be split, ensuring accurate dosing. The nurse should verify whether the medication is scored before advising the client to cut it, ensuring safety and effectiveness of the prescribed dose.

D. Ask the pharmacy to create a liquid version of the medication: While a liquid formulation may be appropriate for accurate dosing if the tablet cannot be safely split, the first step is to confirm whether the current tablet can be divided. The pharmacy can then provide alternatives if splitting is unsafe.